I woke up at 6:30 yesterday and a few minutes later got the email.i am heartbroken to put it mildly.My 6 and 8 year old daughters are now fans and are also upset.This summer is my 26th year as a fan, the last 10 years a "super fan".I dropped off around the time of M@W and fell back in love in 06.I have been to 40 shows just in the last 10 years,countless meetings and every show a new experience.Regardless if set list I always created an event of it.I went to sleep at 6:00 pm last night because frankly I didn't want to be awake and feeling.I woke at midnight sobbing and couldn't stop till 2am.I do t even know if I can go to any if these shows. A part of me wants to remember the better times,another part of me would never forgive myself for not going.I have been dealing with my own health issues for the last 5 years being diabetic for the last 20 years,breaking my back while having a seizure,and now incapable of working full time, severe depression for the last 18 months,to the point I finally caved and got put in medication 3 months ago.I feel like I was just starting to come out of my despair and now this.The Hip have been a huge influence in my life,they and The Who saved my life on more than one occasion. Fucking hate Cancer. I am helping MAv with the Facebook fan page,if you arent already member come join, we need all the unity and support than we can get. <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/theHip/">https://www.facebook.com/groups/theHip/</a><!-- m -->
fingernailsonhull Wrote:Lizard King Wrote:sean.bonner Wrote:I thought it was clear that nobody knows yet.
My thought as well, even his doctor at the press conference was non committal about his long term prognosis. Everything from here on out depends on only one thing: what Gord is able/wants to do.
A good prognosis for this kind of tumour is 12 to 15 months. My grandfather had the same kind. He had surgery and radiation therapy and he lived for a little under a year.
Yes...and I read today that some of the last few months may be characterized by diminished quality of life. It only seems realistic, if terrible, to assume this is the last tour. And for sure that will be the operative assumption of the fans (many of whom will be people coming to the show who have not actually listened to any new Hip or seen any new shows in years).
I have the same experience as dire wolf. I expected to feel better today - after all, it's not like he is family or something - but every time I think about it, it's a bit of a punch to the gut. This is the first time I have ever been so emotionally affected by such news about a 'celebrity.'
Joshua/heronoutside, I tried to PM you but may have screwed it up. My question is, where can I get my hands on your book? Is it only readily available in e-copy on Kindle?
131NC Wrote:....Davis Manning plays the saxophone. If she's 17 from the Copper Penny just came on random. Thanks Dana.
Buda from Buffalo. Many B&P's years ago, still have them all.
How you doing young man? I am pretty sure 75% of my collection is B&P's.
i remember the 1999 tour, my now wife saw her first 2 hip shows in saint john and moncton. after the moncton show, we went out back in the cold January night and waited for the band to come out. eventually, a security guard let us wait inside the arena and eventually the band came out.
i used my walkman (ha!) to tape the saint john show and asked the band to sign the j-card . how am i? hahaha. when Gord saw it he looked at me and said "what's this?" i told him that there were signs in the area that i was allowed to tape the show and i did. he asked me how it sounded and i told him that it sounds really good. he smiled at me, signed the tape and left. i think i floated to the car... i couldn't stop smiling.
17 years later, i still have the tapes, even though i no longer have a tape deck,
:thumb:
Tthip Wrote:[ATTACHMENT NOT FOUND]
I woke to my wife's somber look. She read it first, knowing my world was about be shattered she handed me her phone. The look on her face told the story, "it's about Gord" she said. Since that moment, the world seems less fair and more wicked. I've floated through the past two days caught between disbelief and heart ache. This can't be true and yet it is. I can"t stop thinking about his wife and kids and the other guys. I love this band, our band. The Hip have been a gift that brightened my life. So many good times. I'm looking forward to one last tour and saying thank you to the man and his microphone stand.
I saw Gord at the old Higher Ground in Winooski many years ago...my wife surprised me. I was literally two feet from him. We have the set list that was given to us by the band when we asked. What I would do to get that concert back, it wasn't The Hip but it was Gord! God dammit, this news just sucks!
Since I found out yesterday morning, I'd felt like I was on the verge of tears. I worked 2 jobs yesterday and one today. Finally got home and can let it all out.. and nothing. Huh? The hell, body?
I'm still just so sad.
Edit: Okay, false alarm. It's A Good Life If You Don't Weaken set me off.
I can't imagine life without the hip. We all feel this enormous sense of loss already. But Gord seems to walk off with dignity. Let's honor that wish. His private life after the tour will be a mystery. It's part of us too. But we have no choice but to celebrate with the band. It's gonna be rough. But I don't think Gord is doin this so we feel pity. I'm so glad this forum exists.
sean.bonner Wrote:I think I understand now what Christians mean when they say "I have a personal relationship with Christ", because I now understand that I do have a personal relationship with Mr. Downie. He may not know my name or face, but no other person is woven into the fabric of my existence like Gord Downie.
may have to get this on a T-shirt
Sean nails it, yet again
sean.bonner Wrote:I think I understand now what Christians mean when they say "I have a personal relationship with Christ", because I now understand that I do have a personal relationship with Mr. Downie. He may not know my name or face, but no other person is woven into the fabric of my existence like Gord Downie.
I've been reading here, the Pearl Jam board and a few other places since the news broke. Along with watching youtube clips of concerts and such. I don't really have anything to say that hasn't already been said but the above statement is as spot on as anything I've read or heard.
This is selfish of me of course but Gord would understand... Do you think that maybe after the tour, they will record one last song? Not an album but a track?
patiodweller Wrote:This is selfish of me of course but Gord would understand... Do you think that maybe after the tour, they will record one last song? Not an album but a track?
I can't imagine he's not writing through all of this, so I'd be surprised if we didn't get something, an album, poetry, something. Warren Zevon wrote some of his best songs after learning he had terminal lung cancer.
patiodweller Wrote:This is selfish of me of course but Gord would understand... Do you think that maybe after the tour, they will record one last song? Not an album but a track?
I also wonder whether there will be a filmed document of this tour, or at least one show.