Wow, Meat Loaf’s death really surprised me and made me sad. He was such a one-of-a-kind and by all accounts a really decent human being. I didn’t even know he was 74 years old – how did that happen?

I admit I never owned any of his albums and I really only knew his big hits but I always liked him and remember it well when “Bat Out of Hell” came out in Junior High School and how huge it was. “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad” is still one of my favorites. It’s easy to make fun of overly-grandiose music like that, but I sure do like it. Some of the lyrics still get to me. I can tell myself, “Aw c’mon, it’s just an over-the-top power ballad,” but it works.

So here I am feeling kind of misty eyed over Meat Loaf’s death but what’s behind it are a lot of memories that came up when I heard the news and remembered those songs. I’ve written a little before about my old friend whom I’ll call Kathy. She was a genetic woman with whom I was best friends for over twenty-five years, having met when I was about nineteen – she was several years older. If I’d ever gotten married to a genetic woman it would have been her, though it also would have been a complete disaster. Now though I like cock way too much anyway to ever marry a woman – although I’ve sometimes imagined clicking with a lesbian where we don’t have sex but are still very fond of each other. Somehow I think that could actually work (only half joking).

Kathy and I took lots of trips together, watched hundreds of movies together, and had a silly private language of inside jokes that in hindsight were just stupid. And then twelve years ago we got into a series of arguments and became estranged. We haven’t spoken to each other since and I doubt that the only way we would ever speak again is if some serious illness or accident were to befall one of us – even then I don’t know if either of us would reach out. It’s so strange how someone can be so close in your life and then suddenly it’s over. I used to think, Oh, Kathy and I will always be there for each other, how could we not be?

So that’s what’s on my mind. I heard the news of Meat Loaf’s passing and just started thinking about the past. This is probably a pretty self indulgent post and I may just delete it tomorrow. In the meantime I think I’ll go listen to some more Meat Loaf on YouTube while I edit some more pics. Might be time to watch “The Rocky Horror Picture Show” again sometime too in the next few weeks. Rest in Peace.