Before moving back to Appalachia, I admit to building a certain kind of fledgling sense of an eccentrically Southern cultural liberal strain (with some distinctly queer spins) on the east side of the Smokies, in NC, my interest mostly sparked by the fact of Black Mountain College. Back then, I mused over a little-known writer I feel some poetic ( Read more... )

I want to thank everybody who kept me in mind after my last post about my grandfather's death. Your words and thoughts make a huge difference to me. And from earlier posts, you likely know that my grandfather's was a good death. He was ready and he's no longer in pain.

( funeral )

My grandfather died before dawn this morning. Am at my parents' now. Dead tired. About to crash really hard.

My mom emailed me yesterday to let me know that my grandfather's condition -- as expected -- has quickly deteriorated. He is now not able to walk, and has had a hospital bed put in their house. He has hospice care ( Read more... )

The trip home was good. My grandfather -- despite the illness -- was extremely talkative, his humor still sharp. I found myself interested in older relatives, ones I could only barely remember, if even that. So I asked Grand-Daddy about them. He had a lot of stories to tell.

( trees )

I am going back to Fayetteville again this weekend. This is the last completely free weekend I'll have for a while, so I decided to cancel this weekend's queer discussion group and go home to spend some time with Grand-Dad before it's too late ( Read more... )

I am currently actively ignoring how unsettled I am after my trip home. My mother had warned me -- as I mentioned earlier -- that my grandfather is not doing well.

( jimmy )

My friend Brian called my about 2 last night. His stepfather, who has been in a coma for a few days from a brain hemmorhage, was put on "Do Not Resuscitate". Brian said that he would be brain dead sometime in the middle of the night last night and that they'd do nothing to prevent his death at this point. So it's a waiting game ( Read more... )

When I go home, I go down Highway 64. It takes me a little longer (it's a four-hour drive) but it's prettier, more interesting than the northern Miississippi wasteland 4-lane ( Read more... )