Posted by michele battiste (205.188.192.43) on August 19, 2002 at 04:09:01:
when i got a message that seth cluett was trying to get in touch with me, i was so excited to reconnect with him. if i had known the news i would have remained incommunicado. i just don't understand why the cosmos would take this talent, this spirit, away from us so soon.
i was first friends with jim in high school, during his tangled,long hair and lamb chop sideburn days. he was a freshman and i was a sophmore. we drifted apart after that first year but reconnected in albany a few years ago. it's been a couple years since i've seen him, but i will always remember him first and foremost as an intellectual. even when we were teenagers i envied his insight and his wit. later on, after we reconnected, that changed to admiration and deep respect for his art, especially his writing. jim can tell a story like nobody else can tell a story. he tells stories no one else can imagine.
i wish i was in town on 9/22. i wish i stayed in touch. i wish i had words that could touch my grief.
michele
wichita, ks