AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAUUUUGH

[cjsmith]

A friend of mine just died. Helicopter crash, no survivors.

Damn, damn, damn, damn, damn.

I was closer to his wife than to him, so I guess I should say a friend of mine just lost her husband. She's a wreck right now. Hasn't eaten for a day, that sort of thing.

Damn.

Some phone calls you just don't want to get. Ugh. Sigh.

Now comes the rounds of telephoning, the staying with her so that she will eat, the organizing some kind of memorial...

Damn.

Comments

[mactavish.livejournal.com]

Ow, I'm so sorry. Will you be helping with the organizing, then?

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I will at least be doing a share of the phoning, and may do some of the staying with depending on how much help the friend staying there now wants. She'll need some time to wig, and after that, not sure yet what support will be needed.

Bleagh, rotten day today.

[cassidyrose.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry.

If there is anythig I can do, please let me know.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Probably nothing specific to DO, but just knowing I have friends who care is worth a lot. Ugh, what a horrid day.

[cassidyrose.livejournal.com]

Sorry it's been such an icky day :(

[bklyngirl.livejournal.com]

Aw jeez, CJ - I'm so sorry to hear this!

{{{HUGS}}}

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Life is just too @#$! SHORT, y'know?

[wcg.livejournal.com]

Oh Jeez... I'm sorry CJ. I hope tomorrow is a much better day.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. It'd be tough for tomorrow to be WORSE: no one I love is in an airplane tomorrow! :-( :-( :-(

[wcg.livejournal.com]

*hug* <- offered

I know I don't have to tell you this, but I'll remind you that air travel is statistically the safest way to get from one place to another. I realize that when something goes wrong, the results can get really bad really fast though.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

'Struth, though general aviation (where my loved ones would be likely to be) is not statistically as safe as commercial air travel.

Hmm, lemme rephrase that: with the Lycoming crank AD, people I care about are now more likely to fly commercial. ;-)

[elynne.livejournal.com]

Another note of sympathy and stuff. :( How awful, for everyone.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Yeah. I really feel for her, and she's just a mess at the moment, and I have no friggen clue what to do to help. Just be around, I guess. And maybe cook her some food.

[lkeele.livejournal.com]

Yeah. Food would be good. Phonecalls are going to be very helpful. Try to make sure she *eats* the food too, if you can.

[dawnd.livejournal.com]

Eating food is very grounding (in a good way, not a ploughing into it sort of a way). I guess I should go do some of that myself. Gee. Funny. I don't much feel like it right now. That's why your friend needs you around--because she won't much feel like eating.

[thorswitch.livejournal.com]

I'm really sorry to hear this, CJ -- I know you'll do what you can to take care of your friend, but be sure to take care of yourself, too...

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks, I will. I'll probably take care of me pretty well 'cause I have no idea what to do to help her. Honestly, nothing will REALLY help, because nothing will take the pain away. What's done is done. He's gone. In the meantime I guess we can just tellshow her there are still people who care about her, and we're here for her when she needs us...

[mighty-sam.livejournal.com]

Hang in there, kiddo.

We were just saying earlier today that bad shit comes in clumps.

::HUGS::

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Doesn't it though? Sheesh! Let's hope this is the last clump o' shit for a while. I'm kinda hoping for a courtesy flush pretty soon here.

[dawnd.livejournal.com]

Oh, goddess, CJ. I'm so sorry to hear it.

*hugs*

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. *snif*

[eeyore74.livejournal.com]

How awful! So sorry. =o(

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Gah. What a day.

[lesliepear.livejournal.com]

((HUGS)) to you and your friend.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. *sigh*

I gotta wonder about the other guy who was in the helicopter too. I don't know how many loved ones he left behind. :-(

[hitchhiker.livejournal.com]

So sorry to hear that :( *hug*

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks.

He was a good pilot. Better'n me. :-( :-(

Now I get to try to concentrate at work, yee ha. :-J

[tsjafo.livejournal.com]

Prayers and good thoughts on the way.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Thanks. Send a couple in the direction of the other heli occupant, too, maybe? No idea what loved ones he left behind as well.

I keep trying scenarios on in my mind. Maybe this happened. Maybe that happened. The preliminary FAA report has very little, of course, this soon.

Re:

[tsjafo.livejournal.com]

Prayers and good thoughts for all concerned. One of my sister's was badly burned in a helicopter crash while she was in the Navy.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Ouch. I hope she recovered as well as possible. Burns suck.

Re:

[tsjafo.livejournal.com]

Thanks. She's are 'hard luck' child. I'm hoping the kid gets a break some day.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

I'll add my hopes to that.

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

I'm so sorry. *hugs* to you. I had a good friend who was a flying nurse. Helicopter crash. Nevada. Still hurts to think about. I'm thinking of your friend, and you.

[cjsmith.livejournal.com]

Ow. Those helicopters, when they go, they go pretty badly, don't they? I hear of airplane crashes where there are nonfatal injuries. With a copter, it seems to be "machine may be totaled but the people are fine" OR "all aboard died", no middle ground.

siiiiiiigh. He loved flying. Had emergency floats on, so even when he flew over water he'd have a landing spot available. The helicopter was found in a lake, upside down, pontoons deployed. Clearly he knew there was trouble and was trying to land it...

Re:

[klwalton.livejournal.com]

Kathy Batterman was her name, and they were flying back to HQ at night after dropping a patient at a hospital. The pilot became disoriented and flew the copter straight into the ground.

http://www.astna.org/concern/flightforlife1.html

I still cry when I read that. She was an amazing person, doing what she *loved* to do.

[lkeele.livejournal.com]

Oh, CJ. I'm so sorry. My thoughts are with you, and especially with his wife.

[hopeforyou.livejournal.com]

I'm so very sorry to hear this. *hugs*

[joedecker.livejournal.com]

*hugs*. I heard yesterday, that is tragic.