Cinco de Mayo: Independence Day
posted by Trey Duffy on Thursday, May 6, 2010

Our good friend opted to say "Adios" to us on Cinco de Mayo, commonly know as Mexico's Independence Day (even though it isn't). It is a day of celebration of Mexican heritage and pride. As we all know, Steve's sir name is Spanish for "yes" and he was very proud of his heritage.The 5th was a rough day for him. Up until then he was hanging in there pretty good. Though not well, he didn't seem to be in pain and continued to be in good humor. However, yesterday he lost the ability to communicate with us early in the day, developed extreme difficulty with breathing and seemed beyond uncomfortable (regardless of increased medications).I didn't get home until about 7:30PM and then went in and sat with Steve while Kitch took a shower. Then Linda, Kitch and I went to Steve's bedside where we sat quietly holding his hands, wiping his brow with a warm washcloth and reminiscing some about the ole days.His breathing became less frequent, with ten, fifteen and then twenty second pauses between breathes. Then, at about 9:20, he took his last breath and quietly transitioned to the other side. It felt like Steve had waited for me to get home and for Kitch to finish her shower before he departed.We called hospice and a nurse was here in about 30 minutes. He destroyed the cache of medications and called the funeral home. Another hour passed and our good friend was taken from us.As far as dying goes, Steve's final month was about as good as it gets. He was able to say good-bye to his family and dozens of his friends. He felt the love and caring of an extended family the size of Yreka. He was able to take care of business, wrap up lose ends and irritate the hell out his closest friends right up to the end.The cremation will likely be on Tuesday. The family is planning a memorial service and friends are planning a "celebration of life" (i.e., wake, party) for Sunday, June 6th, 4 PM; Odd Fellows Lodge, Dana St, SLO (tentative but more than likely).The Last Hoot is The Greencards on Sunday, May 16th, 3 PM at Vina Robles Winery in Paso Robles (see http://www.cambriahoot.com/ ) Come help us make it the most successful Hoot ever. It would be a great way to honor our dear friend (though the band may be confused by all the crying).Don't know about you, but I miss em already,Honored to have been his friend,Trey