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Ghost
climber
A long way from where I started
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Aug 20, 2009 - 03:14pm PT
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Thanks RRK, both for keeping us posted, and for being there for Curt.
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Brian Hench
Trad climber
Laguna Beach, CA
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Aug 20, 2009 - 05:03pm PT
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I arrived on the ST scene too late to really get to know Curt, but I know what he's going though. My wife suffered from breast cancer for 8 years and finally succumbed to it on July 10. I was there when she passed. She hung on five years longer than her doctor had predicted. She wanted to see her kids complete their college education and she did.
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Norwegian
Trad climber
Placerville, California
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Aug 20, 2009 - 09:52pm PT
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there is peace on the other side.
there is. its black and its velvety.
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MisterE
Trad climber
Canoga Porn, CA
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Aug 20, 2009 - 10:02pm PT
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Been thinking about Curt all day today bump.
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Mimi
climber
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Aug 20, 2009 - 10:44pm PT
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Yep, Curt is one tough SOB. Makes me even sadder. This is just awful. At least when you die climbing, it's usually pretty quick.
May he finally be at peace.
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Zander
Trad climber
Berkeley
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Aug 20, 2009 - 10:53pm PT
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Hey Brian,
Best wishes to you, man.
Zander
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jstan
climber
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Aug 21, 2009 - 12:44am PT
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This is the part of life for which our lack of control is most clear. Our function is to appreciate what we have enjoyed and to prepare ourselves for its loss. All the while being clear, for now at least, we are not central to the issue. Everyone has to go through this for themselves, alone.
We are but in preparation.
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Curt
Boulder climber
Gilbert, AZ
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Aug 21, 2009 - 01:25am PT
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We have no control over our birth or our death--yet each and every one of us will most certainly experience both. The best we can hope for is to take more out of life than life takes out of us, in the intervening years.
Curt
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Mighty Hiker
Social climber
Vancouver, B.C.
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Aug 21, 2009 - 02:02am PT
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I've been thinking of Curt also. So I went to Squamish tonight and did some more graffiti removal, something I know that he enjoyed doing. And had a nice sunset at the Baldwin Ledge, alone with my thoughts and memories.
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justthemaid
climber
Los Angeles
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Aug 21, 2009 - 02:57am PT
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I have a really funny quote by Dirt written down somewheres addressing his actual plans for taking over Hell when he dies. I'll track it down.
Thought I'd post up this link of the last couple days that Curt was able to climb. It's an amusing trip report I wrote about about a trip we took to Palisades and Laurel Knob with Shannon and RRK. Lots of pics. Mr. E posted one of the pics earlier.
http://www.supertopo.com/climbing/thread.html?topic_id=724731
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RRK
Trad climber
Talladega, Al
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Aug 21, 2009 - 11:41am PT
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Thanks Skip - I wish that I could have come along on the second leg of that weekend. I do regret not putting the real world aside for just one more day. I have spent a good bit of time lately reflecting on my friendship with Curt, particularly since getting a copy of his new disk. I have a disk titled “Curt Johnson 2007" which is in the player in my car. Though not at the absolute top of his game at that time, the guitar work on the 2007 disk is absolutely astonishing. In contrast, the new disk, “Over and Done”, is not Curt Johnson at the pinnacle of his abilities, but rather Curt Johnson battling the forces which are overwhelming him. Please don’t misunderstand, “Over and Done” is an excellent work. You will likely never hear anything else like it. However the thing that is communicated so powerfully in this new work is the force of Curt’s will. It is a monument to his ability to stand at the very edge of life and demand that his body do something impossible. Though I should prefer the earlier work over the latter, the fact is that I do not. For me this is a very puzzling realization.
Though I have learned so many things through our friendship, this last lesson, given in the very last days of his life, is a fundamental one for me. I now realize - in a way that I never have before - that art does not flow from technical virtuosity as it does from the struggle against limitations. It is not about what you can do, but rather about what you want to do but can’t. From this epiphany (Curt-iphany?) I am beginning to understand that my preference for the latter work is because it represents art in a way that the other, more technically brilliant work, could not.
Now I find myself considering whether I must recant my position on rock climbing as art. For me climbing has always been a silly game that I played with my friends. It is satisfying in a way that nothing else has ever been, but I felt pretentious calling it art. I would never give any sort of name to a route (with just a few exceptions) - preferring something descriptive of the location or just nothing at all. I don’t fault people for feeling that they have some sort of possessory interest in a route, but I never entertained that notion for myself. I may be wrong about that. I have always realized that climbing was about the journey, not the destination. However the struggle that is inherent in climbing may in fact produce art in the same way that Curt’s struggle to create music has done. The route may in fact be a valid statement of the force of human will. Enough already. All this pondering is making my head hurt. I’ll just put these thoughts away and try to reconcile all this at some point in the future. For now I’ll just head over to see the old goat and tell him that he’s managed to simultaneously confound me and make my life better - again.
RRK
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RRK
Trad climber
Talladega, Al
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Aug 22, 2009 - 01:39pm PT
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Curt's still with us today as of just a few minutes ago but had a very rough night and is on oxy with increased dosage of pain meds. He's not eating much - he got down a couple of spoons of RRK's famous apple butter with cabernet and ginger last night but basically is on liquids. I recommended 100 year old scotch which I know for a fact that he would guzzle but I'm not driving this train so it was just a suggestion. (His mother did say that they knocked off a bottle together when the last of the bad news came around but that was some time ago) I think that he's still clear in his mind - you can see it in his eyes - but he just can't speak due to the very heavy medication. I told him yesterday that he's got nothing left to prove but then again he never listened to me or anyone else. If he makes it through the weekend I'll go over again Monday or Tuesday. Now's the time to get in touch if you've been putting it off. Regret stays with you forever.
RRK
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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Aug 22, 2009 - 01:51pm PT
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hey there say, rrk.... i can't afford to call again... if you get over there and see him in time, give him a thank you for sharing his love for his pear-dessert recipe (he shared how he really loves that stuff)... and a greeting from neebee... and that i'm still praying...
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Jennie
Trad climber
Elk Creek, Idaho
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Topic Author's Reply - Aug 22, 2009 - 01:58pm PT
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Thanks for the updates, RRK. Thanks to you and Skip and Mister E for the great photos. I know Curt and his family appreciate the prayers and kind thoughts expressed on ST forum.
Curt's mom told me this morning he had a bad night. I wanted to tell Curt what I thought of his last CD but the post office hasn't delivered it yet. Curt has a great passion for life and is holding on to it tenaciously. I believe he's still hoping for the miracle, (I surely am).
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HighDesertDJ
Trad climber
Arid-zona
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Aug 22, 2009 - 01:58pm PT
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Good luck Curt. Thanks for sharing yourself with us.
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SteveW
Trad climber
The state of confusion
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Aug 22, 2009 - 02:43pm PT
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Best wishes Curt.
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Redwreck
Social climber
Echo Parque, Los Angeles, CA
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Aug 22, 2009 - 04:30pm PT
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Curt's a treasure, and his loss will diminish us all.
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Bob D'A
Trad climber
Boulder, CO
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Aug 22, 2009 - 05:10pm PT
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Curt...hope your journey is a peaceful one. I have missed you posting on the wildflower thread...your shots were beautiful.
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RRK
Trad climber
Talladega, Al
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Aug 22, 2009 - 05:23pm PT
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Neebee I will and thank you. You are a sweetheart. You too Jennie and Skip. Here's a pic. Hold on to you hearts ladies 'cause The Dirt's ready to go steppin'. This from yesterday, which was a pretty good day all things considered (followed by a rough night). Maybe there will be a good one tomorrow. Neebee would you share the pear recipe?
hmm I'll have to rethink this or maybe someone can get the link and do it for me. My old web site changed somehow and I can't upload so I tried to do it from a facebook page. I'll get back with you. I hate problem-solving. I deleted the image tags so that the link will post. Maybe somebody can do the hookup for me. They didn't teach this in third grade/ lets try a flickr page
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Curt
Boulder climber
Gilbert, AZ
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Aug 23, 2009 - 12:33am PT
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That's one tough SOB--and I mean no offense to his mother, I mean metaphorically.
The other Curt
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