it never gets any easier

A couple of weeks ago I had gotten the sad news that my friend Jeff Stewart had died. Jeff was a fixture on the punk rock scene in the mid '80s . I knew Jeff through his older brother Robert. I met Rawb when we were both juniors in high school. He was an odd little fella who were a Band-Aid on his nose. We bonded over the music and became instant friends. Rawb was one of the areas original punks and spread the gospel of the music. He is almost single-handedly responsible for the scene that grew in the 1980s. The Veldt, Johnny Quest, Finger, Ugly Americans all owe a debt to Rawb . Every once in a while I will find a website or 'zines with photos of the punk scene in the 1980s. I am lucky to ever find myself in any of the pictures but goddamn….Robert is in damn near every one.

Rawb moved out to San Francisco a few years ago and our communications had become sparse. I found out a few minutes ago that he died peacefully in his sleep yesterday. Rawb had a great wit and an encyclopedic memory. Regardless of the subject he could carry on an intelligent conversation. Losing Robert means the world is a little less good of a place. Having passed so quickly after his kid brother Jeff , my assumption is he died of a broken heart.

From the time I met Robert in 1981 until the last photo I saw of him he had his trademark Band-Aid over his nose. He never revealed to me or anyone else the reasons for which he wore it. He always referred to it as “my tattoo” and then quickly changed the subject. Whether or not a God exists is a debate for another day. But if one does exist I’d like to know the reasoning for taking such a good person while leaving so many other unworthy people on the planet.