Feeling sad

Jerry Hadley died today. He shot himself on July 10, and had been on life support. He was the same age as me, almost exactly--born 10 days later--and also from the Midwest. He had been suffering from depression, and having money problems, which brings it really close to home...

I first saw him in the late 80s in the PBS documentary about the recording of the restored Show Boat album, conducted by John McGlinn. He doesn't have a lot of screen time, but I loved his voice and his attitude. I loved listening to him. Not a Pavarotti or Domingo, but a bright, lively voice and eclectic repertoire. I always meant to get the McGlinn Show Boat CD, as well as a couple of other of Jerry's CDs.

I hope he's finding peace, and that his next trip through will be brighter.

And I'm sad and disturbed about the suffering of the dogs, living and dead, who were found on Michael Vick's property. I find it almost impossible to understand how any human could treat any animal with such cruelty and callousness. Those dogs won't be waiting for anyone at the Bridge; they'll be wondering why any of the other animals would want to be reunited with their people. Bless them, after they've run free and had time to heal, I hope they're brave enough to give someone a chance to prove we're not all barbarians.