Dude, Glee and The Beast

So the company librarian and her friends took me to a small club in the industrial heart of town .. ostensibly an athletic club ... but if there were athletics associated with it .. they were well disguised. It was a two story building .. basically about 35 feet square .. so not a lot of room inside ... but what a place it was. The owner's son was the drummer in the house band .. they played against the far wall from the side entrance to the club ... and they played hits of the day .. top 40 .. Bad Company .. BTO .. early disco songs .. Kung Fu Fighting ... The Hustle ... all the music had a heavy groove ... and after a few beer and some weed ... that was generously being passed around .. the room had a vibe ... it was the second best music room I have ever been in .. pure magic in there ... they had a scene going on .. and I would spend many nights in there as part of it ...

Around this time, I met three more people at work that would be a big influence on me; two who basically took over where Jim Maxwell left off ... Barry Easter .. 'The Beast' ... a force of nature and a heart bigger than himself ... Bill Jaques ... one of the most naturally funny men I have ever met .. and a heart as big as The Beast in a small wiry frame ... and RC .. who played straight man to Bill .. they were like a duo .. one feeding off the other .. and RC's heart may have been bigger than Bill's and The Beast's combined ... 

From the time I met them in August and started to 'hang' with them .. it was non stop laughter .. tomfoolery .. and running the roads ... it got so that stories of our weekend madness would be spreading throughout the workplace before we had a chance to tell the stories ourselves ... I have some great photos from this period .. .oddly enough none from the athletic club .. and I am just as glad .. it was a special place .. I want it to live in my memory as such and not have a photo disappoint ... it was around this time that Bill christened the three of us .. The Dubious Dudes .. the name stuck and became well known in the workplace ... 

Between about September 1974 and I want to say August 1975 there were four relationships I was in that I find hard to talk about. I was damaged goods to begin with and I really just wanted to be on my own ... but when someone shows interest .. and you really need a hug or a shoulder to cry on .. I found it hard to resist ... they all ended terribly because of me .. and saying I'm sorry and asking for forgiveness is not going to cut it here ... I deserve their everlasting scorn, derision and contempt ... 

In October 1974 .. Bill Jaques had a huge party at his townhouse ...  a lot of folks from work .. it was sort of a going away for me because I was going to Ontario for 4 months to work at an industrial complex similar to the one we all worked in; to get real operating experience ... 

The party went all night and well into the following morning ... I remember driving (yet again I shudder at this) to Kmart .. I bought 2 albums .. Bowie .. Ziggy Stardust .. James Taylor .. Mudslide Slim ... I drove home .. put Bowie on .. and woke up 18 hours later with the record still on the turntable and the sound of the stylus bumping into the record label ... 

The Beast died of a heart attack about 6 or 7 years ago ... why is it that people who have such big spiritual hearts are always let down by their physical one? ... I visited Bill Jaques over the years ... the last time I saw Bill was 5 years ago .. I took a six hour drive from my mother's old homestead to the other end of the province to see him .. he was suffering from the early stages of dementia ... we spent the afternoon and evening together .. and other than one thing in the conversation he came back to 3 different times, I didn't notice much mental deterioration .. then he turned to me and said ... I wonder whatever happened to Phil Connor ... I just looked at him and replied .. I have often wondered that myself .. .then he laughed and said .. oh .. that's you ... 

Bill passed away in March 2020 ... I only found this out recently ... I can't even put into words how much sheer joy he and RC brought me at a time when I needed it most ... RC carries on and I hope to re-establish contact with him soon ... 

RIP The Beast' ... thanks for being the force of nature that you were ...

RIP Bill ... your influence on my life was profound ... as we will soon see .. I am torn down that you are gone ... and I have no words for the all the emotions I feel right now ... I can't imagine not knowing you ... I can't imagine laughter will ever be quite the same ... I can't imagine you are gone ... I can't imagine anything right now .. 


Phil (13 January 2021 - San Patricio de Melaque - 8:06 PM)


Krome Koan - 'You laugh at me because I'm different; I laugh at you because you are all the same'




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