toddcarruth.com

“Be life long or short, its completeness depends on what it was lived for.” -David Starr Jordan

I just found out this morning that I guy I know, died on Sunday.  The weird thing is, that I didn’t know him personally but only through his art and his blog but it still hit me surprisingly hard. I felt like I had gotten to know artist Mike Wieringo fairly well just because he updated his blog often and always included a quick (and amazing) sketch with almost every entry. He would mention his bad back and talk about bills to pay and repairs that were needed around his house.  Just regular average joe problems that you could identify with. Apparently, he died of a heart attack but the fact that he was only 44 and a vegetarian just makes the whole ordeal seem that much more difficult to understand. My condolences to family and closer friends of Mike.

The internet allows us to get more personal with people we admire but without having to really get personal by interacting with them in real life. Some say that’s bad but I have no problem with it. In fact, there are people I admire on local TV and Radio here in Dallas that I will actively keep my distance from, simply because I don’t want my illusion of who they are, to be shattered or just simply changed by real interaction. I know that sounds negative and after reading it again, I’m not sure how I feel.  Now in that same vein, I do try to keep that idea in mind when I meet people for the first time who are fans of “Good Day”.  Not that I do it every time, but I hope to leave a good impression on the minds of people who want to meet the goofy man who dances during traffic reports.