Karl Bremer

I am going to visit my friend Karl Bremer tomorrow at his house in Stillwater, MN where he lives with his sweet, beautiful wife Chris.  She is a cancer survivor.  Karl may not be.  This is the saddest thing I have ever written about and may be the saddest visit of my life.  But I love Karl and I am looking forward to seeing him tomorrow and telling him that I love him.

 

Karl Bremer is the most tenacious guy I know who never ever gives up, so in December of 2011 when he told me about his diagnosis of pancreatic cancer I was of course horrified, but my first thought was that if there was anybody in the world who can beat this, it is Karl.  I have always said that Karl is like one of those little dogs pulling on your pant leg, shaking his head and growling and never letting go or giving up.  I am sure that Michelle Bachmann can attest to this as Karl has been dogging that nutjob for most of her political career.  His cancer diagnosis phased me, but I wasn't too worried as I just assumed he would beat it.  He said in no uncertain terms that he would beat it and I had no choice but to believe him.

Karl is a fun-loving prankster who takes great joy in seeing justice being done, but if it was done in a funny or mischievous way then all the better.  He once told me the story of a restaurant he visited on vacation where the BLT he ordered had an extremely inadequate supply of bacon on it.  He asked the waitress what the deal was and asked for more bacon and was rudely declined.  Upon leaving he duly noted the address of the establishment.  When he got home from his vacation he proceeded to mail them some raw bacon, taking care to mail it on a Friday so that it would take an extra day to get there and be plenty ripe upon arrival.  I believe he even made this an annual thing, mailing them bacon every year on the anniversary of him being slighted on his BLT.

 

Like myself and most of our friends, music is one of the most important things in the world to us.  It is the beginning and the catalyst of many of our friendships.  For the last two decades that I have known him, Karl and I have seen countless hours of incredible music together.  The first time I met him was at a Radiators concert at a bar in Minneapolis, MN called The Quest.  I had been in awe of him up to that point, not knowing exactly who he was but I had read his many decisive, valid and fascinating posts on an online music chatline called 'Heatgen'.  When I finally figured out who he was I timidly went up to him, introduced myself, and he gave me a big smile and a handshake and I felt like we were instant friends.

 

Since that night we have seen a lot of cool shit together...from the countless great bands we see on our annual trek to the Jazzfest every spring in New Orleans, to all of the incredible music every summer at the Bayfront Blues Festival in Duluth, MN, and of course all of the amazing Radiator concerts in between.  Many of these Radiator concerts as well as other musicians and bands were performed at Karl's house.  Outdoor summer shows and benefit concerts in Karl and Chris's backyard at their beautiful log-cabin in the woods in Stillwater, MN as well as intimate indoor shows in their livingroom.  Some of the best times and best memories of my life have been at this wonderful place, the 'Stoned-Bridge Saloon' he calls it, and I will be forever grateful to have been a part of these incredible parties.

 

Although the Radiators have always been the nucleus of our friendship, over the years we have seen (and not seen) some other great concerts together as well.  One of the best concerts of my life was with Karl at a show in St. Paul, MN on Bruce Springsteen's summer 2006 Seeger Sessions tour.  It absolutely blew us both away and I will always remember Karl dancing and stomping and clapping away throughout most of the show, but especially during the 'Rag Mama Rag' encore.

 

The concert we did NOT see together was at the same venue in the summer of 2009 for an Eric Clapton concert.  I had stupidly tried to buy tickets from what turned out to be a Craigslist scammer for $100.  When we got to the venue, there were no tickets, but Karl graciously offered to split the loss and gave me $50.  It was not at all expected, but Karl insisted.  He was then determined to mail some bacon to the bitch who screwed us, but she ended up getting caught and is now sitting in jail so the bacon was not necessary.

 

I got to pay Karl back in some small measure last summer when the two of us went to see Crosby, Stills & Nash in Minneapolis.  I was able to get a pair of great floor seats from a girl at work who won them on the radio and sold them to me for $100, so I picked Karl up and we had a blast.  As with every great band in the world, Karl has seen them many times and he told me great stories of seeing them back in the 70's.  We enjoyed a couple beers during the terrific show and joked around with the girls next to us...it was a wonderful night that I will always treasure in my memory banks.

 

The last concert I saw with Karl was at the Malone Brothers in Shakopee, MN this past Halloween.  It was the Krewe Of DAD's annual costume ball, a party that the Krewe has been throwing every year since the mid-eighties.  Karl has always been a huge participant in the Krewe's activities, which in addition to the annual Halloween party included numerous other parties throughout the years.  Most of them with the Radiators as the house band, and like I said more than a few of them at Karl's house.  After months and months of chemotherapy Karl's body has been weakened by the treatments, but our stubborn hippie has never lost his long hair or his big smile.  I will always remember a costumed Karl dancing and pumping his fist in the air with his face turned up, eyes half-closed, and that huge smile on his face.  He only stood for a couple songs and had to sit for the rest of the concert, but that memory of him dancing that night will be with me for the rest of my life.

Karl also has a blog, entitled 'Ripple In Stillwater' and can be found at http://www.rippleinstillwater.com/.  My blog is just for fun, whereas Karl's is an important, award-winning journalist blog that like most things he does makes the world a better place.  Out of the blue a month or two ago Karl sent me an email telling me that he liked my blog and enjoyed reading it every time a new story came out.  Coming from someone I respect so much, that meant a lot to me and I saved the email.

As a published and accomplished author, a professional journalist, a terrific cook, a skilled photographer, and a fearless and relentless political rabble-rouser you have influenced me and countless others Karl.  Your writings, your photographs, your words, your sense of humor, your love of live and your friendship will always be a part of me and who I am.  Thank you for everything you have given me and the world.  We are all better off for knowing you and loving you.  See you tomorrow my friend and forever after.