From my Twitter feed: IT'S BEEN A LOVELY CRUISE On behalf of everyone (who works, visits, or lives) in Margaritaville, we mourn the loss of Jimmy, a true national treasure, and express our heartfelt condolences to his family and everyone around the world who loves him. Artist, performer, writer, navigator, friend, and entrepreneur - it is hard to imagine anyone who has ever brought so much fun to so many. What Jimmy loved most was getting on a stage - big, small, indoors, outdoors, anywhere in the world - and changing the attitude and latitude of audiences to a vacation state of mind. Jimmy lived his life like his songs: from beaches to boats to bars, sailing, surfing, and flying. He knew how to have fun and cared deeply about bringing everyone else along with him for the ride. When he flashed that signature smile one-on-one or to 100,000, somehow you just felt happy to be in his orbit. His original idea for Margaritaville was to expand the opportunity for as many people to experience the lifestyle immortalized in his iconic song as possible. We celebrate his life, believe his spirit lives on like a never-ending encore, and will see his radiant smile and that twinkle in his eye when we look towards the sun and will continue to share his way of life wherever, whenever we can. Fins Up Forever Jimmy Buffett
A few interesting bits from the NYT obit which was on the front of Sunday's Times. Jimmy Buffett, Roguish Bard of Island Escapism, Is Dead at 76
Jamaica Mistaka is one of my favorites. Really showcases his story telling. The actual plane is at Margaritaville Orlando. Bullet holes and all.
& Let's put these events on a timelime. JB born 12/25/46. JB turns 50 0n 12/25/96. The event described in Jamaica Mistaica occured on 1/12/96 (JB stiil 49 y/o). JB writes book about trip he takes celebrating his first 50 years--A Pirate Looks at 50--(released in '98, but written in or around December '96), a book so rich and colorful it tops NYT list... ...without including the Jamaica story. Talk about a full life... Buffett was the real deal.
Am i the only one reconsidering how much sunscreen I use? Seriously. Something that simple may have robbed the world of his talent.
I've started a few backs after our good friends had to have some spots removed, I also wear the long sleeve fishing shirts when I know I'll be in the sun a lot longer, I don't like having all that sunscreen on all-day
& Yep. I'm downright reverent of the sun--which it appears, I've been negligent in imparting to mt kids. Back in July, my wife took the kids to the beach house (i met up with them later), and they all fried on the first day. I proceeded to roast their asses, chiding them for rookie mistake, calling them out for ignorant tourist behavior, lamenting how I thought I'd raised them better... Don't know if it 'worked', but I'm pretty sure they won't forget it. (On that note, I think I'll invoke Buffett's fate here, to drive the point home-thx for the prompt @tilly ).
I think Jimmy's thoughts on the passing of John Wayne kinda capture the world's, vis a vis his own: "...[on the day that John Wayne died, I found myself on the continental divide..]. ...can't believe the old man is gone. But now he's incommunicado, leaving such a hole in a world [that believed that a life with such bravado, was taking the right way home]..." Interestingly he actually sings about it applying to himself in the first few lines): "....With all of the things I've sung and I've read They still apply to me They all make sense in time..."
Info about what 'merkel cell carcinoma' that Jimmy died of: Merkel cell carcinoma, the disease that killed Jimmy Buffett: What to know about this illness What should people look for? The most common symptom of MCC is a shiny or pearly lesion or nodule found on the skin — usually in areas that are frequently exposed to the sun, per the SCF. more here: Florida dermatologists warn about how to spot the skin cancer that killed Jimmy Buffett – Sun Sentinel fyi/fwiw.
On lighter note: Margarita chain will likely continue (not a surprise; like WDW/Disney): Margaritaville Aims to Hang On After Jimmy Buffett’s Death ...Key West naturally sends off its beloved legend with a parade: Fans of Jimmy Buffett fill the Key West streets at parade in his honor fyi/fwiw
2020 Rolling Stone interview (previously unreleased): Jimmy Buffett Told Us How He Wanted To Be Remembered And Jimmy, when you do leave us, how would you like to be remembered? What would you like people to say about you? I’d say “He had a good time and made a lot of people happy” would be good. Yeah, that’d be good. Jimmy Buffett Told Us How He Wanted to Be Remembered – Rolling Stone
Many people do not know that most sun protection products lose their efficacy after 1 year. I've thrown away all my old ones here and are only using fresh product.
