"Life may be sweeter for this, I don't know.
See how it feels in the end."
I had a good friend in college, Brent. I can't remember any Dead show I went to without him in the 6 years I was going to shows. He was a nutjob; always talking, really funny, so much energy. He played guitar very well but couldn't sing to save his life, although that didn't stop him from trying. He did a LOT of drugs. He drank bleach once, just to see what it was like. He said it burned like a motherfucker but that night he had the most vivid dreams he'd ever had. The older he got, the more nutjob-ey he got, because it turned out that he was bipolar, which explained the constant talking. Hubs and I moved to the Bay Area, had some kids and kind of lost touch with him. The last time I saw him he was so heavily medicated he could barely make it through a conversation without falling asleep. Today would have been his 41st birthday; he killed himself about a week after he turned 35. Anyway, today I am sad and thinking about friends that I've had over the years that I've lost, for whatever reason. This song reminds me of one in particular. I probably could have found a better version, but.... meh. I have no words of wisdom except to remind you all to hug your loved ones while you can.
