More pictures of Evan

Here's a link to his Ski Coach's website. It has a video on it too... http://cressyvideo.com/Evan_Wood.htm

Thinking of Evan.

So, tomorrow is the day that Evan died. Who am I supposed to talk about this with?!? Matt doesn't want to talk about it. I don't want to post anything to Facebook because I don't want Evan's mom and brothers to be sad, or for some reason disapprove of me saying anything about him. Last night on the drive home from dinner we past his cemetery in Portland. I have been thinking all week that "the day" was coming. As we passed the entrance I told Matt we should go see him on Monday. We haven't been up there in a long time. I thought it would be nice to put some daffodils on his plaque, especially since I am sure Sharon and Dan will visit too. It will be nice for them to see that someone else visited him and still thinks about him. I think that is Sharon's worst fear; that Evan's friends will forget about him.

Every year Niki and her family host a Superbowl party at their house in Murrayhill. The party ended and the group parted ways. Matt stayed at my apartment that Sunday night. His phone rang in the middle of the night. He didn't wake up to answer it. Anytime someone calls late at night I immediately think that something is wrong, because really, who needs something from you at 2am?? So anyway, Matt didn't answer the call, but I got up to grab his phone. I missed the call, but saw that it was from Andrew. I made Matt wake up and passed the phone to him, telling him to call Andrew back. He was groggy and probably half asleep but he did call Andrew back. Andrew didn't answer. A few moments later Andrew called Matt again. I couldn't hear what Andrew was saying. Matt, though, was repeating himself. "What?" in a confused voice. "What??", as in, did I just hear that right? And another "What?!?". He said "We'll be right over", and Matt hung up the phone with Andrew. He sat there for a second quiet and I didn't say anything. "Evan died last night."

So we woke up at probably 4am and headed over to Mindy's house. Mindy and Evan had been together for years. Since high school...So probably at least 5 years. They had been taking time apart at the time that Evan died. But we knew she must have been hurting. We, the group of 15 or so, sat silently in Mindy's living room. Her mom made coffee and made sure we had anything we needed. She was also getting updates from someone and was keeping us posted with what she had heard. It was such an odd feeling. Nothing needed to be said. I think everyone was shocked, confused, and frankly in awe that they had left Evan only a few hours before recieving this blow, so what could have possibly happened???

Over the course of the day some of the story came in. Brien, Evan's next oldest brother, came downstairs after returning home from a late night out. He heard Evan coughing, and says it sounded like Evan might have been throwing up. Brien went in and found that Evan was not doing well, like maybe he had been choking and had not been breathing. Their dad, Dan, is a retired firefighter. Their oldest brother, Sean, is a Paramedic, and happens to live accross the street. Brien called 911 while Dan and Sean went to work on Evan. Sharon stayed out, likely hyterical. Her boys are her babies and the light of her life. Another friend of ours who was a police officer also responded to the call. As he neared the home he thought "hmm, this is Evan's neighborhood", and that immediatly turned to "hmm, this is Evan's house." He won't ever share how the call went, what was happening in the house, and how he felt or what his thoughts are.

Evan was seemingly healthy, so naturally the police had to investigate as to what could have caused Evan to die. Investigators knocked at Niki's door early in the morning to search their house. They took beer cans and food from the party out from the garbage. Asked questions about how Evan was acting. The police called Andrew first. They used Evan's cell phone and Andrew's number was the last call made, so they started with him. Noone was much help to them because we had all parted ways on a happy, healthy, not too drunk note. I don't know all of the specifics, and I have never asked what the toxicology report came back with. But the cause of death was basically asphyxiation. Evan had choked in his sleep.

A few days later Evan had his funeral service. I'm not much of a crier, but it kills me when I see my friends upset. If this makes sense, it was the best service ever! So many people came. The stories of how people remember him were hilarious. And it was beyond touching to see the Marine's honor guard, half a dozen lighted fire trucks, and hundreds of friend's and family pay tribute to Evan.

All the time, just last week even, we re-tell stories of the crazy and mostly illegal shenanigans that Matt and Andrew got in to with Evan. It's soooo funny to hear them impersonate Evan's voice. Soemof the stories he left are priceless, and he really took some of his sevrets to the grave. Was there really an alien hopping fences behing his back yard? They also have the Evan Wood memorial ski race at Mt.Hood every February. I've never made it up, but next year we MUST go. We take Raleigh to visit Dan and Sharon. They are so proud to have Evan's name in hers. Ahh, I feel a tear coming...Just makes me feel for them. I know they miss him so much.

So, cheers to Evan! Can't believe it's been 6 years. I remember you like I was with you yesterday :)

Evan in the middle, with Jake & Andrew

Baby Scarlett

I was tipped off to this blog (by who, I don't even remember) about a little baby girl with a brain tumor. Baby Scarlett was two months old when her parents noticed bruising on her forehead. So at her 2 month check up they asked their doctor about what could be causing these bruises. Office visit+X-ray+MRI+news that your baby had a rare brain tumor= 2 brain surgeries and a 2 month hospital stay for tiny Scarlett. He parents blog every day about Scarlett's ups and downs, her care, obstacles they face in dealing with a sick baby, and efforts to help support her care. Here's the link to their blog... http://brandiandchris.blogspot.com/

I volunteer for the Make-A-Wish Foundation and work to grant wishes for kids who have illnesses and condition like tumors. My first wish was for 7 year old Luke, who also had a brain tumor. Happiest kid I have come across! His spirit impressed me so much, and his parents and siblings have made the most amazing sacrifices in order for Luke to receive the best care possible. He is currently taking a break from chem and his port that was implanted in his chest was removed so he can play sports while he is off of his treatment. Word is his tumor has not grown in the last several months! I always wish for the best for Luke! Here is his website too...http://www.caringbridge.org/visit/lukestaley/journal

Hawaii!!!!

We leave for Hawaii in just a few weeks. I am so excited to leave town and be somewhere new. We are going to Oahu, an island I have not been to yet. We are going for my grandma's 80th birthday, and most of the Jarmer clan is going. I loooooove this side of the family! They are vivacious and fun and they drink lots of martinis! Raleigh will also celebrate her 1st birthday while we are there. I don't have a list of things I want to do...Just want to check out Pearl Harbor and hang out on the beach. We have rented a house so I am hoping we will have all we need there. I'd love to play in the pool and snorkel off the beach and cook dinner at home most nights. Matt's grandma will be there for part of the time on her own trip as well, so maybe we will meet up and say hi to her. Any suggestions of what to do and places to see?

This is the house we are staying in, and the next one is the view. Pretty much on the beach.

I CANNOT WAIT!!!

I've been absent for a while.

Sorry to my two followers, Erik and Shannon, for not posting my latest and greatest bits of information to share! I've been slacking and tell myself I have no time. But really, who am I kidding? Raleigh would sit with my by the computer and eat Cheerios for the 10 minutes it takes me to write up a post. I've just been slacking. So, here goes try #2!

Cleaning feels so good!

I am in the middle of doing a deep clean at work to get ready for a big group of guests coming through tomorrow. I love rearranging furtniture, straightening the books on our bookshelves, pulling down old drawings and random clutter, and organizing the kitchen. Having a clean space really opens up your home. I truely feel trapped when things are left on the counters, the carpet is covered in dog hair, the beds aren't made, and laundry is all over the floor. And aside from freshening up the place, cleaning keeps these 4 teenage boys staying at my work busy! Bwahah, bwahahaha ***insert evil laugh***...

A little bent out of shape over lasagna

Doesn't this look delicious? I made a big lasagna dinner at work for my coworkers and kids in the shelter Monday night. Normally we have food made and delivered by a company who cooks for other housing programs, but we wanted to do something fun and different this week. Our Italian Family Feast, as we called it, included a selection of meat and cheese lasagnas, salad, garlic bread, and sparkling cider followed by tiramisu for dessert. It was really fun to have staff stay late, come in during their time off, and invite some of our volunteers over, too. But back to the point of this post...Now a couple of my co-workers are sick, and they suggested that it was my food that has caused this! This seems to be a logical and reasonable thought for someone who finds themselves eating food that was previously unfamiliar to them. But I promise I didn't poison them! I responded to the email that mentioned the illnesses and suggested we toss the leftovers and let them know I had been sick with the flu last week and over the weekend, and had passed it on to about 10 other people during that time. I tried to assure them that it probably wasn't food poisoning, rather just a fierce flu bug.
I'm bummed that I spent alot of time and had good intentions in making a nice dinner, and people think it was old, spoiled, undercooked, etc. food. I understand how they could question it, but it still makes me feel a little bad about it  :(