“She just has such a natural beauty. She’s one of the prettiest girls I know.” Brent adored Amanda and said this about her on multiple occasions. Brent adored Drew too. They were some of his best friends from back home in Wilkes-Barre. I adore them too.

Originally, Stop 5 was supposed to be Acadia National Park in Maine...but I simply did not carve out enough time for the trip (oops!). So, with that trip being postponed until the spring the obvious second choice was Syracuse to visit 8 month pregnant parents to be, Amanda and Drew! The last time Brent and I stopped through to visit Syracuse (rather briefly) was after we had gone camping in the Adirondacks in July of 2015. I remember we parked the Jeep at Forked Lake Campground and hiked maybe about a half mile to our spot which was right next to the lake and was picture perfect (until it rained later that evening). The site came with a picnic table and benches and whoever had the site before us, placed several tree stumps around the “fire pit”. So we set up the tent, hammock and walked around the area a bit.

I started dinner while Brent went to get more firewood from the car. Then hopped in his hammock with a Bells Two Hearted Ale. Brent came back with firewood and flowers he picked along the way for me. After we ate we enjoyed the fire and beers before it started to downpour. We didn’t mind though as we planned on waking up with the sun the next morning to go on quite the hike.

Pictured above is us a smidge tired and sweaty after an upwards hike for 3 hours and 4,626 ft. at the top of Giant Mountain in New York. I like hiking but I like to work towards something. That something could be a killer view, waterfalls or anything to keep me motivated. This was quite the view and I remember that the camera couldn’t truly capture the depths of the mountains and how beautiful the view actually was. I also remember Brent struggling a bit during the hike...at one point (I think we were about a third of the way to the top) I looked at him and told him we didn’t have to complete the hike and could just turn around. I could barely even finish that sentence before he looked at me and said, “I didn’t just beat cancer.” When he said the word “just” he drew out the “uhhh” in an annoyed voice. He said that if he could beat cancer and he could get to the top of the mountain. Did any of you just chuckle while hearing him say this in your head? I did. He was a determined and smarty-pants at times. That’s what I liked about him. Not only did he have motivation but determination.

Brendan and I pulled up to a cute little house with a Blazer in the driveway marked with a “LiveLikeBrent” sticker on the back windshield. Amanda, belly and all, came out from the garage led by Bear, their puppy. Bear is a gorgeous mix of German Sheppard and who knows what else and has the softest coat I’ve ever felt. Drew and Amanda gave us the tour of their home and property. During said tour, Drew said he was sold on the house just by the backyard. Their home sits on a decent sized lot with a backyard that backs up to the woods. There’s a slight up slope towards the back of their property where they have Adirondack chairs in front of a fire pit. I originally thought it was a pizza oven due to the fact Drew isn’t a stranger in the kitchen. Turns out that’s what he eventually wants to do with it. So obviously I’ll be back but only when that’s completed.

After we got settled we hopped in the car and went to Emipre Brewing Co. for a late lunch and some beers. As we pulled up I didn’t realize how massive of a facility Empire was...I suppose the name is fitting. On the other hand, Drew couldn’t get over how packed it was. I mean, it was a Saturday afternoon. In October. In Syracuse. With perfect weather.

“Empire Farm Brewery, est.2016, is the largest Farm Brewery on the East Coast. Over 22 acres were developed for educational and beer production purposes. Boasting a new 60 bbl automated brewhouse, the Empire Farm Brewery is producing kegs and bottles for regional, national and international distribution. Bottled lineup includes 3 time consecutive Great American Beer Fest gold medal winner; Skinny Atlas Light, White Aphro, Slo Mo’ IPA, East Coast Amber Ale, and World Beer Cup gold medal winner; Black Magic Stout.  Located in Cazenovia, NY, the property also grows hops, lavender, vegetables, herbs, and fruits for use in the brewing process and to support the needs of Empire’s downtown brewpub.

The agricultural component was designed in conjunction with Professor Matthew Potteiger and the graduate student body from the Department of Landscape Architecture, State University of New York, College of Environmental Science and Forestry. The Empire Farm Brewery was the class project for ESF’s spring 2012 semester.”

Reading that makes the place sound somewhat dreamy, right? It kinda was. The inside was nice, still smelled somewhat new. The place was jammin’ and as we were ordering our beers and a lemonade for the mama to be, a table opened up. What was neat about the place was that they had long communal picnic tables and “round” tables made out of tree trunks which is where we sat. There is a patio out back with tables, a bar and several corn hole sets. I kept looking around not being able to get over the size of the place. We ordered some food and caught up with one another. Drew knew Brent from back in the day in grade school and had been friends ever since. Amanda met Brent through mutual friends later in life in high school. Brent mentioned to me the first time Amanda told him she liked Drew. It was at a concert of sorts (most likely moe. or something along those lines) where she said it and Brent’s reply was something similar to “Yeah, me too.” ... but she corrected him on what she actually meant. They’re a super sweet couple. The first time I met them was New Year’s Eve 2014. They were staying the weekend at Brent’s apartment in East Falls. I remember Drew cooking dinner for all of us at Danny and Dana’s place. He made quite the meal with nice steaks. The following day I remember learning that apparently eating pork on New Year’s Day is a Polish tradition. I think we even had some venison if my memory serves me correctly. At that point in time, I just knew Drew as the friend that could cook and Amanda as “the most naturally beautiful girls” Brent knew...and his best friends of course.

We ate, drank and tossed around baby name ideas. After Empire we decided to do “fall things” (with the rest of the state of New York) since the weather was so beautiful. We drove to a place called Tim’s Pumpkin Patch. Why did we drive close to a half hour and pass maybe half a dozen orchards and pumpkin stands just to go to Tim’s? Well, first of all it has a 4.4 star rating on Google...so there’s that. But in addition to pumpkin picking they have a brewery, bakery, animals and well, Amanda insisted. When we arrived, I bought everyone some farm feed along with beers and ciders before going to visit the animals. After we cooed over the baby goats, pigs and cows we stopped for some fresh apple fritters before heading into the corn maze. The maze was so difficult we ended up coming out where we began and probably didn’t even touch half of the maze. If the sun wasn’t setting we probably would’ve given it another shot. But at that point we wanted to pick our pumpkins, snag a quick photo of the parents to be and hit the road.

When we got back to Drew and Amanda’s home we were greeted by Bear who quite honestly Brendan and I could not get enough of the entire visit. By the way, he is SUCH a good boy.

We hung out for a while. Amanda and Drew then ended up taking us to a place called Seneca Street Brew Pub where I had a Cider Creek Smoked Up Cider. I thought it ruled and was very much alone on this. Give me anything and everything smoked and I’ll consume it...meat, cheese, beer and ciders. This brew pub was in the basement of a renovated church with a bottle shop on top. It truly didn’t feel like a church by any means but was still a cool spot. The bottle shop had dozens and dozens of locally brewed beers, ciders and some wines. I did fail to take a photo of this place. (I actually forgot to take a lot of photos over the weekend!) After we had a drink we walked down the street in downtown Manlius to IronWood Pizza for some dinner. It had a cool vibe inside and an extensive craft beer list. It had an alternative atmosphere with some cool graffiti on the wall in the main dining room and had somewhat industrial touches around the place.

After we ate we went back and the boys built a fire. There was a meteor shower the night before so we hung out in hopes to catch a meteor or two. Drew said he had been listening to some of Brent’s playlists and suggested that we throw one on. So we did. We played some of Brent’s music from Spotify and enjoyed the night. You can view and play Brent’s public playlists on Spotify right here. Note: I’m not sure if they will disappear once his subscription is not renewed. So please download or screenshot the playlists for future reference if you wish!

Sunday morning was a treat. Amanda and Drew have their Sunday ritual which is checking out the Central New York Regional Market. Brendan had already had his eye on visiting this place. The market has been there for YEARS and has Sunday flea markets, Saturday farmers markets and even serves as a live music venue occasionally. The market has several “sheds” which are extremely long structures with garage doors along the sides where vendor after vendor set up for the day. You can find pretty much anything there. Some people bring their junk, some have brand new items with price tag stickers still on them and then people who have some neat odds and ends. I walked out of there with three silver candle stick holders that just need some polish that I bought for a whopping $2. Amanda and Drew found a metal tub type bucket, kitchen tools and some Simpsons books...yes, as in the TV show. According to Drew the place was “empty” and gets packed in the summers. But I actually thought there were a decent amount of vendors there...but I would have no problem making the trip back up in the summertime. I LOVE flea markets, antique shops, thrift stores, indoor markets, outdoor markets, whatever sort of place that has potential for cool finds.

Speaking of cool finds, we “found” some barbecue too. It was just about lunchtime and before Brendan and I even got to Syracuse that weekend, we decided we would go to Dinosaur Bar-B-Que. I actually had no idea this place originated in Syracuse but had been to a location in Brooklyn several years back. We made it right before the Sunday afternoon rush and got a table in a booth. Amanda had mentioned a couple of times that they had solid bloody marys. She ordered a virgin and I told the waitress I’d take Amanda’s vodka. It was a really good bloody mary. It was spicy and whatever dry rub of their’s they rim the glass with was spot on. We started with their fried green tomatoes to share and then ribs, pulled pork, corn bread, mac and cheese were ordered...but I don’t even think that was half of what was order for the table.

This photo above it definitely one of my new favorites. I’m full again just looking at this picture. After I ate my sandwich I could hardly touch the rest of my sides. Or even think about them. Everything tasted so flippin’ good but I felt as though I was busting at the seems. I remember telling everyone I needed to lay down to digest and slumped over in the booth. I have no idea how the boys pack it away.

Just like every trip I take, I find at least one worthy spot for a #LiveLikeBrent sticker. I think that most people would agree that Dinosaur was more than worthy. I spoke to the bartender and gave her the revised version as to why I was there and why I wanted this sticker in their establishment. She gave her condolences but was super touched to hear what I was doing to honor Brent. So if you ever find yourself at the bar of Dinosaur Barbeque in Syracuse a sticker for Brent is there just to the right of the tap system on the back ledge of the bar.

We made our way back to the house to try and digest for a bit.The boys relaxed in the basement (which is massive by the way) and watched some of the Sunday football games. Amanda, Bear and I got in the car and went to Green Lakes State Park for a walk. It was a pretty drive and as you enter the park you also pass through what looked like a nice golf course. We parked the car and started to walk. Turns out the lakes are actually green. The two glacial lakes in the park lie at the base of a gorge. I learned that they are rare meromictic lakes meaning their layers within the water never physically mix. We walked a bit over a mile which made me feel better about the amount of food I had recently inhaled. As we walked we talked about losing Brent, when Amanda lost her father and how the boys have been back in Philadelphia. Ps. Philly Friends - This is the part where I tell you she misses you all and Drew wants me to tell everyone Syracuse isn’t that far...so you all need to visit them.

When we got back, the boys were snoozing in front of the television. Then Brendan showed up in the kitchen and made some coffees. Drew and Amanda’s home is decorated with flea market finds, family heirlooms and pieces they have found along the way. It’s got this farm house vibe but nothing that seems like you can just go and pick-up from the home decor section at Target. (P.S. -  There is NOTHING wrong with Target, by the way. I basically live there myself.) But I started asking about an antique cabbage slicer Amanda had hanging above the kitchen sink. I didn’t know what it actually was until she told me but see them all of the time now when out at antique shops. It turns out it belonged to her grandfather back in the day. They also have a couple of letter trays on the walls that hold little knick knacks. I think at their previous apartment they held stones as well. As I was asking about items around the house, Amanda pulled out a stoneware crock which held kitchen tools...and some actual tools. I didn’t realize it until Brendan started asking about the crocks but there are several around their home. Some for decor and others serving a purpose. They were really cool and completely Amanda’s style. Amanda also collects retro kitchen tools with the green handles. She actually just bought the one dead center in the photo on the counter at the market earlier that day. I think we decided it was a pastry/cookie cutter that you roll along dough. It had the shapes of suits in a deck of cards: heart, diamond, club, and spade. It was kinda neat. Amanda pulled out almost every tool and told us about them. She likes the way they look mainly but said when she’s out at the market a lot of people will try to paint the handles green to make them look like antiques and she tried to avoid the replicas.

“Has a story about a complete stranger ever strongly affected you?” This is something a family friend wrote regarding Brent. With my next “official” trip not being until the end of October, I didn’t want to go too long without writing. While I haven’t been traveling, I have still very much been non-stop since I drove Brent to the ER with his roommate, Ryan, on Wednesday, July 5th. I’ve been booked solid week after week and my weekends are literally booked until Thanksgiving. I’m not complaining by any means. These weekends are booked with plans to celebrate friends’ marriages, work weddings, bachelorette parties, family weekends and so on. But I’m also not the only one traveling. A lot of friends, acquaintances and family have been and sharing the #LiveLikeBrent love too! 

That brings me to Chelsea. Chelsea is my sister-in-law’s cousin who loves to travel. I’ve met her a handful of times at some family gatherings. I was truly touched and humbled when she messaged me about Brent’s passing. She said that she didn’t know him well but felt she had a lot in common with Brent. She too lives the adventurous “bucket list checker” kind of life which drew her even more to the Live Like Brent movement. In only a matter of days she was going to be traveling to Iceland, Amsterdam, Brussels and Paris. I got a sticker to her as soon as I could for her to bring on her travels:

“Has a story about a complete stranger ever strongly affected you? Brent was fellow adventurer with a passion for life who recently passed away from cancer and his story hit home for me. His incredibly strong girlfriend, @aiscake has decided to finish out his bucket list and spread the word about the #LiveLikeBrent movement. Before heading to Europe I asked her if I could have a hand in spreading it internationally, and I'm honored that she said yes. Life is short. Live it, people ❤️ #carve4cancer“ View this post on her Instagram here.

This is exactly what Brent would’ve wanted. Creating an impact. Not the type of impact because it was so tragic. But the type of impact where people (not just me!) want to live like he did and keep his spirit alive by doing what he (and Chelsea!) loved to do. The photo above was captured in Reykjavik, Iceland. I originally had wanted to get a stack of stickers to Chelsea to post up on her travels but logistically couldn’t. She asked me what to do. I told her to bring it EVERYWHERE with her and when she finds a place to stick...she will just know. She carried the sticker for several weeks with her and let me know when she would finally leave it behind. But after Iceland Brent traveled with Chelsea to Amsterdam.

Then after being in the capital of the Netherlands she took him to Brussels!

Every time that Chelsea stopped to take a photo she would write me a message and send the photo. It was great. Then one day I received a message from her that read, “Well I found the perfect place to leave Brent’s sticker in Paris.” When I saw the photos she sent me the only thing that I could say was, “You’re right. This is perfect.”

In addition to Chelsea taking Brent across the pond...so did his boss from Suvoda, Andrea. If you knew Brent, you knew that he loved his job at Suvoda. For those of you who do not know, to put it simply, Suvoda is a clinical trial software company. Brent also enjoyed the fact that he was on the other side of things with the process as he had been involved in clinical trials as a patient in the past. He loved his career and the company he worked for but what he loved the most were his colleagues. He would always tell me how blessed he felt to be working with some of the most intelligent people he has ever met. Sometimes he would act surprised or astonished at the fact that he actually worked with them. He loved everything about Suvoda and never planned on leaving. He had no reason to. He enjoyed waking up in the morning and either taking the quick train ride out to the Conshohocken office or working from home and video chatting with his boss and her two pups for meetings. I always thought if you wake up in the morning and 90% of the time you didn’t mind going to work, you were set and very lucky. But 100% of the time? That was Brent. I was lucky enough to attend one of Suvoda’s holiday parties and was able to meet a handful of his peers. I met co-workers from the west coast, east coast and even from Bucharest! It was an eclectic and brilliant crew. Honestly, it’s no wonder why he would frequently boast about his job. Even when Brent had relapsed I witnessed the support and love that Suvoda gave to Brent and I know he is forever thankful for it.

When Brent started traveling to Memorial Sloan Kettering every week for his treatment I decided to think of a way to make the long train rides and even longer day in the clinic a bit more bearable. So I came up with the idea to have his friends make chemo boxes for him weekly! I made him the first one which explained what would be coming his way and it was filled with treats, sudokus, cross words and a tall stack of envelopes. Each envelope read, “Open me when...” and I had a card for every occasion or feeling he could possibly have when I wasn’t physically there to support him. He could open them on the train if he missed me, when he was sitting in the hospital bed months from then and needed a laugh or just ideas to help pass the time if he was bored. Most boxes he received had adult coloring books, snacks, some of his favorite magazines, books and a lot more.  But I got in touch with his colleagues at Suvoda and they put one together for him too (which he loved by the way). That’s when his wonderful human being of a boss, Andrea, and I exchanged numbers and I kept her up to date as the days, weeks and months passed. Even now she checks in on me every so often which I truly appreciate. 

Andrea recently made her way to the Suvoda offices located in Romania and brought a sticker along for the ride with her. Brent had always wanted to make his way over to the other offices and would tell me we’d go to Barcelona (because I’ve always been itching to go) then he would visit the crew there. But I’m glad that Andrea could take him with her to Romania this time around.

Andrea took a moment at the London Heathrow Airport which is photographed above.

Then at 35,000 feet up making her way from London enroute to Bucharest.

Then she snapped a photo in front of St. Anton Church (which dates from 1559) in Bucharest, Romania on her way into the office one morning. If there is ever a Suvoda office in my travels, you best bet I’ll be swinging by to just say hello and thank you. Seattle, Portland, Barcelona are on the horizon so I’m coming for ya!

Last are Caitlin and Adam who (I mentioned in the last post). While they didn’t take Brent abroad (yet!) they took him on part of their mini-moon. I could go on and on again about how wonderful of a weekend that was...but I will refrain. Adam and Caitlin got hitched this summer at Firelight Campgrounds and decided to not jet set right away and to enjoy their time in New York a little longer. They took Brent on a hike through the Robert H. Treman State Park in Ithaca because they knew how much he would have loved it. He would’ve loved everything about Ithaca and the entire weekend with our friends. But they ended up leaving the sticker at Firelight Campgrounds on the record player in one of the main tents. I probably looked at that record player half a dozen times during the wedding set-up. I even wanted to move it out of the tent at one point into storage but it stayed. It never occurred to me to put a sticker on it with the other ones already on there! As Caitlin said, “... left a sticker on the record player there since jamming out was one of your favorite things.” It was. Whether it was in the car, kitchen, shower or on the beach...Brent loved having his music playing.

This first stop couldn’t have been any more obvious. For those of you that are unfamiliar with Billy Murphy’s Irish Saloon, it’s located only a couple of blocks away from Brent’s apartment. It was his favorite bar in all of Philadelphia and it was his very own version of “Cheers.”  This place is certainly a diamond in the rough.

All of us would end up at Murphy’s once, twice, sometimes even three or more times a week. It’s a simple go to spot for a drink, wings or burgers. Side note: The “Turf Burger” is hands down THE best burger I have ever had. And yes, I understand that is a bold statement to make - but it’s true. I remember the day I told Brent he couldn’t eat Murphy wings (or any bar food really) for a while due to his Graft versus Host Disease. You would’ve thought I told him something like Trump was our president. Is this first post too early for political jokes? But maybe I should let Brent give you his review on Murphy’s. Really, here is his yelp review from almost 7 years ago. P.S. - He gave it five stars by the way...shocker.

“This place was a recommendation from my uncle who would always stop by to say hello to his friend, the late Mr. Murphy. As an East Fallser of the past 5 years, I found this place to be my second home and great place to catch a beer while waiting for the train. The friendly patrons make it easy to find yourself in conversation and keeps the atmosphere fun and and warmly welcoming. The food is actually pretty good and Murphy (the owner) always makes us feel at home. The pictures covering the walls are a reminder of good times passed. Wing night is our weekly staple and love to see and meet new friends every week. A bit retro? Yes, but the old school atmosphere is more inviting than most people are used to. Be sure to bring cash as they are not credit card friendly. Good tunes are always played and good times are always shared. I consider this my favorite neighborhood bar in Philadelphia!“

It was Thursday, the day after Brent’s funeral, and I invited our group of Philadelphia friends to gather for food and drinks in his honor. I still not yet had the chance to spend time with this special group of people since everything happened. There was no other place I’d rather congregate with these fine specimens either. So this crew encompasses childhood friends, high school friends, significant others that we’ve grown close with along with Brent’s neighbors that live above him in his building. It was your typical Murphy’s crowd for a Thursday except our group was all in one place at one time. About half way through the night, the owner and good friend, Mike poured several (18 to be exact) Jamesons for a toast to Brent. I took a seat up on the bar, bar tenders rang the bell, and I gave a quick toast...

Public speaking is not my strong suit. But it was Brent’s. He’d give any excuse to raise our glasses so he could spit some game and give a darn good toast. Most of them would make you chuckle, humble you and make you be grateful for holding that glass there with him.  When we first started dating I would cringe when he would put me on the spot by raising his glass and say, "Okay, your turn." Well, this time is was my turn, Brent. I kept it short and sweet like a shot of Jameson.

Then it was time to bag it, tag it and slap that sticker on the door. I’ve put a couple of Carve 4 Cancer stickers up along the way on the front door at Murphy’s. But this placement had to be primo. Plus, our good friend Caitlin was standing right behind me. I could feel her OCD burning through not just me but the door as well. It’s the first official sticker on Tour de Brent, NO WRINKLES. 

Now it’s time to talk about the sticker and the contents on said sticker. Carve 4 Cancer is a non-profit we started to help find a cure for blood cancers. The story on how that came to be is for another time. But to learn more about it click on the link provided at the top of this page. Since Brent passed, it became our goal at Carve 4 Cancer to see how you #LiveLikeBrent every day. When you shred on the mountain, go on a brewery tour, take a road trip with friends or hike a trail, we want you to hashtag #LiveLikeBrent. So every single stop I make in honor of my love, Brent, will get tagged with a sticker. Along with each sticker I tag, a post will be published with a story to support it and I’m excited to share the journey with you.

Thank you Mike and Billy Murphy’s Irish Saloon for the memories, new and old. And most importantly to the people by my side that night. Not only are you good friends and company - you are outstanding human beings and I am so happy that Brent brought us together.

**Please Note: I was in Charlottesville the weekend before the rally**

Standing at Brent’s wake I was touched by how many friends had traveled to say goodbye to their friend and the ones that showed up to support me. As dozens of people came through the doors they slowly turned into hundreds and dare I even say thousands? Okay, it was “just” under 2,000. That evening there were times where a million thoughts were flying through my head and at other times I was caught just starring blankly at the carpet. One of the reoccurring thoughts and things I said to some of these friends, “I’m so sorry this is the reason I’m seeing you again.” But I thought about it as I was hugging, kissing, crying and shaking hands with these people that I decided this didn’t have to be the last time I saw them. Or this didn’t have to be their last memory of Brent, his family, and myself. So I came up with Tour de Brent.

It was late on a Sunday night creeping into Monday morning where I looked up the weather in Charlottesville, Virginia for the week and upcoming weekend. It was about a 4.5 hour drive from Philadelphia. One of Brent’s college buds, Broocks, grew up and lived there now with his wife and two little boys. He came up for the wake and funeral and I was able to spend a little time with him afterwards at Rodano’s. A couple of years ago, Brent and I took a road trip to Ashville, North Carolina for another West Virginia University friend’s wedding, "Iowa John’s.” Enroute, we swung through Charlottesville to meet up with Broocks and get breakfast together. So with the weather looking pretty stellar for the entire week, I ended up reaching out to Broocks asking if he by any chance had plans for the coming weekend. The only plans Broocks and his family had for the weekend was taking the boys to the county fair. They welcomed me with open arms into their home.

I was completely fine with driving myself. I had done a lot of that the last year of my life but I remembered Brendan having his summer off. Brendan is one of Brent’s friends from home. According the Brendan, they met in September of 1989 at kindergarten. He came around to Philadelphia a lot whether Brent was in the hospital or perfectly healthy. After Brent had passed, there were many people that reached out to me daily and Brendan was one of them. He’s an athletic trainer for a high school so I figured I better take advantage of him having time off during the week (must be nice) to tag along. Without hesitation he was on board for a long weekend trip to Charlottesville and a hike through the Shenandoah National Park.

Brendan picked me up Friday afternoon and we headed south. What was originally a 4.5 hour car ride quickly turned into 6 but I didn’t mind. Broocks wasn’t getting out from work until about 10pm but we still wanted to try and catch some of the band that was playing at his work in town: Three Sheets To The Wind. Their genre? “Yacht Rock”...they’re a cover band that dress in Tommy Bahama and play various crowd pleasing covers. I mean, wouldn’t you want to catch at least on song that evening? We sure did. On the ride, we talked about everything...work, family stuff, music, Brent, what had happened and how I was. I appreciated some of the questions that Brendan asked me. Some I’ve heard half a dozen times and others no one had asked me or had acknowledged. One question he did ask me during this car ride was, “Has anyone given you any piece of advice that you have found helpful or took comfort in?” It took me a moment. I have had many people reaching out to comfort me, give (warranted and unwarranted) advice and opinions. I had a family friend write me a lovely card. She had lost her son (Let’s call him Jason* for the sake of this post) to leukemia several years back. Similar to Brent, he overcame his cancer but it came back and started to cause problems. She wrote this to me...

“...You can’t go back and say “What if?” You have to be confident with the choices you made and the love you shared. I thought I would “crash and burn” when Jason* passed, but I couldn’t because he wouldn’t want me to! Jason* gifted me reasons to go on and share his love - Our “Jason*’s Hugs” blankets and Jason*’s Camp Flip Flops share his love through us. And...he is always “just beyond my reach”! It’s your path! Fill it with the love you shared! The greatest gift - love!...”

While that piece of advice may be obvious to some of you, it’s also nice to hear it. Some things also aren’t so obvious when you are so close to what has been happening. When Brent would talk about death with me I would entertain the conversation because it was important to address. We couldn’t act oblivious to the fact that death was very much a possibility for Brent. He had concerns that he would make known to me: 1. He didn’t want to die 2. What would happen to me and where would I end up? I would tell him we would cross that bridge when we got to it and we weren’t even close. Then I told him a million times over and over again that dreadful night in the hospital, that morning he passed, everyday leading up to and throughout his funeral that I will be okay, even though I wasn’t. This brings me back to why I’m traveling. I believe that Brent would be heartbroken if he saw me laying around my apartment unmotivated, mourning and not living...or as stated earlier, “crash and burn.” Brent and I missed out on a lot when he was sick and he always felt so guilty for that. He wanted me out and about and not hold me back from anything. So that’s what I’m doing. All of this traveling to see friends again and writing about memories new and old isn’t just for me. These are my reasons “to go on” and Brent is very much a reason and he is with me on every single trip.

We rolled into Charlottesville just after 8pm and caught the last few songs of the final set at the Sprint Pavilion where Broocks is the Operations Manager. The Sprint Pavilion hosts everything from town events and cover bands to Bruce Springsteen. Broocks grabbed us a couple of beers, Starr Hill was one of the main breweries, as he was wrapping up his night and we watched the band. I asked for a Starr Hill because I remembered that Broocks and Brent traded a couple beers on our road trip...and that brewery being one of them. After the band played their final song, Brendan and I walked up and down downtown Charlottesville looking for a spot to eat. What is really neat about Charlottesville is that while restaurants and shops line the brick walkway, down the center of said walkway each restaurant has a fenced in courtyard area with outdoor seating. Literally, every restaurant. So we chose Miller’s Downtown. I had remembered Broocks mentioning Dave Matthews had some sort of involvement with the establishment.

Turns out he used to bar tend there when he was first starting out. We didn’t step a foot inside and dined al fresco. I can’t comment on the ambiance of Miller’s but we people-watched, had burgers and beers which were decent then started making our way back to the warehouse of the Sprint Pavilion. Broocks was busy setting up pong and waiting with a refrigerator full of “hospitality beers.” On the end of the downtown strip before you hit the Pavilion is the Freedom of Speech Wall which I had already had plans for later during our visit. There’s chalk and people come by and write whatever they feel like on the slated structure. When Brent and I visited a couple of years back I remember him drawing the flying WVU logo as photographed below by Broocks!

We opened the doors to the warehouse and there was Broocks amidst a group of friends chatting, laughing, and playing beer pong with music playing in the background. Broocks is such a happy guy and I feel like he brings a smile to everyone’s face as soon as you see him. He welcomed us, made sure we were introduced to everyone and got us some drinks which happened to be from Starr Hill again. Broocks and Brendan chatted, they had never met one another. When I originally asked Broocks if Brendan could visit with me for the weekend he said, “Any friend of Brent’s is a friend of mine.”  Brent was always about bringing people together and I plan to continue to do that for him. I had already received the grand tour of the warehouse but Broocks showed Brendan and me around. The warehouse is honestly a man cave...but you’re at work with all of your event equipment.

Brendan and I ended up chatting for a while with a kid named Jake. He was really passionate about fly fishing, used to work at the Sprint Pavilion and attended Marshall University. I believe that is literally all we talked about. He seemed to be an honest, nice and easy-going individual. He didn’t stick around all night as he had to get up early the next day for his fly fishing camp he taught. As we were standing there next to this filing cabinet filled with stickers we started looking for a spot for Brent. There was a perfect spot on the top draw right next to a Starr Hill sticker. Jake asked about the stickers and I told him about Brent, Carve 4 Cancer and why we were in town to begin with. He was blown away and said his family has a house in the Poconos not terribly far from where Carve had been held. He immediately asked if he could have a sticker so he too could “Live Like Brent.” I gave one to him without thinking twice.

We woke up the next day to Broocks introducing Bodie to Brendan and me. Bodie is a cute blonde pup that loves playing fetch. He will literally go all day long. That’s what she said. Our next introduction was to Nolan, Jen and Broock’s 3 year old son who loves everything about cars. Then last but not least we were blessed with Jen and Nash’s presence a 3 month old who had been on his best behavior all weekend. I kid you not when I say I did not hear the child cry once. We actually knew what we would be having for breakfast that morning because Broocks had been insisting and chatting about it the night before. Bodo’s Bagels offers something called a “Deli-Egg Bagel” and it’s flipping delish. Ultimately it’s meat scraps mixed into the egg on your whatever egg and cheese sandwich. Broocks picked up breakfast from Bodo’s as the rest of us had coffee on their deck. We played fetch with Bodie while Nolan sang us a couple of songs and danced around like a wild man. Side note: Brendan was the perfect guest. Nolan and Bodie both fell in love with him and immediately all became best friends. It also helped that Brendan could speak about Cars all day long...as in the movie, Cars. After breakfast the Meade Family packed up and went to the Albemarle County Fair as Brendan and I headed towards the Blue Ridge Parkway on Skyline drive to hike through the Shenandoah National Park.

This photo is of Brent and me back in 2015. We did a similar drive but a bit longer on the Parkway and ended up hiking Humpback Rock which had an elevation of 3,080 feet. It was beautiful. I decided that this time around we would do something different and saw there were a couple of falls trails. The drive through the park was a solid 20 minutes to reach the trail base. Again, I didn’t mind...the entire drive through the Shenandoah is scenic with the trees, dozens of overlooks and winding roads. Another thing I didn’t mind was that it felt like fall that morning. It may have been just about 70 degrees if that. It was gorgeous.

We ended up on an 8 mile hike starting at the Jone’s Run and connecting to the Doyle’s River Falls loop. The water wasn’t terribly high. Before we left the house Jen mentioned that they haven’t received much rain this summer. It was completely fine and still a solid hike. We saw three falls, two of which were on the Doyle’s River trail which were 63′ and 28′ followed by the Jones Falls that was 42′. It was a long downhill hike followed by a long uphill. I may have said to Brendan at one point, “I don’t understand how this is an ‘intermediate’ trail.”...We were still very much on the downhill portion. My glutes later confirmed that it was very much an intermediate hike. The trails were shady for the most part and the weather honestly couldn’t have been better for an August hike. At one point we were on part of the Appalachian Trail which was neat. Brent had talked about wanting to hike the entire trail in one shot...I couldn’t imagine doing that. But fun fact: Broocks has hiked 150 miles of the AT (not in one shot but still v. impressive)! By the time Brendan and I hit mile 7 out of 8 on the hike I was most definitely ready for food. A deli-egg can only hold you for so long. When we finally looped back to the trail base where the car was parked we stopped to take in the scene once again but with a feeling of accomplishment this time around. We took a couple of photos before getting in the car for another scenic ride to Crozet, VA for some grub.

During the car ride down in between singing Fat Joe and Usher songs, Brendan made sure I was aware how ready his stomach was for smoked meat on this trip. I took note. Broocks had told us before we left for our hike about a place that had awesome smoked barbecue called Smoked Kitchen and Tap...how fitting.  I couldn’t get a photo fast enough for the before photo. But this will have to do!  We ordered hickory smoked brisket, ribs, fried chicken (with a side of maple syrup), cornbread, creamed corn with jalapeno and cole slaw. My mouth is watering again. The meat literally fell off of the bone. Smoked also has it’s own line of sauces. Carolina Firewater was hands down my favorite. I’m not a huge fan of barbecue sauce...I prefer savory. This was a vinegar based hot barbecue sauce and it ruled.

After we had our “snack” we headed back to the Meade’s to clean-up and head out to dinner with the family and then go see a show downtown with Broocks. After we cleaned up we hung out on their patio, played fetch with Bodie, I told Jen what had happened with Brent in those final 12 hours of his life and drank a couple of beers...some of which were yes, Starr Hill along with beer I had brought. Brent collected growlers. Knowing Broocks was into craft beer just like Brent I took Brent’s Crime and Punishment Brewing growler and filled it up with one of Broock’s favorite types of beer, an English brown ale called Bad Haircut. I gave it as a gift and a ‘thank you’ for not only just allowing us to stay in his home but for being a part of Brent’s life.

Broocks wanted to bring us to a place called Kardinal Hall (a cardinal - I know!) which was a German style beer hall. It was great. I will say it again...the weather was perfect. We were able to snag a seat outside so Nolan could play and we could enjoy the ambiance of the evening. We chatted WVU and Broocks explained how he knew Brent. In his own words, “It’s all a bit foggy”...I find this a common theme when you ask any of the WVU boys how they’ve met. But ultimately, Broocks met Brent through our dear friend Dan who grew up with Brent and ended up attending college together. One night Broocks went over to Dan’s apartment and ended up meeting his neighbors below him and the rest is history...or just a bit “foggy.” Speaking of how people have met, I’ve mentioned Starr Hill several times in this post and in my last post I noticed that there was a Starr Hill sticker where I placed my #LiveLikeBrent sticker at Assateague Island. Well, it turns out that Starr Hill plays quite the roll in the Meade household...and I don’t mean that because that the one beer their refrigerator was stocked with either. Jen was in Charlottesville for a work conference several years ago. She fell in love with the town and during her visit she stopped at...wait for it...Star Hill Brewery. Broocks just so happened to stop at the brewery that night and took a seat next to her. Honestly...Starr Hill should put out a “meade” to honor this couple. I feel as though their life is sponsored by Starr Hill and not just by choice.We stayed for just a couple of hours and by the time 8:30pm rolled around we packed things up so Jen and Broocks could put the kids down for bed.

P.S. Let’s all acknowledge Broocks’ shirt he chose to wear. It’s a Brent Mydland shirt that Brent made back in college with some friends. Super appropriate for this weekend!

After Brendan and Nolan were done chatting Cars, Broocks took us to the downtown mall to The Jefferson Theater to see a Charlottesville all-star Grateful Dead cover band play called Alligator. The Jefferson reopened only in 2009 but was established in 1912 as a live performance theater that played silent movies, vaudeville acts and hosted a historic list of live performers, ranging from Harry Houdini to The Three 
Stooges. It’s a neat venue that reminded me a bit like The Troc in Philadelphia...but a bit nicer. When we walked in, Broocks already had tickets set aside for us. While he only asked for three tickets, his friends at the venue set aside four. Even though Broocks told them twice he didn’t need the fourth ticket they just insisted that he took it. Broocks looked at us and said “Then this one is for Brent.” We got to the show in time for their second act and they played really well! One thing I did notice is that there was a woman on stage. I mentally face palmed and thought, “Donna Jean.” As soon as she started singing, Broocks leaned over to Brendan and I vocalizing my thoughts. “Donna Jean ruined so many songs!” It was true but the woman up there did a great job. We hung out on the floor for a while and then Broocks gave us a tour. He gave one to Brent and I when we swung through town briefly but the venue was empty. So it was neat to be able to watch the band from various spots throughout the theater.

We walked around the venue and got another round of drinks. Broocks knew the bartender...well, Broocks knows everyone. I wouldn’t be surprised if he had told me he was actually the mayor of Charlottesville. They were chatting about what was planned for the following weekend downtown, the Alt-Right rally. The group had done everything properly as far as organizing their event in the downtown mall, permits, paperwork etc. But The Jefferson Theater was concerned about the safety of their patrons and how packed the mall may become. It was to the point where the venue was considering cancelling their concerts that had been booked for that weekend. I honestly don’t think anyone knew what to expect and couldn’t have imagined what actually ended up happening. All I know is that if Brent were still alive and with us on the trip he would have been beside himself knowing we had just been there. I've been sick to my stomach thinking about it as well.

After the show, Broocks took us to one of his favorite spots downtown called, Jack Brown’s. He mentioned that they were having a silent disco outside for a portion of the night and we could check it out if we wanted. As soon as he said that, I looked at him and Brendan and asked, “Have you EVER participated in a silent disco?!” The answer from both of them was no and I told them we had to go to it. So we went inside, snagged a couple of seats at the bar and drank. I thoroughly enjoyed the place...it was a dive. Bras hanging from one of the “chandeliers”, vintage beer cans lining the ceiling and a fairly extensive bottle and can selection. Mind you, I asked Broocks to take us where he would’ve brought Brent had he been in town for the night. Broocks said Brent took him once to get a hubcap burger at The White Haven Family Diner back home in Pennsylvania so Broocks wanted to take him out for a burger at Jack Brown’s. Plus, there was a great spot for a sticker to be thrown up. I’m also just noticing now another Starr Hill sticker in this photo.

After we had a couple of drinks we went outside to the silent disco. For those of you unfamiliar with this rad concept I’ll explain it! Everyone had a pair of wireless headphones that are controlled by two DJs. One DJ is “blue” and the other “green.” On the side of your headphones you have two controls: 1. Volume 2. A station switch. For the station switch you can either tune into what the blue DJ is playing or switch over to what the green DJ is playing. The DJs were located on balconies outside of the bar above everyone singing and dancing. So if the green DJ sees everyone’s headphone beginning to light up blue then he will change the song he’s playing in hopes to get everyone back over to their station. Mind you, if you don’t have the headphones on...you can’t hear the music. Randomly, I would take my headphones off and hear people singing out of tune to the same song and dancing. It was like being in a completely different world when you had your headphones on jamming out.

Broocks and Brendan couldn’t have enjoyed themselves any more than they did. We were all singing, dancing, drinking and telling one another when a noteworthy song came on the other DJ’s channel and to switch. We were only able to catch the last hour of the disco and could’ve gone on for another hour had the DJs kept it going. Final song of the night? Queen B’s “Love on Top” ... to say the very least it was a great way to wrap up the silent disco.

The silent disco was the highlight of the night. But I will say there was a very close second. I introduce to you: Mike Jones a.k.a. the “C-Ville Clapper.” As we were walking down the mall, Broocks pointed out a gentleman in camo with a bicycle. “You guys see that guy!? That guy is SO annoying. He’s the C-Ville Clapper.” The C-Ville Clapper stands on the soap box next to the Freedom of Speech Wall and...yes, slow claps. All. Day. Long. Broocks says it gets to the point where people working inside of the offices downtown get annoyed by the constant noise of the slow clap. Broocks approached him to find out his real name, “Well, I’m Mike Jones!” he said and shook Broocks’ hand. The three of us buzzed died laughing hearing that and looking at this guy. We walked and talked with him for a bit. Then he looked at us and asked us to follow him down the alley. We all looked at one another and said in various forms, “Nah, I’m good man.” But he told us, “I’m a bad boy, I’ll take you to the moon.” Again. Dead. Laughing.

After the disco and walk with Mike Jones we ended up at The Whiskey Jar for a night cap. Another spot that Broocks would’ve brought Brent. The name of this bar certainly described the place pretty well. The place was buzzin’ with a wedding party along with other patrons. It had bottles on bottles of all sorts of whiskeys and brown liquors that I had never even heard of before sitting pretty on shelves.

There was a little jazz band playing in the back corner behind us. Brent would’ve really liked this place. I could picture him sitting at one of the tables with a whiskey neat bobbing his head and tapping his toes to the band. We shut down the bar and grabbed a ride home. The three of us spent the next hour talking about Brent. The wake. The funeral. How terrible it all really is. Then we called it a night.

Sunday was for two things: Ace Biscuit and Barbecue and taking over a portion of the Freedom of Speech Wall. When Brent and I came down to meet up with Broocks we started with breakfast. Broocks suggested Ace and I’m so glad he did. It is absolutely delish. One of my favorite things about this place is that they have an ODB sandwich on the menu - Ol’ Dirty Biscuit. Tip: You can make any menu item “dirty” by adding sausage gravy. Plus, the fact that the name of the establishment is also my nickname made me like the joint even more.

Looking back I wish I had a photo taken of the three of us. But sometimes it’s just easier to be living in the moment. We ordered our breakfast and sat back at a picnic table anxiously waiting for our meals. I LOVE biscuits and was waiting all weekend for my Ace sausage, egg and smoked pimento cheese biscuit breakfast sandwich. I couldn’t tell you what the boys ordered because I was too focused on waiting for my own. My food didn’t stand a chance and I didn’t even think about snapping a photo. So this photo of the mural outside will have to do! 

We went back inside, I bought a t-shirt (bummed they are always “sold out” of their OBD shirts) and asked permission to place a sticker on the mixer sitting up at the register. As I was doing so, a couple of the employees asked what the sticker was for. We told them the story and the last time we were there was with Brent and had to come back. They immediately cleared off a spot right on the front of the mixer for Brent so everyone could see it. The employees couldn’t have been nicer and more supportive.

After Ace we made our way back to downtown to work on the Freedom of Speech wall. We bought some chalk and chalk pens, borrowed a bucket and straight edges from Broock’s warehouse and went to town on that wall. We probably could have completed the project in less time but every so often a group or individual would stand there and ask what we were doing or who Brent was. At first Brendan and I would both stop what we were doing to chat with the group or individual...but it became so frequently asked that we ended up alternating who would tell the story. Some people said, “Oh” and then there would be others that were so extremely touched by the story and what we were doing. One women embraced my sweaty body and hugged me tight and wished me the absolute best. That meant a lot to me coming from a complete utter stranger. But then alas! We completed the hashtag in 2.5 hours! Shout out to Brendan for his first and claimed this to be his last “art installation.”

As we made our way back to the Meade household we passed a cardinal mural on the side of a building not too far from the house. As we passed, Brendan asked if I wanted him to stop to take a photo. As I was thinking about my response and if I felt like stopping he said, “Sometimes the cardinal comes to you and sometimes you have to go to the cardinal.” He whipped his car around and told me to go stand against the wall. I’m glad he did.

When we got back to the house it was mid afternoon and Brendan and I packed up and said our ‘goodbyes’ to Jen and Broocks. Jen told us that Nolan will be very upset when he wakes up from his nap to see his friends have vanished. The kid could’ve literally laid next to Brendan talking about cars and watching car videos for hours on end. If he doesn’t end up doing something with cars when he gets older I will be astounded to say the least. As we were walking out of the house Brendan asked if I’d like to swing through Washington D.C. since it was on the way home...I figured why not? We were going to be sitting in D.C. traffic anyway. Brendan also mentioned that since Brent loved history and we could visit the World War II monument for him. I liked that idea.  As we were leaving Virginia, Brendan elbowed me. I looked at him and he nodded in the direction of a truck passing us on the right. He casually said, “Look at the license plate.” I chuckled but was thinking, “You have got to be kidding me.” It said, “BBRENT.” Photographed below, Brent decided to join us for a bit on the ride to D.C..

We walked around the monuments, chatted and again just enjoyed the beautiful weather we were blessed with that weekend before heading back north to Pennsylvania. I just want to say thank you once again to Jen and Broocks for your generosity and spending a weekend with me for Brent! Thank you to Brendan for being my photographer and chauffeur for the entire weekend. I couldn’t have asked for better company.

This is part one of two for my weekend down in Ocean City, Maryland. But this post will be my favorite one for quite some time. 

Amy and I high-tailed it out of Philadelphia and down to Ocean City, Maryland the Friday after Brent’s funeral. Brent’s parents bought a beach house a couple of houses down from his aunt and uncle’s spot. Brent loved Ocean City and had been spending summers there ever since he was young. What started out as family vacations with family friends, turned into Brent and his crew getting rowdy in their own rentals and hotel rooms to then crashing with his cousins at their house. Recently, Brent and his brother Ryan (I’m sure, their mother as well) had been dropping more than subtle hints…such as pulling up house listings to chat about and finally received Mr. Evans’ “blessing” more or less. It finally happened this past November and Brent told me, “I never thought I’d see the day.” I’m glad he did.

As we made our way down, I reached out to Brent’s cousins, Jared and Janelle, along with his brother to ensure dinner plans were as much of a priority to them as Amy and me. There are endless options for dinner or where to get fresh seafood as well. But I had a special request for my first trip without physically having Brent by my side. It was a place I’ve been wanting to go and in return, Brent had wanted to take me but we simply never got around to it. It is called Mother’s Cantina. It’s a small joint that I knew nothing about…but for some odd reason had been drawn to it.

Everyone agreed to go to Mother’s so we headed over for a late supper. As soon as we walked in, I was into the ambiance. It was small, filled with eclectic Tex-Mex decor…and some Washington Redskins paraphernalia hanging from the rafters. Yeah, apparently it’s a Redskins watch bar. The place was split with two sides: a bar side and a cafe side. Due to the wait, we ended up with a table in the cafe. I didn’t mind because honestly, I figure any restaurant with a wait is a positive sign. We get our table for 8. Our waiter approached, a gnarly skater that looked to be in his mid to late 30′s. I couldn’t help but notice and stare at his giant tattoo on his shin. It was the Oakland Raiders’ logo. Now, I’m not going to stop and say, “Whoa, that’s a sign because it’s Brent’s favorite football team.” But who is a Raiders fan in Ocean City, Maryland? I didn’t make mention of it but smirked and figured it was just a coincidence.  We had a filling dinner of beers, guac burritos and tacos to name a few and were kept busy by Brent’s beloved 3 year old niece, Finley. P.S. - Order the fish tacos and get them sauteed not fried! By the time we wrapped up, Brent’s brother and sister-in-law took Fin home for bed. The remainder of us decided to go sit at the bar for a drink or three and find a spot for a sticker.

The bar was packed. Brent’s cousin, Jared, disappeared. When he came back with a Natty Boh in hand, he said he tagged the bathroom. Solid tag but I wanted everyone to be able to see the sticker for this location. I asked Jared to show me where he placed his “#LiveLikeBrent” sticker and I snagged this photo of him.

By the time we got back to the bar, Jared’s sister had already asked the bartender if we could place a sticker along the mirror behind all of the bottles of liquor. I hadn’t noticed right away that there was already a collection of them there. He gave us the O.K. as long as we did it quickly before management came out. When looking at the mirror, your eyes are immediately drawn toward a “Rookie Driver” sticker so I slid back behind the bar and popped one right up there.

I slid back out from the bar, we got a round of drinks and hung out for a bit at a high top. It wasn’t long before I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to find a blonde curly haired women that had been sitting at the bar now standing there. I looked at her probably with a puzzled look on my face and said, “Hi!…” Her response? “I’m sorry, are you from Wilkes-Barre?” I had no idea who this person was. I mean, I know Brent knew A LOT of people…but most of the time I can recognize faces at the very least. The question mark on my face turned instantly to a deer in the headlights look. I told the woman I was not from Wilkes-Barre, pointed to the group behind me and said, “But they are.” She looked at them, back at me and started to tell me, “I saw you behind the bar placing a sticker on the mirror. I didn’t pay you too much attention and figured it was for breast cancer awareness or something.” She paused, “Not that there’s anything wrong with supporting breast cancer!” We chuckled and she continued, “I’m just pretty sure my friend told me about Brent the other day.” I unfortunately did not capture her name, so for the sake of this post let’s call her “Monica.” I told Monica that I was Brent’s girlfriend, pointed to the group again and explained they were Brent’s cousins and friends from the Wilkes-Barre area. I mentioned he had passed (which she knew) the previous weekend and we were going around with these stickers in honor of him. Monica then continued to say she’s seen the hashtag on Facebook (Yes! How awesome!) and she was so sorry for our loss. It was crazy. We began chatting with her and she introduced us to her significant other. Monica went on to tell us she frequents Cafe 99 back home in Northeast Pennsylvania. This particular bar is actually one Brent would frequent as well for beer and boneless buffalo bites. He always joked that the bar tender there, Jimmy, could run for mayor and win with just being written in on the ballot. I’ve met Jimmy on several occasions at Cafe and I will say, he is one awesome guy. I couldn’t tell you what else was discussed with Monica after that point. I think I was still somewhat blown away for what had happened. But then Monica left the bar with her friend for the night as did we.

In addition to Mother’s Cantina I had one more request for that Friday night. I wanted to take a quick photo of a hotel I’ve always admired for it’s neon lights at night and cool pastels during the daytime, Flamingo Motel. Brent and I have driven past it dozens of times but didn’t have the opportunity to make a quick stop for a photo. So we walked a couple of blocks, got the shot and began walking back towards Mother’s and what was essentially the direction home. As we were walking and sharing some memories about Brent at the beach it was decided we would swing by another solid OCMD bar, Fish Tales.

Fish Tales is a spot on the Bahia Marina that overlooks the bay on 21st street on the island. We grabbed some drinks at the dock bar, Janelle bought a round of fireball, we honored Brent and hung out. It must’ve been close to 1 in the morning at this point. Janelle’s fiance, Kevin, and Jared were out on the dock chatting and most likely making friends. Our good friend, Amy, Janelle and I decided to find a seat and finish our drinks outside. The weather was perfect. It didn’t take too long for a couple of guys to approach us. I get it, three girls slugging back some orange crushes, sitting outside enjoying a summer night…we looked fun. We ARE fun. Anyways, enter: Harry and Corbin. These two took seats between us and gave us the old, “Hey Ladies, how’s your night going?” They looked about my age, late twenties. We entertained the fact that they wanted to chat with us. They introduced themselves and Amy asked where they were from. Corbin was telling me where he grew up and I vaguely remember him saying he went to Siena College. I can’t recall where in New York he said he grew up because I overheard Harry tell Amy, “I grew up in New York and went to West Virginia University.” I immediately looked at Amy, then to Janelle and over to Harry. Amy hadn’t inquired about where he attended college. I even asked her again the next day. It was hard to believe but Harry had no reason to make that up. I asked him to “prove it” and to sing us a little John Denver. Jared and Kevin came over to see what the fuss was all about and we had our little “Kumbaya” moment and sang “Country Roads.” The guys were nice. We told them all about Brent until the bar closed. We toyed with the idea of wandering around. But we had such a wonderful night with everything that had happened - we decided to end it and go home for a last call.

There is no doubt in my mind Brent came down to Ocean City with us for a night out on the town. I know people who have lost loved ones see signs and communicate in different forms with them. Whether all three of these signs were a coincidence, I’ll never know. But I have a feeling that “coincidence” is not the proper word to use this time around.

I’ve never cried so much at a wedding. I also haven’t laughed as hard as I did this weekend in a very, very long time. I remember the very first time I met Adam and Caitlin, two of Brent’s best friends. It was the week after Thanksgiving of 2014. I don’t know why but I remember deciding to wear a brand new sweater I purchased on Black Friday of that year. Caitlin decided we would meet up for drinks downtown Manayunk at a place called The Goat’s Beard. I was nervous but excited. I remember Caitlin wearing a long, thick, over sized sweater and complimenting her on it. I remember Brent ordering a Moscow Mule and wanting to steal the copper mug it was served in. I remember then we would head down to one of my favorite bars, Lucky’s Last Chance, and to my surprise it was to meet more of Brent’s crew. Danny, Dana, Dana’s sister and brother-in-law were all there hanging out and having a good time. Again, I was nervous and had no idea just how much these people would mean to me over the next three years.

This year, I will be attending two weddings by myself where Brent played matchmaker. I think almost everyone knows the story as to how Adam met Caitlin and how Brent played such a huge part...but for those of you who don’t Caitlin summarized how they met in her own words shortly after Brent passed:

“...My fiancé Adam and I met through our mutual friend Brent Evans, who over the weekend passed away due to post-cancer complications. Cancer didn't take him though, he actually beat that like a champ, twice. I grew up knowing Brent through mutual family friends and even though I rarely saw him between yearly gatherings, he always made you feel like you were one of his best friends. Adam has been friends with Brent since high school, but became even closer after college and the two bonded over their love of skiing/snowboarding. It was a few years ago when my sister reconnected with Brent and he quickly invited her to join any event he and his friends were doing (because that’s the kind of guy he was). Soon after, she met his friend Adam, and the two thought Adam and I would be a good fit for one another. Later that summer Brent put together a spontaneous potluck, turned dance party, with everyone from our hometown who was living in Philly (because Brent always loved a good party and was always willing to host). The party was also a decoy for Adam and I to meet; clearly it worked. From the beginning, Brent has always been a huge part of our relationship, he was our dearest friend and a friend that we both shared before we even knew one another. So, when Adam proposed last year and we started planning our wedding, we immediately knew who would make the perfect officiant. Brent had the most charismatic spirit, he could command any room, he gave a toast at every event and he had the best humor and wit. And how amazing would it be to have our best friend marry us? He happily accepted our request and we know he was looking forward to being up there officiating our wedding this August. We know he'll be there though, and we'll save him a seat in the front row to make sure he has the best view while he watches the wedding of another couple (I know there's a lot of us) who he helped bring together with his amazing spirit. Bear with me for the next few days as I’ll be offline celebrating Brent’s amazing life. We’ll miss you friend. #LiveLikeBrent”

I’ve said it before and will say it again. Brent loved to bring people together. This past weekend, he brought a hell of a lot of people together. Caitlin and Adam’s wedding wasn’t your typical Catholic church country club wedding. It was probably THE furthest thing from that. With Caitlin’s very own wedding business, Clover Event Co., putting on over 30 weddings in 2017...I think it goes without saying that we knew she was going to truly outdo herself when it came to her own. And she did (okay, Adam too!). They created not only a wedding but an experience of a weekend called Camp Kuch.

My co-pilot, Amy, and I arrived in the Finger Lakes around lunch time on Friday. The weekend kicked off with a winery tour. I had NO idea how many wineries were in the Finger Lakes...it was crazy how many were right on top of one another. Our first stop was at Ryan William Vineyard. This vineyard was fairly new. When you walked into the tasting barn you could smell the wood and would’ve thought they just finished building the place yesterday. They had a small kitchen and seating area where some patrons were coming in just for lunch...which makes me think the food must be pretty good. Amy and I were early so we did a tasting, made friends with the vineyard kittens and then went outside enjoyed the view. It honestly felt like a crisp fall day. I would look out the window and expect to see the leaves changing. Apparently the summer weather in Ithaca is all over the place where you could have a cool fall like day like we had or have it be almost 90 degrees.

Caitlin, Adam and the rest of the gang showed up a bit later for a drink before heading to the next stop. Caitlin, a girl after my own heart, showed up in black to kick-off her wedding weekend. With such an amazing view of Seneca Lake I asked for a photo with the bride-to-be and Brent’s roommate, Ryan, who is also my roommate-to-be.

The next stop was Finger Lakes Distilling which ruled by the way. When we arrived, more of Adam’s college friends were there patiently waiting with drinks in hand. Since I was driving I stopped myself from ordering a flight of bourbons and whiskeys and opted for the cocktail tasting, ha. I had the Classic G & T: McKenzie Distiller’s Reserve Gin, Q Tonic + Lime, the FLX Mule: Vintner’s Vodka, Lime Juice + Ithaca Ginger Beer, the Blood Mary: Glen Thunder Corn Whiskey, Longbranch Bloody Mary Mix, Celery Bitters + Bacon Salt (MmMm, Bacon) and last but not least the Back Porch Tea: McKenize Bourbon Whiskey, Sweet Tea + Lemon...that last one went down a little too easy. Also, a quick FYI - the owner’s last name is McKenzie hence the name of liquors.

 After spending close to an hour at the distillery we caravaned to the next stop on the list: Two Goats Brewing. Why Two Goats? “Because dobble bock means double bock. One of the German meanings for bock is ‘billy goat’.” Two Goats is described as a small town brewpub on Seneca Lake with good beer, good beef, good people and quite the view. It was a small spot but had an awesome deck and yes, it did have quite the view. You felt like you were in an old wooden barn. There was a loft above the bar which the bartenders accessed via a ladder. I took a break at this point to rehydrate not knowing how long the tour through the vineyards, breweries and distilleries would truly be. Matt and Erin showed up at this point with their baby girl, Fiona, who quickly stole the spotlight at the bar. She was curious, laughing, loving on her mom and dad. As I was holding Fiona at one point, she played with my clover necklace Caitlin had given her associates. All I kept thinking was that this girl will hands down break some hearts in the future with those baby blues she has. You could honestly drown in those blue pools of eyes.

After cooing over and playing with Fiona I hung out with Amy, Drew and Amanda. Drew and Amanda are two of Brent’s dear friends from back home and are expecting a baby this November. (Visiting them again in Syracuse in on my list for Tour de Brent) We sat at the bar and Drew decided that this place was a good spot to slap a Live Like Brent sticker up. I agreed and he placed one in the men’s room where other stickers had been placed. Brent would’ve really dug this brewery and the food. Fun fact...there is only one item on their food menu: a roast beef sandwich on a local homemade bun, homemade au jus and topped off with a mild creamy horseradish sauce. And yes, it was delicious.

The last stop on the tour was Wagner Vineyards Estate Winery. Another spot with a gorgeous view. It was massive. They had a winery and brewery onsite along with a cafe! Amy and I did another tasting before sitting out on the deck to enjoy the view with Drew and Amanda. Amanda looked so sweet just sitting there with the lake in the background I asked if I could take a photo. Then Drew immediately said, “LET ME GET A BELLY PIC.” After we asked one or two more times she gave in. It wasn’t long after before we decided we should pack up and begin the drive to Firelight Camps a.k.a. Camp Kuch.

When we arrived we checked in at the tented lobby in the center of the grounds. Amy and I were sharing a yurt with John who later called me at 3:30am trying to find said yurt with a suit and bottle of Johnny Walker black label in hand. Try waking up at that hour half asleep after a night of drinking and describing where you are in the middle of the woods. Our yurt was a platform tent, furnished with hardwood floors, a desk, 3 lanterns which were our only source of electricity (thankfully there was a USB outlet on the back of them for phone charging), a coat/clothing rack, luggage stand two night stands, two queen sized beds with heavy quilted blankets and rustic chic-inspired furniture. Oh, and there was a huge deck with chairs off the back that overlooked a trail in the woods. They were cozy. I for one, didn’t mind “glamping” at all. Heck, I love roughing it backpacking through the woods in the rain trying to set-up camp. But I’m pretty sure Amy said two or three times, “This bed is so comfy!” I do wish I took more photos than I did this weekend but I did take a photo of the outside of our yurt - thankfully Dan captured the interior of his and Dana’s single yurt for the weekend below along with Ryan’s double which was next door to mine!

After we checked in and settled in we changed and attended the welcome dinner in the middle of the camp grounds. They had an open bar, gourmet pizzas made onsite along with other delicious foods in the tents.We hung out, drank, caught up with our friends, walked around the camp grounds and then stumbled upon the bocce ball court. Never had I ever played bocce ball...and I will say I wasn’t terrible at it. Amanda and I played against Drew and Ryan. Ryan being a pretty legit bowler was also excited to play this game for the first time. Pictured below is what I like to call Bocce Ball Biff. Also, Ryan had a thing for power stances when posing for photos the entire weekend.

After we lost to the boys we went back to the bar, got another round of drinks and sat around the fire pit for hours into the night which turned into morning. At one point, Ryan in all of his glory started tapping his toe and bouncing his hips, points at me, and puts his hand out to dance. Feeling pretty good with the cider I’d been sipping all night, he twirls me once, twice, we dance, I say, “Your turn!”, he “graciously” twirls and...doesn’t stop. Ryan twirled again and fell over one of the wooden Adirondack chairs by the fire and laid there. It happened so fast...but not really. I cried. Tears of pure laughter. I couldn’t stop. Nobody else could stop laughing either. It hurt but it hurt so good. The Lobby Tent had an open bar all night until about 1am or so...things started to get fuzzy at that point. I have no idea what we did all of those hours around the camp fire that night. I remember laughing, chatting and trying to stay warm by the fire. It truly felt like fall that evening.  As we faded, the night sky did as well. I went to bed bundled up listening to the sound of coyotes howling.

Saturday was wedding day. The group of us ate breakfast and got ready for the day ahead. I don’t know about you but the last wedding I went to I killed at least 4 episodes of ESPNs 30 for 30 from my hotel bed before heading to the ceremony. The great thing about Firelight Camp is that there are hiking trails, breweries, downtown Ithaca and things to do in the immediate area. So there wasn’t a need for a television. While our friends hiked and went out for lunch, Hannah and I worked on set up. We work with Caitlin for her company Clover Event Co. on other weddings and events so it was a no brainer to help her on her special day. Hannah and I spent the day setting up everything from the signage at the ceremony to decor and displays at the reception. It took 4 hours but that was because this wedding was well thought out...plus, the devil is in the detail. We had every single one covered...even if Caitlin did swing by to tweak! I consider myself a calm and even keeled person for events. I think what I love most about events is the internal anxiety that is immediately followed by relief from seeing the reaction to the event on everyone’s faces. It’s a weird roller coaster of emotions but satisfying.

By 3:30pm, I got ready and joined everyone for a quick drink before the ceremony. Danny was standing in the lobby tent with the boys tasting some beers he had picked up along his summer travels and he gave me a well deserved beer. Standing there I spotted Caitlin coming through the tent and begged for a quick photo knowing how tough it would be later in the evening to snag a selfie with her.

The guys and I made our way up the hill to where the ceremony was being held. A nice big green space with wooden benches and a custom wooden chevron patterned backdrop Adam made himself. I sat right behind “Brent” which was a bow tie he would’ve worn for the couple that day. Caitlin was absolutely stunning walking down that aisle and Adam never looked better standing there wearing his forest green suit and crooked smile he was trying to keep as a smirk. Ryan began the ceremony with mentioning that there would be no officiant at this wedding. He went on to explain the passing of Brent and how he had originally brought Adam and Caitlin together. I think everyone cries over Brent for different reasons. Yeah, ultimately it’s because his life was cut short. I found myself sitting there, sunglasses on, drinking my beer as I tried to keep the tears back. But I cried. I cried because it was such a sad way to start the wedding...the happiest day of Adam and Caitlin’s life together. I cried because their love is so fucking beautiful. I cried because Brent wasn’t there with me. I cried because there was a fucking bow tie sitting in front of me. Not Brent. I cried because a dragon fly showed up as Ryan wrapped up. That dragon fly hung out above Adam and Caitlin. That dragon fly sped off then hovered behind the groomsmen. I cried. Thank God for waterproof mascara.

The wedding continued. The couple exchanged vows they wrote themselves followed by haikus each had written for one another. It was beautiful. EVERYTHING was beautiful. Adam and Caitlin happened to both have a thing for haikus which is how Adam ended up prosposing to her. After the ceremony I found Ryan and gave him the biggest hug, told him he did a wonderful job, spoke beautifully and told him how much I loved him. He pulled back what seemed like to make sure he wouldn’t begin crying. I get it. But I could’ve held on for hours. We then went down to find some drinks and join the cocktail hour.

There was food, drinks, two poets on typewriters creating free custom haikus for guests, a cigar station, temporary tattoos with the Camp Kuch logo. Yes, they had their own logo for the weekend. The band, a folk/pop 5 piece band from Philadelphia called, Stella Ruze, started to play. I knew they were going to rock just from hearing them handle their mic checks during set-up. I would hands down pay money to go see them play here in the city. (Check them out!) Everyone was buzzing around the tents, fire pits and signing the guest book. This is the second time I’ve seen a Polaroid guest book and I love it. If I get married I will definitely have one at my wedding. I signed something along the lines of, “Congratulations! I don’t really know what to say sometimes. But this whiskey is for you. Cheers, Ais” Then had Josh take a photo of me tipping my drink towards the camera like Leonardo DiCaprio did in that one scene of The Great Gatsby. Then...some of us may have had a slight photo shoot session. Here’s one of my favorites from wayyyy later in the night of Amy, Amanda, Dana and myself.

We then went to find our seats at long banquet tables under the main tent. The speeches were made. Some were hilarious and some were touching. Brent was mentioned not once but several times throughout. Even if you didn’t know Brent walking into this wedding you most certainly knew who he was by the end of the night. I did have to get up and leave at one point. I went to the bar for another “East Sider” which was the bourbon cocktail for the evening. (Adam and Caitlin grew up on different sides of the valley in Northeast PA.) Hannah followed and got another drink with me. I told her I needed to go to my tent for a little and that I would be back. Honestly, I needed to check my waterproof mascara and just step away for a minute to reflect and process. I followed the winding gravel path back to my tent, number 7. I sat at the little desk, turned on the lantern, touched up my make-up, sat there and then stepped out onto the back deck looking into the woods as the sun was getting ready to set. I told Brent I missed him and wished he was there with me. After a couple of minutes in silence, I took a deep breath and went to go back to my seat as I was sure dinner was probably about to be served. As I stepped out from behind the yurt flap, I saw Hannah waiting there for me with her drink. I told her she didn’t have to wait for me and she gave me the biggest, tightest hug. We cried. She told me she doesn’t know what to do and how to take the pain away from me. Honestly, just hearing those words made me cry more than the fact that Brent wasn’t there. Just seeing Brent’s friends upset or reaching out to me is what gets to me sometimes. Just that they’re hurting or just for the simple fact that they care so much about me. It’s so touching it makes me grateful to the point where I just cry. After we got ourselves back together, checked one another’s make up, we went back to our seats.

Dinner was family style which rocked. I haven’t been to many weddings that have done this but it’s definitely a unique way to serve dinner. Josh and I somehow ended up losing Hannah and Amy. So I made Amy’s dish and Josh made Hannah’s. I started snapping photos which is a new thing for me. I was never one to pester for photos but after losing Brent I didn’t care. Take. The. Photo. You won’t regret it. And here’s Josh...with Hannah.

Amanda looked so cute in her dresses and baby bump all weekend I couldn’t not take photos of her. The food and conversation was great but once the band took the stage we all grabbed our drinks and hit the dance floor as the sun finally began to set.

P.S. - I LOVE this photo of Hannah. As the night went on, we danced and drank. I missed having Brent on the dance floor. That’s one thing we looked forward to at every wedding. Dancing. I’m extremely thankful that we were able to make Josh and Hannah’s wedding this past June to get a couple more dances in. Neither of us knew that they would be our last. But at one point Ryan came through the crowd and pulled me out for a song. More twirling happened. This time without any falls. Then the temporary tattoos were going everywhere. Hannah and Josh started placing tipi/yurts on my arm but I when Josh asked for one on the side of his neck. I said, “Sure, but let me roll with this.” Please note that this stayed on his neck through Monday. Also, Josh has nailed the “I’m not going to look at the camera and do an awkward gaze” pose a little too well.

The band covered everything from The Grateful Dead to The Lumineers. Caitlin had already told me a while back that they would play John Denver’s “Country Roads” for Brent. As soon as those first few chords played without hesitation, we all took one another, arm in arm, and started singing, “Almost heaven, West Virginia...” By the end of the song Caitlin was in tears. She grabbed me and told one another how much we loved each other and of course how much we wished Brent was there with us. As many of you probably know, any time “Country Roads” ended Brent and his buds would then begin a chant, “Eat shit Pitt! Eat Shit Pitt!” This was due to an old rivalry between West Virginia University and the University of Pittsburgh. So when the song concluded, I put my fist in the air and I chanted...And chanted...And chanted.

Then Adam came up to me and said, “Um Ais, you know my sister went to Pitt, right?” We laughed and I told him at the moment I just didn’t care. He gave me a big hug and told me how much he loved me. SO much lovin’ was going on this weekend. I of course told him how much him and Caitlin meant to me too. Brent’s friends keep tabs on me in different ways. Some of them will hit me up just checking in on what I’ve been up to and how I’m doing. Others will have me over for dinner. Adam texts me once in a while and reminds me he loves me and whether I like it or not he’s going to be in my life. I’ve had that said to me on multiple occasions, “You’re not getting rid of us.” or “I hope you know you’re not going anywhere.” And I know all of this. But keep the reminders coming because I appreciate hearing those words.

As the night went on our group ended up going back to Danny and Dana’s tent for “a night cap” before going back to our own yurts to hit the sheets. I snagged my favorite photo of the weekend. You can bet your money that it will end up framed in our apartment. Yes, it’s Ryan in another power stance.

As I’m trying to wrap up this post, I’m not sure the proper way to do so. I can go on about brunch the next morning and try to describe the weather and just keep telling you how beautiful it was. But on my drive back to Philadelphia with Amy I made a pit stop to see Brent. Dan and Dana had visited him the other week and left a Phish Baker’s Dozen Tour cup for him at his grave. Every time I stop by I play a song for him. As I took my #CampKuch koozie from the weekend out of my bag, I placed it on the cup and played “Farmhouse” by Phish. It’s my favorite Phish song and only one I really know. They played it at the first Phish show Brent took me to in the summer of 2016. I was stunned when I heard them play it.

Caitlin and Adam, I know you’ve probably heard this a thousand times already but your wedding weekend was stellar and picture perfect. Dan, Dana, Ryan, Koren, Drew, Amanda, Dave, John, Amy, Matt, Erin, Josh and Hannah...YOU guys are stellar. I love you. Brent loves you. I’m sure Brent is extremely thankful that I have you all. Please know that I am too.

Photo Credit: APGcollective, Caitlin Kuchemba, Dan Young Blood, Ryan Chmiola, Dave Koval

Saturday after Brent’s funeral had perfect weather. We loaded up the Jeeps and headed down to Assateague Island to drive on the beach. Brent loved staying on the West side of Ocean City. He’d always say, "There’s less riffraff out here.” It was true. The bars, restaurants and beaches had more of a local’s vibe and you wouldn’t get the shoobies and riffraff from the boardwalk. But he absolutely loved bringing the cars onto the OSV (Over Sand Vehicle) portion of the island to set up “camp” for the day. Assateague Island had also become my favorite beach over the years as well. This National Seashore is known for two things: 1. The beach that stretches from Maryland down into Virginia, and 2. The wild horses. That’s right. Wild horses graze, run, and walk all over your towels on the shore line. It’s really pretty and pretty annoying when you’re starving and all you want to do is eat your Wawa breakfast sandwich but can’t take it out until the horses move on. That happened to Brent and me last summer. 

You see the horses all of the time. As you’re cruising on the winding drive through the wetlands to the beach they’ll be hanging out in the brush and on the shoulder. You may be unloading chairs from your vehicle in the parking lot and turn around to see one watching you. I’ve witnessed people not being able to get out of the bathroom because there are a couple of them hanging out by the door. It’s entertaining. Below is a still photo captured from a video of Brent’s. You might recall him telling you about this sight - He caught one of the horses cooling off in the bay one day when he was down with his buddy, Josh from Colorado. He was so proud of not only capturing but witnessing this moment.

As I was packing stickers for the weekend down at the beach, in my head I was going through the spots that were necessary to tag. The two obvious ones were Teasers at Sunset Grille and Assateague. I did question at first how the hell I was going to tag a sticker for Brent at his favorite beach. But by Saturday morning, I already knew where I wanted to place it before we even left the house for the day. Just like I did, you’d probably think it would be difficult to get a sticker up at a National Seashore that wouldn’t be considered vandalism, harming the environment, etc. Remember, this isn’t a beach with surfaces, a boardwalk or trash bins. It’s a straight up beach. I recalled there being a pipe by the air machine as you leave the island. It had always been covered in stickers. We caravanned on over and I drove the Cream Puff (Jared’s Jeep) up to the entrance as Ryan and his family followed. While Jared worked on letting air out of the tires, I threw on Brent’s Thrasher snapback and walked over to the other side to scout out a spot on the pipe with Amy. 

Obviously, “Dean-A-Palooza Big Dawgs Last Meal” had already occupied the best spot on the pipe. I couldn’t argue with that sticker so I found a spot about half way down. Let’s keep our fingers crossed that some shmoe doesn’t come by and cover it up like they did to the “Fat Daddy” sticker. I will definitely be back to all of these locations to check up on them regardless. Ain’t nobody gonna treat #LiveLiveBrent like a Fat Daddy.

We spent a couple of hours at the beach. As soon as we got there, a dragon fly would not leave us alone. It settled and landed on Amy’s leg. She looked at me and asked, “You know what dragonflies mean, right?” I told her no and that I noticed this one wanted to hang out with us for some reason. She said, “They’re a sign of loved ones that passed.” I had no idea. I mentioned in my last post that I’ve heard different stories and signs of how a loved one is near but yeah...dragonflies are a thing. It hung around a little while longer and I noticed it fly into the passenger window of Jared’s Jeep. It landed on his hat and sunglasses and remained there until we left the beach hours later.

I spent some time alone out in the ocean that day. Tears were shed as I reflected and remembered spending hours out there with Brent in summers past. Floating. Chatting. Swimming in silence and taking it all in. But, on this day, the entire time I was out there, I felt completely and utterly calm. I’ve honestly felt this way for the last two weeks. I’m not sure why but I feel as if Brent has been giving me this sense of calmness and strength that I can’t quite explain. But then again, he always said I was one of the most even-keeled human beings he had ever met. He liked that about me but also would tell me it kept him guessing at times.

Jared was a couple of yards away in the ocean. I was so glad he came to the beach with us that day. Typically when we would go down to the beach houses, Brent and I would meet up with Kevin and Janelle who would also be down for several days at a time. We’d go out, get into a mess of shenanigans, always attend the annual Brewgrass Festival together and whatnot. But I had never had as much one-on-one time with Jared as I did this one weekend at the beach. I am so glad I did. He has such a positive and upbeat vibe to him. He made me laugh a lot that weekend. Brent adores his cousin. You know what? I do too.

Just for fun - this picture above is from last summer down at the beach on Assateague. At this point last year he had already started his treatment but we always made sure to make the best of those off days. We lotioned the hell out of one another that day. Brent also wore all of his UPF sun protecting clothing that summer. He flippin’ LOVED gear. He had gear for the beach, snow, mountains...everything. I think it’s safe to say we all know that about him and that he always had some of the nicest clothing when it came to being outside...okay, inside too. This was also the day the horses were trotting up and down the beach and the water was so blue! I don’t think I need to explain why this has become a favorite beach of mine anymore. 

Speaking of favorites...this brings us to our final destination in OCMD: Teasers at Sunset Grille.  Later Saturday night, Amy, Kevin, Jared and I headed over to “the horseshoe” which is a section of West Ocean City where several bars are located around the marina. Ps. If you want time away from the craziness of OCMD, definitely spend time over here. We stopped by Harborside for dinner and drinks. Harborside claims to be the home of the original fresh squeezed orange crush. Don’t know what an orange crush is? Pause right now, Google it, think, “That actually does sound really refreshing” and come back to continue reading. It’s a cocktail that is consumed regularly down in Ocean City. Anyway, this spot is almost always jamming and a good time with good tunes. We sweat straight through our clothes, slugged back some crushes and ordered some food. It was extremely humid that evening. It was so hot that Kevin had a Bud Light in hand. If you don’t know Kevin...he is THE beer connoisseur. He can probably talk about beer longer than a Phish set that includes "Tweezer” and not the reprise version half of you saw on the Baker’s Dozen Tour.  If a brewery has a can release, the average person will buy one or a couple but Kevin and Janelle walk out with seven...cases. Sorry I need to pause and just that Brent has some awesome cousins. So yes, it was Bud Light hot that night.

Every bar and restaurant on the marina has a wonderful view. As we sat there, we stepped out on the deck in hopes for a sunset and some fresh air. But we actually had quite the view of a gloomy storm starting to approach us.

Before we got too comfortable watching the clouds roll in, we walked over to Teasers. Also, had Brent been sitting there with us he would’ve rattled off the type of clouds rolling in. I’m not sure if he did that with everyone. But there would be times we would be driving and I’d say something about the shapes of the clouds and I’d get a response, “WelI, those cool clouds are actually Cumulonimbus clouds, Aisling.” Those are definitely some of the things I will miss.

I honestly cannot recall a time where we went down to the beach and did not end up at Teasers at some point. I don’t think I can emphasize it enough - Brent loved everything about this place. The ambiance is just always on point.  It’s an open air bar with a floating outdoor band stage out on the marina. I’ve actually ended up booking bands for some of my events from seeing them live at Teasers first. This place was also always great for a sunset. If Brent could, he would have had our wedding there. Ha, but I think it’s safe to say that any structured venue wouldn’t have been big enough for us. I mean, come on...you stood in that line that night. He was and still is a very loved individual.

As we sat down at the bar, I was again unsure where we would be able to throw a sticker up. I figured at the very least I could put it under the bar so it wouldn’t be taken down. But it turns out that there are stickers slapped up in a couple locations inside. I asked the bar tender for 3 minutes of his time, explained why we were there and asked permission to put a sticker up. The bartender saw the manager (actually I believe it was the owner) and told him what I was doing. I got up and stuck one right on the side of the cash register. It’s in plain sight where anyone on the left side of the bar could see it. This specific location was certainly the most important one on the trip and I know right now Brent is proud that I was able to get one up there for him. Actually, I take that back. He’s probably critiquing and saying I should’ve covered that one side of the cash register. Sorry, Uncle B.

As I was placing the sticker up, Jared got hold of the manager/owner. He told him where we were from, why we were there and why Teasers is such an important establishment to us. As I walked back to my seat on the other side of the bar Jared stopped me. The owner asked us to bring in a photo of Brent to be placed on the ceiling. I know that sounds awkward if you’ve never been to Teasers but inside of this dockside bar is a vaulted ceiling with different items on it. It’s like Billy Murphy’s Irish Saloon but...beachy fishing decor...in a sense. So the next time I’m down you bet a framed photo of Brent Patrick Evans will be hung in his favorite spot.

I’ve mentioned it before and I will mention it again, I am overwhelmed by the incredible support that I am oh so lucky to have. Thanks to Amy for being my personal photographer and beach bud for the weekend. As always, thank you to Brent’s family for such a special weekend down at their beach home.

Have you ever broken somebody’s heart? Maybe it was with a significant other and ended things. Whether you’re on the giving or receiving end of it...it’s an awful feeling, isn’t it? Have you ever had to do it one dozen times in the span of maybe an hour? I remember shaking and trying to clear my throat as I dialed, Amanda, Danny, Amy, Adam, Josh, Brendan, John, Ryan...this list continues. I don’t even know how I knew who to call, or who I probably should’ve called but my mind had turned into liquid. Amanda had been texting Brent a day or two prior and had a bad feeling when he didn’t answer the text messages. She texted me earlier in the morning asking if everything was okay. I think I started these phone calls somewhere around 11am and 12noon on Saturday, July 15th. I just remember how quiet or how short some people were (not in a bad way by any means) when they spoke to me. I think it was shock, taking in the information and not knowing what to do with it. Others instantly started crying or tried so hard to hold back tears as they asked me to explain. I tried to explain as soon as I broke the news so they didn’t even have to wonder. I tried to explain that he was already heavily medicated and asleep so he didn’t know what had happened. I remember calling Josh as he and Hannah were driving to his sibling’s house. Hannah started screaming. I remember Adam driving, Danny and Dana sitting on their couch getting ready to leave for vacation later in the day. Danny said he knew as soon as he saw my name come up on their phone that something wasn’t right. Some didn’t even have my number at that point and didn’t know who was speaking to them initially but quickly learned.  But to break the hearts of some of Brent’s best and my dearest friends from the last few years...broke my heart even more that it already was that morning.

I talk about these people a lot. I talk about how grateful I am to have them still in my life. I’m about to talk about them some more on how a few joined me on my 7th stop on Tour de Brent: Colorado. I’ll say it again and again...I’m so happy and grateful that they joined me on this trip. One of the first places Brent and I had on our bucket list was snowboarding in Colorado. Brent knew I loved camping and hiking the Adirondack mountains in New York. He also knew I’d never been out west. So he wanted to take me snowboarding in Colorado, explore Boulder and to meet a close WVU friend of his, Lindgren.

Six of us met bright eyed and bushy tailed at the Philadelphia International Airport around 7am on Friday, February 9th. Skis, snowboards and bags had been checked, coffee in hand along with eagerness to depart from the City of Brotherly Love. While the crew was eager to shred some serious mountains, I was eager to finally meet Lindgren. Since I had several hours to kill on the flight, my mind wandered and remembered Brent taking calls from Lindgren. Or just chatting about him and his now wife, Nicole. I remember their save the date on his refrigerator right until we cleaned out the apartment. The first time I had ever contacted Lindgren was on July 24th with an apology. I apologized for not being able to make the wedding with Brent. But what I really ended up apologizing for was how sorry I was that Brent never had to the opportunity to introduce us. I also explained I had planned on still making it out to Colorado to check it off of the list for Brent. I heard back from Lindgren the next day and I just remember how nice it was to hear him say, “...I honestly feel like I know you, from all of the pictures of you and Brent on FB, to all the wonderful things he told me about you. So, in a way, we’ve already been introduced, and I consider you a friend.”  I think the people one surrounds themselves with speaks volumes about that individual. The people that were current in Brent’s life have been some of the nicest and raddest people I have met. Lindgren quickly made the list of friends I am grateful for today.

We landed in Denver and I had previously asked Lindgren for suggestions on lunch. He told us to check out Vine Street Pub while still in Denver and that it was a solid spot for a burger and was Stout Month there. I smiled as we approached the establishment. The place we were about to enter is one of the Mountain Sun locations. I think we all know that Brent LOVED stickers. After he had passed, I sifted through his collection...some were recent finds and some extremely old. He had a ton of Mountain Sun stickers. I recognized the logo as soon as I saw it entering the pub. We ordered a round of drinks, lunch and checked the weather. Snow was in the forecast for Saturday which was ideal as that was going to be our first day out on the mountain. I knew I wanted to place a sticker at this location and as I was walking back to my seat from the bathroom, what do you know? They had just a small section of a wall FILLED with stickers. After we paid our bill, I found our waitress with two other employees and explained why we were there from Philadelphia and asked if I could slap a sticker up. Her response was, “OF COURSE! We have stickers for you too!!” She gave me a reel of the same stickers Brent had. Then we found a place on their wall.

We jumped in our cars and made our way out to our Airbnb in Fraser, Colorado. Fraser is just north of Winter Park where we planned on spending our entire Saturday. With all of our gear and crew in tow, Brendan and I made our way through the mountains, around the mountains and then up the mountains. It was so beautiful. The brief video clip below doesn’t even do justice as we got closer to the mountain range.

Oh. Did you know that elevation sickness is actually a real thing? I will have to say that I had been warned. But as we climbed to over 9,000 feet in elevation to the towns...so did my stomach. I pounded waters to keep myself hydrated. Then by the time we went grocery shopping (conveniently located at the bottom of the hill from where we were staying), my feet started to cramp up. Thankfully, I got over it after a while. We settled into our ski themed Airbnb, made ourselves right at home and ordered pizza (including my fave, Hawaiian).

The answer to your question is yes. The place looked just like it does in the photos above from Airbnb. Believe me, I’ve been to Airbnbs where I’ve walked in and I had to double check the address because it looked nothing like it did in the photos. But you can view more photos and the entire place here! I don’t think we were there for even twenty minutes when we started posing on the faux bear rug in front of the fireplace. It was just such a cozy place for the weekend. But we were pretty tired from traveling and knew we had a long day ahead of us so we laid low for the first evening. Josh and his girl, Katrina came out to the place to hang for a smidge and say hi. I’ve met Josh a handful of times. The first time I met him was two years ago at Carve 4 Cancer. He flew in for the event and busted his knee on his first run of the day. Classic. He was one of the friends that came and visited with Brent when he was sick..which truly raised his spirits.

Josh showed up for Brent’s wake, the funeral and Carve again in 2018. As hysterically funny as he is and a joy to be around, he was genuinely a good friend of Brent’s. I asked Josh how he met Brent. He honestly didn’t know and felt like they just had always been buds since school. Brent would talk about Josh a lot and how Josh’s mom would take them out of school early, throw them in the car and drive up to Vermont to hit the mountains all of the time. I think I’ve heard that about half a dozen times from Brent.

The next day we got up, ate breakfast and realized it had been dumping and dumping and dumping snow overnight...and it wasn’t stopping any time soon. So we made a pot of coffee, breakfast, geared up and made our way over to Mary Jane Pass. To be quite frank the only downside to all of the snow was that it was snowing so much that we could hardly even see the mountains that were surrounding us and off in the distance. Honestly, it was fine though...we were so excited to be skiing and snowboarding in a storm on fresh powder. Cars filled the lots and lined the long, winding drive up to the base of the mountain. I think I heard, “NO FRIENDS ON POW DAYS!” Probably a dozen times in lift lines, on the mountains and in the lodge.

The snow was awesome. The trails took longer than 45 second to bomb down and you weren’t on top of one another for how busy the mountain was either. At this point, I started to understand why Brent wanted to take me out west to snowboard so badly. The snow was soft, there was hardly any ice if any at all, you could hop off the trail and wind your way through the trees and even though it was a pow day...you were on the mountain with some of the best people waiting for you around the next turn. We took a break for lunch at the lodge about half way through the day, hit the mountain for a couple more runs and then made our way back to the car and ultimately to the Airbnb. 

The boys made a mouth watering dinner for everyone. While we were in the super market the day prior, they found surf and turf packages for basically $10 a person. I SAID TEN DOLLARS. It most definitely didn’t taste like a $10 meal either. Lobster tails, steak, brussel sprouts, cocktails and beer. 

After dinner, we cleaned up and decided to check out some of the local spots in Winter Park and ended up at Idlewild Spirits Distillery.

It is a distillery pub nestled in the basement of a strip mall on the main drag of Winter Park. There’s a bar and plenty of seating in the main room of the establishment. We sat in the back room with rows and rows of barrels of their liquor. It was pretty cool. Each barrel had the type of liquor and the date. It had a rustic yet industrial feel to the place. Caitlin had suggested the place since she is one who greatly appreciates a fine cocktail. Sidenote, the first time I met Caitlin and Adam...they took Brent and I to a place in Manayunk, The Goats Beard, for cocktails. So we ordered a round of cocktails, “snacks” and hung out for a while recapping on our first day and plans for the remainder of the trip. As we wrapped up and paid the check, our waiter suggested to check out a little bar called The Basement. Are we picking up on a theme here yet? Apparently, Winter Park doesn’t stay open terribly later. But this little hole in the wall did...and we didn’t mind going to a local’s bar. Brent would’ve liked it. Skateboard decks hung above the counter with beers available. You felt like you were in the basement of your friend’s house back in high school and you were waiting for the crowd to show up to start the party. There were video games, a couple of tvs, an area for a DJ or band and some arcade games. A couple of guys were sitting at the bar still in their snowboarding gear with a pie of pizza they probably carried in themselves. It was a place where you went for a cheap après ski.

As drastically different as these two spots were, Brent would’ve thoroughly enjoyed them. We ordered a couple of Rolling Rocks for $3 each. I SAID THREE DOLLARS. It most definitely tasted like a $3 beer. As we sipped our drinks, Caitlin was passing out at the table from the long day for shredding the gnar. I think half of us made Ryan slug back our beers before we made our way back to the place and called it a night.

Sunday rolled around. Josh took Ryan out back country skiing, Caitlin and Adam hit up Grandby Ranch Resort to get a couple more turns in, and Brendan, Koren and I wanted to check out the town for the day and explore after we already arrived at Grandby. (Whoops!) As the three of us were driving out of the resort, I saw a small hill with a gazebo on top. I figured it had a pretty cool view of the ranch below and mountains that surrounded us. So we parked the car and went to walk up the hill. This turned into THE MOST tiring task of the weekend. We should not have been as winded as we were walking up this hill...mind you that we weren’t used to the elevation but it was embarrassing how bad we were sucking wind once we got to the top. I think I had to take a breather for about 5 minutes before I could even think about taking photos. But below us sat the ranch, cattle, and these adorable craftsman houses that sat on the mountain side. (Que ‘Weeds’ theme song here).

We hit up an antique store we saw along the way, stopped at Cooper Creek Square to buy stickers, shirts and gifts. The shops were cute. I think Koren bought a gift for about everyone in her entire life. Brendan bought gifts for his niece and nephew. We decided to find something to eat and right across the street was a place called The Ditch on 40. It ruled. It was a small spot on the second floor of a strip of stores. (Actually a spot not in a basement!) It had a deck which I’m sure gets packed on a mild blue bird day. The place described itself as “A family-run, roadside bar and grill, where it's all about the red and green... chile, that is.  We start from scratch! Using only chile from Hatch, NM.  We serve great burgers, tasty sandwiches, authentic New Mexican food and the best margaritas in town!” I’m sorry, but did you know that Colorado is known chile peppers? Well, it kinda is. If you want to read up about it and the great green chile debate between Colorado and New Mexico, click here! But I digress, it had a locals vibe to it with license plates on the walls along with ski trail signs from Winter Park’s trails, skis and snowboards hanging on racks from the ceilings. We figured the place got rowdy at night and was probably a pretty solid time with the après ski crowd. We shared some sliders, tacos and had a round of drinks. I do need to point out the beer that Koren ordered though. It was an oak aged sour stout with cranberries named Blucifer from Odd13 Brewing. Blucifer is the demon horse of the Denver Airport ...it is a bright blue mustang standing at 32 feet tall and 9,000 pounds with glowing red eyes. I am not joking. Although the Blucifer beer sounds odd for a stout to be sour - it was mighty delish. Also, we need to note the artwork on the can quickly...and yes, that’s Santa’s sleigh.

As soon as we had walked in the door I knew I wanted to place a sticker there for Brent. This was most certainly a place I could picture him after spending a day out on the mountain together. As soon as I asked one of the waiters he immediately said, “Yes! Of course!” and he had the same reaction when I asked if he wouldn’t mind capturing the placement in a photograph for me. There was a perfect spot, dead smack in the center of the mirror behind the bar.

After lunch, the three of us made our way back to Mary Jane’s Pass to check out the gift shop in the lodge. Apparently, this portion of Winter Park is the most difficult and it’s where we started and ended our first day out on the mountains. So Brendan and I bought a handful of stickers and Koren bought more gifts. I need to figure out how to get on her gift list. After lunch, we made a pit stop so Koren could get her ice cream fix and made our way back to the house. I tried to capture more of the mountains and the trees that were lightly coated in fresh snow...but, these photos don’t do any justice. There was so much texture.

When we got back, Caitlin and Adam were right behind us followed by Ryan and Josh who found the local Irish Pub (shocker. not.). We hung around, Ryan showed off the photo that Josh took of him and we had a couple of drinks and hot teas.

Eventually, we got ready and made ourselves presentable for a nice dinner out in the town at Deno’s Mountain Bistro. We snagged some seating by the bar as we waited for a table. This place had everything from wings to a steak dinner and a wine list that was 16 pages long. SIXTEEN! We had ordered everything from biratta, steaks, poke bowls, wings and pasta. Ryan was in his prime that night and Josh had us all laughing so hard during the entire meal.

The next day we packed up and left Fraser/Winter Park and started to make our way towards our next destination, Boulder. On the way, we stopped at Arapahoe Basin. It was another gorgeous ride up and through the mountains. We drove through Loveland Pass and the Continental Divide which was stunning. Koren and I had no shame in asking Brendan to pull the car over (more than once) to take photos.

We got to the parking lot and started to gear up for the day when I noticed Arapahoe’s logo. It’s the letter “A” with a design around it. I had seen it a dozen times in Brent’s sticker collection. Even when I visited Drew and Amanda in Syracuse, I remember looking through the collection with Drew and asking what logo or brand it was and he had no idea. Well, apparently this was a fave mountain of Brent’s and here we were about to spend the day shredding there.

Now THIS is what I envisioned snowboarding in Colorado to look like. Mountains were EVERYWHERE. Winter Park was a great time and all but if you told me I was at a ski resort in update New York on that mountain, I’d believe you. But the setting at A-Basin was just absolutely incredible. We were surrounded by high peaks near by, mountains in the distance and tons of trees.

I think every time we were on the lift up the mountain I said something along the lines of, “I can’t get over how beautiful this is!” THIS was when I completely understood what Brent wanted me to experience. I just knew it. THIS was where he would’ve taken me (or Breckenridge - next time!) to tear up a mountain together. An old colleague of mine went hiking in Yosemite National Park last year. I remember her posting a photo of her with in front of a stunning backdrop and the caption reading, “Sometimes it’s good to feel small.” That is 100% true and that’s how I felt riding the lift when we got to the top of the mountain at the Montezuma bowl. But right as we got off of the lift for our first run of the day, there was a work bench for binding adjustments next to the map of the mountain. It happened to be covered in stickers. I couldn’t think of a better mountain to place a #LiveLikeBrent sticker.

I know this is an obvious statement but the mountains were so big! There are so many trails and options! It was an amazing time. At one point, Koren and Caitlin found an alpine trail on the mountain called Moose Hollow. They took a photo for me knowing that moose are my favorite animal and that I’d do anything to see one in person. So the next trip up the mountain they took me through the trees on this trail. Mind you, I never take these trails because it’s a bit more difficult if you’re on a board. It’s even more difficult if you get stuck. Never mind that, it’s freaking EXHAUSTING if you fall and need to get yourself up. If you’re on skis you at least have both feet and two poles to help get back up. We went down this trail twice, I hopped over one of the divets successfully the first time. But there was one slight jump I couldn’t get over and lost speed both times.  I honestly had to lay there and give myself a minute after trying to get myself up the first time.

After a stellar day on the mountain, we packed up and made our way to our Airbnb in Boulder so we could get ready for dinner with Lindgren. This place was adorable as well. You can view more photos and the place we stayed here!

Lindgren asked where we wanted to get dinner and I requested any place that he would take Brent if he were in town visiting again. He suggested a Nepal/Tibetan/Indian spot called Sherpa’s Adventure Restaurant & Bar. It’s a restaurant that is in an old Victorian home...so yes, you felt like you were dining in somebody’s home. It was so great to finally meet Lindgren. I asked him how he met Brent. He said one time he was eating dinner at WVU and this shaggy, bleached, long haired, guy came over and sat down with him at the table. Lindgren said, “He just started talking to me and kept going. Somehow we got on the topic of snowboarding and he was SO passionate about it. At the time, I hadn’t had a lot of experience on the mountain. But we somehow just became immediate friends. He kept going on and on.” Ah yes the gift of gab, a gift given I’m sure by his father, was one of Brent’s best qualities. Shortly before Brent went in for his stem-cell transplant, he came to a wedding with me to celebrate my friends, Bit and Asad. I was parking my car for the wedding and feeding the meter as Brent went inside the beach bar of the hotel to get more quarters. I noticed he took a long time. It turns out it was because he was chatting up one of my college friends at the bar, Joe. When I went inside, Joe, looked at me and exclaimed, “AIS!!! DO YOU KNOW THIS GUY? He walked in and now all of a sudden we’re like BEST buds.”

After Brent passed Joe wrote, “Been thinking of you and Brent so much the past few days. I've never been so inspired by the spirit and fun vibe of a person after hanging out just one time with him. Just wanted to share these fun shots. So glad I got to spend that night with you two. Love you Ais.”  That’s the kind of guy Brent was though. He met Joe once. He spent maybe a total of 8 hours with him. Like Lindgren said - that’s all it took.

Anyway, I digress! Lindgren became one of Brent’s close friends from WVU and described him as his only “frat friend.” Lindgren said one time he was at his fraternity house and he received a phone call from Brent. Brent said, “Are you home?” Lindgren told him he was and Brent continued, “Go outside RIGHT NOW!” Lindgren was hesitant but went outside. Brent and his friend Tony were throwing giant tires down the hill Lindgren lived on and wreaking havoc. Remember at Brent’s funeral when the priest joked he wasn’t a Saint? Case and point.

As we ate dinner (which was top-notch), Lindgren also shared one of his proudest moments with Brent. Brent flew in to visit with Lindgren with the obvious goal to go snowboarding. Lindgren said he told Brent that they’d be snowboarding Vail that day with one of his friends. Cool, right? Lindgren also added in that they would be snowboarding with Owen Schmitt. Ha! He was a football player at West Virginia and had moved onto the NFL after college. I’d say that’s a pretty solid proud moment. Lindgren’s bud went to high school with Schmitt who still clearly hung out. I do vaguely remember Brent telling me about this and he somehow got Schmitt’s phone number...he made up and excuse when he asked for it like “Just in case we get separated on the mountain.” Brent then added him on Snapchat and I’m pretty sure vice versa. What a Brent move.

As we were finishing our meal, Lindgren suggested a place to check out next he liked called The Sundown Saloon. It had a cool name, so we were down for it. Nicole, Lindgren’s wife, showed up as we were paying the check and met everyone. When she heard where we were going for drinks she looked at Lindgren with concern and said, “You’re taking them there???” We asked what was wrong with it and she described it as a hole in the wall dive bar. I remember saying, “But...that’s our kind of place.” It really was. But before we left, Lindgren and Nicole chatted with the owner. I’d say they’re pretty darn close to being regulars. Then we took a quick group photo. Again, it looked and felt like we were in somebody’s house for supper.

As we approached the doors...guess where it was located? Yes, in another basement. The Sundown Saloon is tucked underneath the walking mall that is Boulder’s Pearl Street. I decided to place a sticker here because it was a place that Lindgren would’ve taken Brent. After being inside it was like Murphy’s back in East Falls with Billards. I’m NOT calling Murphy’s a hole in the wall dive bar, mind you. There was a lot of wood going on, a fun crowd, and photos on some of the walls like Mike has up.

We walked in and there was a juke box, dart board, foosball and shuffleboard table, a handful of pool tables, Christmas lights that covered most of the ceiling, and plenty of cheap beer and whisky. If I lived in Boulder, this would certainly become a regular spot for a drink or two with a crew. We pushed together a bunch of tables, watched Shaun White slay the Olympics, drank and chatted. Then, who shows up? Josh and Katrina. Josh definitely spoiled us with his presence that weekend. As we sat there, some a little more buzzed than others, Caitlin looked at me across the table and smiled, “Looking around this circle makes me really happy. Brent brought us together.” It was true. Who travels across the United States to meet a stranger and his wife? We did because Brent only surrounded himself with the most amazing people. I’ve learned many things over the last year and one of them is that the people you surround yourself with are a reflection of who you are as a person. I think that’s important to think about. If you sit back and think about the people in your life, who are they? How do they act? Are they some of the funniest people you know? Maybe they are the most thoughtful and caring. Or maybe they simply inspire you. I’ve decided to continue to surround myself with people that make me happy and that want to be in my life. What I do know is that as you get older your circle of friends tend to get smaller. But mine has only been expanding and I’m extremely thankful for it and everyone that has become a part of my life.

We said our goodbyes, I gave Lindgren one of Brent’s beanies he wore in the hospital all of the time, Never Summer. The company is based out of Colorado so I figured it was fitting. We didn’t talk about what happened to Brent. But Lindgren did look at me and say, “I’m just so glad he had you for the time that he did and everything he went through.” He started to get tears in his eyes and these are the types of things that make me cry...Seeing any of Brent’s friends hurt or upset about what happened. He continued to say things that were truly touching to hear. I hugged him a couple of times and told him I was so glad to have finally meet him.

P.S. Nicole SLAYS in foosball. Don’t let her fool you.