Just another... Life, Blog, Day.

THANK GOD FOR MICRO-BLOGGING As many of you know by now, my life...

Fri, 02 Oct 2009 19:55:48 -0700

THANK GOD FOR MICRO-BLOGGING

As many of you know by now, my life changed dramatically after returning from SXSW09, when my younger brother Robert informed me that he had cancer (I considered capitalizing the ‘c’ in cancer in order to be more dramatic, but I have not wanted to give the disease any more consideration then necessary). His news hit me very hard and I choose to stop blogging at that time. Instead, I choose to use Twitter to update everyone (family as well as people who follow me on the different Social Networks) because it was easier for me to handle. For some reason, sending out a picture or a short thought was something more palatable to me at the time as opposed to sitting down and writing a paragraph or two for my blog, or writing countless emails updating family and friends. In fact, I thank God for Twitter (not something I’m sure people are used to hearing about a micro-blogging site) because it allowed me to keep people up to date and still keep my sanity. I can see clearly now that choosing to deal with sharing news about my brother in this way allowed me to treat it ‘as a matter of fact’ or ‘news’ instead of an emotion filled land mine of an update. Don’t get me wrong, I still made tear-filled phone calls to family and friends, but as long as I could send out a ‘Tweet,’ many people were satisfied and I didn’t have to constantly repeat the details of my brother’s struggle with cancer. Along the way, and because of sites like Twitter, Facebook and Lalawag, many more people then I would have ever imagined became concerned with my brother and his battle. I could tell that this wasn’t some morbid fascination with was going on with me, my brother, and my family either. These people really cared. They passed along their Thoughts, their Prayers, and their Well Wishes. Many people even prayed that a Miracle would save my brother, while others offered Recommendations of Doctors and Healing Treatments that might cure his cancer. I was overpowered by the many «HUGS» and XOXOXOs as well as offers of help that I got through Texts, DMs, and Facebook Messages. Each message treating me, my brother and our family as someone that they have known forever as opposed to only knowing me through my photographs or ‘online.’ My family members even thanked me for updating them in this way. They too it seemed, wanted a way to ‘keep up to date,’ without having to have an emotional breakdown two or three times a week. I was told by more than one extended family member, that they were thankful for my updates because it allowed them to keep in touch without having to bother my brother directly. In the end, when my brother did pass, many more people were there with him then were actually there in person. It is a great tribute to both my brother and to Social Networks that he was able to touch so many lives without ever once having met them IRL (In Real Life).

It may not be impossible to Thank everyone individually that offered up Prayers, Thoughts, Well Wishes, and offers of Help, but it could take me a while and may be filled with much more emotion than my body can handle at this time. I hope that you will allow me, for the time being, to Thank everyone through this blog post, and I hope you know that it is as heartfelt and genuine as I can make it. Each and every one of you who followed my brother’s fight with that evil disease was there with me as I celebrated his Life and his Memory. All the family knew that you were following and everyone from his 19 year old daughter (she just turned 19 the week after my brother passed) to my many extended family members were thankful that you were there for him when God decided to take him home. Thank you from the bottom of my heart, and thank you from all of my brother Robert’s family and friends. You would have liked him and the world is a better place for his having lived his life.

May God Bless and Keep each and every one of you.

All the best,

wms out.

P.S. Many people have asked about his Obituary, the Program I put together for my brother’s Memorial Service and about the Eulogy I gave. I am working on putting up a web page that will have all of that on it along with some pictures, but until I do, here is a link to his Obituary that ran in the Long Beach Independent Press Telegram, and to the Program. I’ll add a link to the Eulogy I gave once I get it up.

watching Wild Boys / Duran Duran on Boxee

Sat, 22 Aug 2009 00:04:20 -0700

watching Wild Boys / Duran Duran on Boxee

watching True Blue / Madonna on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:56:55 -0700

watching True Blue / Madonna on Boxee

watching Mr. Blue Sky / Electric Light Orchestra on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:53:41 -0700

watching Mr. Blue Sky / Electric Light Orchestra on Boxee

watching Smuggler's Blues / Glenn Frey on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:49:25 -0700

watching Smuggler's Blues / Glenn Frey on Boxee

watching Wild Boys / Duran Duran on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:46:50 -0700

watching Wild Boys / Duran Duran on Boxee

watching Small Town Boy / Bronski Beat on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:43:59 -0700

watching Small Town Boy / Bronski Beat on Boxee

watching Tarzan Boy / Baltimora on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:41:47 -0700

watching Tarzan Boy / Baltimora on Boxee

watching The Boys of Summer / Don Henley on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:36:10 -0700

watching The Boys of Summer / Don Henley on Boxee

watching Stacy's Mom / Fountains of Wayne on Boxee

Fri, 21 Aug 2009 23:30:17 -0700

watching Stacy's Mom / Fountains of Wayne on Boxee

watching We Own the Night on Boxee

Wed, 01 Jul 2009 22:12:14 -0700

VIP TREATMEANT

Sat, 09 May 2009 18:32:43 -0700

Everywhere I go, people make me feel special. They always seem to like having me around to take...

What It’s Like To Be Appreciated - Or What It’s Like...

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 14:06:00 -0700

What It’s Like To Be Appreciated - Or What It’s Like To Know You Are Loved!

It’s great to be appreciated. Period. Anyone who works hard and takes pride in what they do enjoys it when other people recognize the work that they have done. I know that I get a thrill (no really, an honest to goodness thrill) when someone tells me that they like my work or when I see that they have used a photograph that I have taken of them as their Facebook Profile or Avatar (over 100 at my last count. I really wish there was a way to keep track of that). In fact, I got nearly giddy the other day when, as a bunch of us were sitting (co-working actually) at The W Hotel in San Francisco (during the Web 2.0 conference) and we started counting how many of my ‘images as avatars’ we all had amongst the thousands of people we followed (and were followed by) on Twitter. It was amazing to see how many people actually thought well enough of my work to use it for the image that they use to show the world who they are. Add on top of that the recent articles, interviews and slideshows that people have put together basically saying that they appreciate me and my work, and you could see how it would be difficult to move around town with a head as big as mine was getting. But, it was all drawn into perspective later that week, when I found out that my brother had Cancer and that his doctor was attempting to get him into surgery as fast as possible to deal with it. Family and friends are all coming together to support him. Each telling him how much having him in their life means to them in their own way. It’s an unsettling time and anyone who knows me, knows that I try to keep my personal and private life separate, but it’s times like these when you try to reach out to everyone you know and remind them how precious life is and how little time we all have together. I’ve been thought a little strange for being so passionate about people and loving what I do, but really, it boils down to one thing. I’ve lost too many friends and family members not to want to capture moments and show the people I care for and love in the best light. You never know when someone is going to be taken away from you or if you’ll ever get the chance to tell them that you love them ever again, so take my advice. Don’t wait till tomorrow. Tell someone today how much you appreciate them and the work they do. Each moment you spend with a friend should be precious, and each day with a family member or loved one should be celebrated.

Thank you Julie Wohlberg and Heather Meeker for the kind words, and thank you to everyone who I’ve met in the past year for all the amazing memories that you’ve so graciously afforded me. You are loved and you are appreciated. Thank You also to the LAist for their recent video interview of me.

My family members have asked that I not talk about them in my public life and I have attempted to respect their requests so I won’t be going into too much detail here, just know that my brother goes in for surgery to remove the growth he has on his esophagus this weekend and I would appreciate any Thoughts, Prayers, or Well Wishes that you can offer to him. No need to contact me about it, I’ll just know that people out there are pulling for him, and I’ll make sure that he knows he is loved.

All the best,

wms out.