I met James Gearity over 2 years ago at Kicker's where we both liked to 2-step. We became good friends. I loved his inteligence, wit, and sense of humor. July of '05 we became roommates. He found this terrific condo for rent in the Mission Hills neighborhood of San Diego. James had battled cancer for half his life. He went through many rounds of chemotherapy, most recently last year. In January of this year test showed the cancer had continued to grow. James realized that more chemotherapy would prolong his life a little, but what kind of life would that be? He decided he was ready to go and declined further treatment. This spring his health failed enough that he took a leave of absence from work and entered hospice care. Eventually he was confined to bed and a cadre of family and friends arrived to take care of him 24/7. Robert and Mike and Tina and David and Courtney and James' mother and broher and aunt and everyone else who stopped by, you all are my heroes. You allowed my friend to die at home with dignity. James, I miss you very much but I know you're in a better place. I imagine you're in a beautiful restaurant with family and friends that have been waiting for you. Save me a seat, I'll be there in time for dessert.