My Friend David Perry

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  Walnut Creek, California
Saturday, June 10, 2006

I never thought I would be writing a travelogue entry like this. Today my friend Dave lost his battle with carcinoid cancer. He passed away peacefully in the presence of his family and friends.

Dave and I met four years ago when we worked together at Prima in Walnut Creek. We became instant friends and were immediately joined at the hip... or the foot, rather, since we spent most of our time dancing! The summer we met, we hit the San Francisco music scene hard, and since then have spent every New Year's together, traveled together to Colorado, DC, and North Carolina, have seen countless concerts together (Widespread Panic, Karl Denson, and others) and have been die-hard Jamcruisers since the maiden voyage in 2004. On top of all that, we have whiled away inumerable hours chewing the fat over a glass (or many) of his finely selected wine, or burning up countless minutes in daily phone calls across the continent.

The bright lining to this awful cloud is that Dave and Christen, the love of his life, got married last Monday in the presence of both of their families and friends. Dave said it was the best day of his life. Many people go their whole lives without finding the love that Dave and Christen have, and I'm thrilled they could solidify their union in front of God and their loved ones.

I flew home from Costa Rica on Wednesday and was able to spend a few wonderful moments with Dave before he passed. We laughed and talked about what great times we had spent together. I held his hand the day he died. Dave did more in four decades--and even in the four years I knew him--than many people do in twice that time. I am proud to say that I shared many of those stellar experiences with him. I certainly consider them some of the best times of my life.

I will continue to celebrate Dave's life as we often celebrated life together. He was the greatest friend anybody could have; he was the best listener and, more than anybody else I have ever met, always up for a good time. In that respect, he was probably the only person who could keep up with my craziness and he did that with gusto. I will be happy to carry on the legacy of his enthusiasm and loyalty for the rest of my life.

Pura Vida,

Krisztina

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