You may have missed the fact that Acidman has passed on.

Young, too. Younger than dad, when he died.

I have read all the tributes, and a lot of eloquent words were said. I had to take a little time to digest it, myself. As I always do, when someone around me dies.

Rob Smith had trouble in his life. A lot of it was laid on his shoulders by others, but he put some of it there himself. He lived exactly as he chose, and while the choices he made were not always good for him, nor best for the people around him, he stuck by them no matter how hard. It’s very easy to be critical or condescending, but most of us don’t live with the same sense of the world that Rob had. I knew him only through his writing, never having had the opportunity to meet him in person- but I knew him as a decent soul. At his best, he made us laugh. When I could make him laugh with something I had written, i was always very proud. At his worst, he pissed off and alienated people. Whatever his internal demons were, I never fully knew, nor, probably, did anyone else.

I wish that Rob were still with us. I wish he had published the columns he wrote for the Effingham paper. I wish he would reappear again tomorrow, to laugh at us all. But he won’t. I wasn’t close enough to him to be heartbroken by his death, but I was a good enough reader that I’ll miss him. And I’ll search through the archives for as long as his site is up, remembering the fights and laughter.

God keep you, Robert Smith. God hold you in the hollow of his Mighty hand. And thanks for the time you gave to us.