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R.I.P. Glenn Frey

R.I.P. Glenn Frey. I read this hours ago and I am still shocked and so very sad. He was 67. I'm also upset to think that despite his access to the best medical care, medicine couldn't save him. He suffered for for a long time.

He and the Eagles were such a huge part of my early adult life -- as they were to millions of other Americans coming of age in the 70's. I've been writing this all night and keep adding more. At some point I need to stop and publish, and this is probably as good a place as any. Here is the announcement on the Eagles' website: [More...]

Glenn fought a courageous battle for the past several weeks but, sadly, succumbed to complications from Rheumatoid Arthritis, Acute Ulcerative Colitis and Pneumonia.

The Frey family would like to thank everyone who joined Glenn to fight this fight and hoped and prayed for his recovery.

Words can neither describe our sorrow, nor our love and respect for all that he has given to us, his family, the music community & millions of fans worldwide.

I cannot count the number of times I've quoted the lyrics to Smuggler's Blues on Talkleft. I even quoted them to a jury during closing argument in a drug trial many years ago.

Glenn was the first of the Eagles to give up drugs. How sad that he died so young. I've never met him in person, but I've seen him perform with the Eagles so many times. For a time in the 80's, I was friendly with his ex-wife in Aspen (although she's in the Miami Vice video, I didn't meet her until well after their marriage ended and she never spoke of him to me.)

I hate record labels and music companies. They have pulled or muted the sound on all copies of the Miami Vice video from You Tube. Can't they at least let us honor someone on the sad occasion of their passing?

The Eagles website is playing the song "It's Your World Now" with its announcement. The lyrics:

“It's Your World Now”
Written by Glenn Frey and Jack Tempchin
From the Eagles’ Long Road Out of Eden album

A perfect day, the sun is sinkin' low
As evening falls, the gentle breezes blow
The time we shared went by so fast
Just like a dream, we knew it couldn't last
But I'd do it all again
If I could, somehow
But I must be leavin' soon
It's your world now

It's your world now
My race is run
I'm moving on
Like the setting sun
No sad goodbyes
No tears allowed
You'll be alright
It's your world now

Even when we are apart
You'll always be in my heart
When dark clouds appear in the sky
Remember true love never dies

But first a kiss, one glass of wine
Just one more dance while there's still time
My one last wish: someday, you'll see
How hard I tried and how much you meant to me

It's your world now
Use well your time
Be part of something good
Leave something good behind
The curtain falls
I take my bow
That's how it's meant to be

Back to Miami Vice. Glenn was a featured regular for a while. The Smuggler's Blues episode at the top is from 1984 -- more than 30 years ago. It's astonishing how little has changed since he wrote Smugglers Blues -- other the rising rate of incarceration.

You see it in the headlines, you hear it every day
They say they're gonna stop it, but it doesn't go away
They move it through Miami and sell it in LA
They hide it up in Telluride, I mean it's here to stay
It's propping up the governments in Columbia and Peru
You ask any D.E.A. man, he'll say there's nothing we can do
From the office of the president right down to me and you
...It's a losing proposition, but one you can't refuse
It's the politics of contraband, it's the smugglers' blues

I don't think a lot of people other than those of us who lived through and loved the music of the 70's realize how popular the Eagles were. In 1999, their Greatest Hits album won the recording industry's award for best selling album of the century.

1972 in New York's Central Park:

1977:

If you haven't seen it, watch the Showtime documentary by the Eagles on their career. On this 2 hour farewell concert. If you only have 20 minutes, watch the "60 Minutes" interview available on you tube.

Here are the Eagles singing "Hotel California" in 1977 (the video is actually the full concert in Washington, D.C.)

Same version, just the Hotel California part:

Hotel California may be the best song of all time. I can't think of a single song that tops it. But one of my all time Eagle favorites, released in 1974, is Already Gone. I will always associate it with the end of law school, passing the bar exam, freedom and my Mustang convertible. Here's an old version with Glenn Frey singing lead.

The Eagles were notorious for taking everything "to the limit." Their fans did as well. As Don Henley said in a media interview with the band a few years ago, everyone did back then -- doctors, lawyers, investment bankers included -- it was just the times we lived in and happily, most survived.

I have no idea whether Frey's early drug use contributed to his medical problems, which apparently began in the 80's. That is something is far beyond my skill set to opine on. I'm not surprised he thought so, but I'd also point out he was sober for decades, probably longer than any of the other Eagles, and they are still around. Just as Keith Richards is still around.

Drugs affect people differently. While many have suffered and many have died, many more did not. I think it's futile to speculate on whether they were lethal to Frey. It should be enough to say excessive drug use is not good for anyone, and it can result in unpredictable, negative and potentially fatal consequences. Still, everyone should have the right to make their own decision on whether to take the risk. What I don't like is the Government's ability make the call for its citizens and punish those, who in its view, choose the wrong path. Our Government should keep its laws off our bodies, whether the issue is pregnancy, end of life decisions or drug use.

Back to Glenn Frey: Here is Don Henley's moving tribute to Frey posted tonight (I hope he doesn't sue me for copyright infringement but Don, lots of sites are publishing it in full):

“He was like a brother to me; we were family, and like most families, there was some dysfunction. But, the bond we forged 45 years ago was never broken, even during the 14 years that the Eagles were dissolved. We were two young men who made the pilgrimage to Los Angeles with the same dream: to make our mark in the music industry — and with perseverance, a deep love of music, our alliance with other great musicians and our manager, Irving Azoff, we built something that has lasted longer than anyone could have dreamed.

“But, Glenn was the one who started it all. He was the spark plug, the man with the plan. He had an encyclopedic knowledge of popular music and a work ethic that wouldn’t quit. He was funny, bullheaded, mercurial, generous, deeply talented and driven. He loved his wife and kids more than anything.

“We are all in a state of shock, disbelief and profound sorrow. We brought our two-year 'History of the Eagles Tour’ to a triumphant close at the end of July and now he is gone. I’m not sure I believe in fate, but I know that crossing paths with Glenn Lewis Frey in 1970 changed my life forever, and it eventually had an impact on the lives of millions of other people all over the planet. It will be very strange going forward in a world without him in it. But, I will be grateful, every day, that he was in my life.

“Rest in peace, my brother. You did what you set out to do, and then some.”

The music world is reacting to Frey's death tonight with well-deserved accolades, from Bob Seger who knew him from his home town days in Detroit, to Linda Ronstadt (who first hired Henley and Frey as backup singers) to manager Irving Azoff.

Here are Henley and Frey independently writing on their meeting and the band's split. Here is Linda Ronstadt from her book on hiring them as backup singers.

Via Bob Seger in the Detroit Press:

Seger got the grim word from Henley in November: Frey, plagued by lifelong colitis and a diminished immune system, was in New York's Columbia University Medical Center having suffered from a virulent bout of pneumonia. Frey had been "a workout warrior from his 30s to his 60s," as Seger put it, but rheumatoid arthritis and other complications had taken their toll.

"He was in a coma, and he'd come out, but then he couldn't breathe. They’d put him back into the coma," he said.

"They were trying like hell to keep him alive," Seger said. "He'd been at Columbia University Medical Center since November. (Eagles manager) Irving (Azoff) pulled every ace out of the hole — he had the eight best specialists working on Glenn. About a month ago, they had to throw up their hands."

Seger broke down as he recounted the words of Frey's daughter, Taylor, leading into the musician's final month: From here out, she said, her father could be supported only by prayer.

R.I.P. Glenn Frey. Thank you for your music, and the countless wonderful memories that go along with it. You and the Eagles didn't just make a contribution to the music world. More than any other band I've listened to in the last 40 years, you made a contribution and lasting impact on my life -- and the lives of millions of people like me you never even met. That's quite a legacy, and one I hadn't even contemplated until tonight. Condolences to your wife and children. May the memories of your good times together carry you through this difficult time.

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  • Display: Sort:
    Glenn Frey was a good friend (5.00 / 1) (#9)
    by fishcamp on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 07:47:08 AM EST
    as were all the Eagles and Jimmy Buffett and his band.  Many of them lived and played in Aspen.  Irving Azoff, Glenn Frey, and Jimmie Buffett all had houses on a long stretch of land along Snowmass Creek Road, outside of Aspen.  There was usually a party at one of the houses.  Don Henley had three houses, in a different location, out by Hunter Thompson's house, in Little Woody Creek.  They did party hard, but also skied regularly, and were in good shape physically.  Playing concerts is hard work.  It's a very sad day.  His presence will be missed.  R.I.P.

    Fishcamp, so glad you (5.00 / 1) (#28)
    by Jeralyn on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 04:29:52 PM EST
    wrote that. And to others reading, yes, he was good friends with Frey and the others he mentions. I really miss those years.

    Parent
    Though I'm not a big.. (5.00 / 1) (#14)
    by kdog on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 08:52:23 AM EST
    Eagles guy, ya can't deny their genius and impact on rock-n-roll.  Master tunesmiths.

    Rough start to 2016 for the music world...first Lemmy, then Bowie, now Glenn Frye.  They do say they come in 3's.

    Take it easy Glenn...

    So did (none / 0) (#21)
    by jbindc on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 10:08:00 AM EST
    The drummer from Mott the Hoople.  also 67.

    Parent
    Glen Frey (5.00 / 1) (#16)
    by ScottW714 on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 09:23:42 AM EST
    Man, the Eagles are one of those bands in which no one dislikes and that is rare.  On the radio people are calling in and saying he was the John Lennon of America, well I don't know about that, but it did get me thinking, who would be, who are America's Beatles of even Rolling Stones.  I don't know that we have one, but the Eagles are probably close as we will ever get.

    Yeah, Smuggler's Blues is a true today as the day it was written.  And while I don't know more of Frey than that song or the cheesy, 'The Heat is On' it's clear he was instrumental in many of the Eagles' songs/albums.

    I saw them a few years back years ago at ACL in Austin and while this is a Frey tribute, they played Life's Been Good and the place went bananas.

    One a personal note, the song Lyin' Eyes, which is sang by Frey, has always had a very special place in my heart as a younger version of me was the boy on the other side of town, waiting.

    Glenn's death makes Miranda (5.00 / 1) (#24)
    by caseyOR on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 11:54:07 AM EST
    Lambert's performance at last month's Kennedy Center Honors all the more poignant. For those who don't know, The Eagles were supposed to be among the honorees, but the band asked to postpone until next year so that Glenn, who was in the hospital, could accept the honor with everyone else. Sadly, that will never happen.

    Absent the band, KCH had Miranda Lambert sing "Desperado." it was a sweet and sad moment.

    Jeralyn: "Hotel California may be the best song of all time. I can't think of a single song that tops it."

    Released in the year of our nation's bicentennial, the album "Hotel California" has to be ranked up there as one of the best rock and concept albums of all time. Growing up in SoCal as I did in the 1970s, I saw its potent combination of guitars, harmonies, upbeat tunes and dark lyrics as defining not only the suburban lifestyle that so many white Californians were living at the time, but also reflecting their growing disillusionment and disenchantment with their lives, post-Vietnam and post-Watergate.

    "Life in the Fast Lane" bluntly chronicled the superficiality of it all, and the resultant decline into hedonism, materialism and eventually, decadence:

    "Eager for action and hot for the game,
    The coming attraction, the drop of a name.
    They knew all the right people, they took all the right pills,
    They threw outrageous parties, they paid heavenly bills.
    There were lines on the mirror, lines on her face
    She pretended not to notice, she was caught up in the race.
    Out every evening, until it was light,
    He was too tired to make it. She was too tired to fight about it."

    The album winds down with "Try and Love Again," Randy Meisner's rather hopeful take on our own resilience as individuals in the face of challenge, before concluding with a wistful final track about Southern California itself, "The Last Resort," which offers a rather bleak closing assessment of mankind's prospects on this earth, unless we change our course and ways:

    "Now you can leave it all behind and sail to Lahaina,
    Just like the missionaries did so many years ago.
    They even brought a neon sign that said, 'Jesus is coming';
    Brought the white man's burden down; brought the white man's reign.

    "'We will provide the grand design, what is yours and what is mine,
    For there is no more new frontier - we have got to make it here.
    We satisfy our endless needs, and justify our bloody deeds,
    In the name of destiny and in the name of God!'

    "And you can see them there on Sunday morning
    Stand up and sing about what it's like up there.
    They call it paradise; I don't know why.
    You call someplace paradise - kiss it goodbye."

    The Eagles have been one of the great rock bands, and as their primary driving force and one of their signature inspirations, Glenn Frey will be missed.

    Me ke aloha pumehana.

    Agree, I would have quoted the same lyrics from (none / 0) (#2)
    by Jeralyn on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 03:03:51 AM EST
    Life in the Fast Lane. I'm surprised I forgot to include it, it's also among my top favorites:

    They knew all the right people, they took all the right pills,
    They threw outrageous parties, they paid heavenly bills.
    There were lines on the mirror, lines on her face
    She pretended not to notice, she was caught up in the race.

    Same for Desperados and Tequilla Sunrise. I guess there are just too  many to mention, and even though I know every word to every song by heart, have every album and dozens of Eagles, Henley and
    Frey videos on my computers, I've only scratched the surface of their work with this post. Thanks for contributing ones I didn't mention.

    Parent

    Glenn Frey details Detroit Days (none / 0) (#3)
    by Mr Natural on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 04:58:37 AM EST
    The other revelation that we had ... and Bob [Seger] told me this too. Bob said, "You know, you're never going to get anywhere unless you write your own songs."

    That seemed like a daunting task to me. I remember responding with something like, "What if they're crummy? What if they're bad?" And he said, "Well, the first few probably will be bad. Just throw those away until you write a good one." And that really stuck with me. Bob was the first guy (in Detroit) that did original material, before anybody else.

    I'm in my 50s now, and I'm sure most of the people you're writing about are probably my age. Being in a band was like being in Little League: You got your uniform out way before the gig, made sure you had the right things to wear that night. It was the high point of the week. I have friends now who play on Wednesday nights at some obscure club down the coast here in California, and they love it. Because it's all about playing. You don't have to be the world's greatest skier to enjoy skiing, and you don't have to be the world's greatest guitar player to enjoy playing music.

    I liked when he talked about learning to write (5.00 / 2) (#7)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 05:51:20 AM EST
    songs, living in the apartment upstairs from Jackson Browne, who was little farther along in his career at the time, and listening to him craft his songs at the piano hour after hour.  Certainly could not get better training than that.

    Jackson Browne was a good friend and writing partner to Frey. He has a concert in Clearwater tonight - I am trying to win a ticket because by the time I tried to buy them they sold out and the stub hub seats were way out of my price rate - having seen him so many times from up close I could not make myself pay $200 for the rafter seats. Now I wish I had.

    Parent

    Thank you for the post Jeralyn (none / 0) (#4)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 05:41:39 AM EST
    I do think that those of us in our late 50s-early 60s are probably the prime Eagles fans...I woke up with Eagles songs in my head this morning, I know I was processing this loss in my sleep.

    I'm sorry he suffered illness for so long.

    I posted last night about what they meant to me in high school - they were far and away my favorite band at that time. I still have my vinyl albums - and am trying to pick a favorite song that hasn't already been mentioned.

    Here's one:

    You Never Cry Like a Lover (Frey on guitar)

    And this Tom Waits song with Glen doing some of my favorite vocals.

    Ol 55

    Also his vocals in Tequila Sunrise really stay in my head today.

    Sigh.

    Loved this post on you tube (none / 0) (#5)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 05:44:23 AM EST
    I won't mention the person's name out of privacy, not trying to steal his line , but you can look it up in the Tequila Sunrise thread:
    There's not a person who's picked up an acoustic guitar in the last 40 years who hasn't strummed an Eagles song.


    Parent
    Probably right (none / 0) (#10)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 08:21:51 AM EST
    About the age group but it was my religious conservative 74 yo brother who I learned this from.  We are sitting in a diner his phone buzzes, he takes it out and says "Damn, Glenn Frey died".
    Back to conversation.

    Parent
    Ruffian, not only do I love (none / 0) (#41)
    by Jeralyn on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 11:11:59 PM EST
    the song Tequilla Sunrise, but I've probably seen the movie (with Michelle Pfeiffer, Kurt Russell and Mel Gibson) a dozen times. If you or anyone else hasn't seen it, the trailer is here, and I'm sure it's available on Netflix or Amazon or somewhere (It didn't have anything to do with the Eagles, but was about Michele Pfeifer as the owner of a top Italian restaurant in LA who has romantic feelings for 2 guys: one is a drug dealer who just quit the business and one is a narcotics cop who used to be friends with the dealer. Gibson played the dealer and Russell the cop. There's even an immigration story line, as she tries to keep her chef in the country.

    Parent
    Yes, I did see it when it came out (none / 0) (#48)
    by ruffian on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 08:03:42 PM EST
    all those years ago. Good flick! Maybe I'll see if it is on Netflix this weekend.

    Parent
    Jeralyn, from your post I think you must have been (none / 0) (#6)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 05:46:27 AM EST
    at the Eagles concert that opened the new Mile High stadium? I was there...way up in the upper decks, but it was a great time. Still have the shirt!

    I was (none / 0) (#27)
    by Jeralyn on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 04:23:56 PM EST
    there. I think the first of their concerts I missed in Denver was the last one in 2013. I've also seen them in Aspen and once at a pretty small political fundraiser in Denver in 2004 for Senator Ken Salazar.

    Parent
    That's a good track record. (none / 0) (#49)
    by ruffian on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 08:11:11 PM EST
    The only other time I saw them was here in Orlando when they opened up yet another sports arena. Wish I had caught a smaller venue at some point, but I never managed it.


    Parent
    This link goes to (none / 0) (#8)
    by ruffian on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 05:59:10 AM EST
    Facebook - FoxNews page....but if you can forgive that it is a great picture of Jackson Brown and Glen Frey on stage together.

    The news said pneumonia (none / 0) (#11)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 08:38:48 AM EST
    Was one of the reasons he died.   I wonder if this vaccine would  have helped.  Been considering getting one.

    Howdy, the pneumonia vaccine (5.00 / 2) (#15)
    by fishcamp on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 09:04:50 AM EST
    could be beneficial for you and many.  Glenn Frey had other complications that gave him the pneumonia that caused his death.  Many people succomb to pneumonia because they can't clear their lungs due to the other problems.  My gf, Cindy Rizzuto died from pneumonia, but I took her to the hospital after she suffered a stroke.  They say 65% of people cannot swallow properly after a stroke, and aspirate fluids into their lungs.  Chronic pneumonia can lead to Sepsis, which is a blood infection, that in turn infects all the bodies organs.  At your age, I say get the vaccine...I did as soon as it came out, but I'm living on borrowed time.  I truly think not ever smoking cigarets has kept me healthy, and I've had many encounters at hospitals all over the world.  If the vaccine keeps you out of a hospital, that alone makes it worth the endeavor.

    Parent
    If his immune system... (none / 0) (#12)
    by MileHi Hawkeye on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 08:47:34 AM EST
    was compromised, the various vaccines do more harm than good.  

    The flu vaccine is the only I can get. I wanted to get the shingles vaccine because I don't want to go through that hell and with my luck I will - but was told no.  

    Parent

    Sorry (none / 0) (#13)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 08:51:26 AM EST
    Best wishes.  Thanks for the info.

    Parent
    In older adults, pneumonia is ... (none / 0) (#25)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 12:22:52 PM EST
    ... an all too common complication of other underlying problems and ailments, and often sets in when those other issues cause the person to become sedentary / bedridden for an extended length of time. Simply put, our bodies have to move regularly for our health to be optimal. It wouldn't hurt to get the vaccine, if you haven't already.

    Parent
    MileHi, why did they tell you (none / 0) (#17)
    by fishcamp on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 09:26:36 AM EST
    not to get the shingles vaccine?  Granted that vaccine doesn't totally protect one from shingles, but it is a deterrent.  I know people that have had shingles twice.  Two doctors told me if you can recognize the fact that you have shingles within the first 24 hours, the vaccine, if administered rapidly,  can sometimes stop the virus.  But nobody I've spoken with recognized the symptoms within that time frame, even the people that previously had it.  The Visiting Nurses Center, down here said Medicare does not pay for the shingles vaccine, so I had to shell out $200 for it.  But Medicare does pay for part of the cost.  It's an easy page to find online, print, fill it out, send it in with the label from the tiny vaccine bottle and the receipt, and they send back $135.  That was several years ago, so I'm sure the costs are higher now.  You only need to receive the vaccine once in life.

    It is contraindicated... (none / 0) (#18)
    by MileHi Hawkeye on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 09:36:21 AM EST
    for people with the following conditions:

    a weakened immune system because of current:
    AIDS or another disease that affects the immune system,
    treatment with drugs that affect the immune system, such as prolonged use of high-dose steroids,
    cancer treatment such as radiation or chemotherapy,
    cancer affecting the bone marrow or lymphatic system, such as leukemia or lymphoma.

    My transplant and treatment with immunosuppresents (including steroids) puts me firmly in that group.

    Parent

    Sorry to hear of these complications (none / 0) (#20)
    by fishcamp on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 09:44:58 AM EST
    MileHi.  The heavy drugs that you are taking will probably fend off anything like shingles, or other problems.  I always believe this when taking strong meds.  I know it's just a belief, but belief can be good.  

    Parent
    Thanks. (5.00 / 1) (#23)
    by MileHi Hawkeye on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 10:36:31 AM EST
    Unfortunately, the opposite is true.  I get every little cough, cold, bug and virus that's going around.  

    One of the many reasons I can't wait to retire - get away from this petri dish of an office and stop riding mass transit every day.  

    Parent

    I had a mild episode of shingles (none / 0) (#19)
    by CaptHowdy on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 09:41:46 AM EST
    And was told to get the vaccine but I have to wait a bit.  My insurance gets a 30$ coup-pay.

    I need to get that done. Mild was bad enough.

    Parent

    Right when I turned 65, a bit over a year ago (none / 0) (#29)
    by Peter G on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 10:00:15 PM EST
    the doc recommended I get the shingles vaccine, and I did, then and there. I'm pretty sure either Medicare or my supplemental paid all but a pittance of it.

    Parent
    When the vaccine first (none / 0) (#30)
    by oculus on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 12:02:24 AM EST
    became available, my internist said, wait a bit until the insurers decide if insurance will cover it. A couple months later and the answer was "yes."

    Parent
    it's been available a long time (none / 0) (#36)
    by Jeralyn on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 08:37:30 PM EST
    I got it years ago -- so many I asked my doctor this year if I should get another one. (Answer was no, but get the new pneumonia vaccine, even though I got a different pneumonia vaccine about 10 years ago.

    Parent
    As someone with respiratory issues, (none / 0) (#40)
    by shoephone on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 10:49:59 PM EST
    I was told I had to have the pneumonia vaccine last year. I'll need to get it every 3-5 years. If you have asthma, COPD, or other respiratory problems, you might want to start getting the shot.

    Parent
    I had shingles (none / 0) (#31)
    by Repack Rider on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 05:54:48 PM EST
    ...When I was 47.  Mine was a rare case, a male under that age of 50.  I was paid to take an experimental treatment.  I have no idea whether it helped, because I have no way to compare mine with the experiences of others.

    It was the most painful thing you could ever have that wasn't going to kill you.  It looked like nothing, a mild rash, hurt like a 3rd degree burn.  Went to the doc, thinking I had something dire and deadly, I pulled up my shirt and he laughed, knew right away what it was.

    Parent

    Very accurate description (none / 0) (#33)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 06:05:21 PM EST
    Mine did not even look like much of a rash.  But it was on my head.  Apparently they consider that especially dangerous because if it gets into your eyes it's bad.

    I was told after I had it I had to wait a few months before getting the vaccine.  The last time I checked it was still too soon.  I could probably do it now.  I think I will call tomorrow.

    Parent

    Yes, it can be (none / 0) (#35)
    by Zorba on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 07:58:49 PM EST
    very dangerous if it gets into your eyes.  One of my good friend's relatives got shingles involving his optic nerve.  He became blind in one eye, and they were worried that it would move to his other eye and leave him totally blind (fortunately, it didn't).
    That was enough for me.  I got my shingles shot.

    Parent
    So I Have Not Had... (none / 0) (#42)
    by ScottW714 on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 10:07:56 AM EST
    ...chicken pox or even the vaccine as the cut-off was right before me because in school, since I was the young for my class, almost everyone I went to school with had the scar form the vaccine.

    What are the chances that I get CP now and how bad would it be to get it at 45 or older ?  The good news, shingles isn't in my future and I have a pretty robust immune system.
    -------------------

    On a side note, I just wanted to mention that I really like you comments in regards to science stuff.  I told my friend, who has been at war with squirrels for 2 years over bird seed, to put cayenne in the seed.  I don't think he has tried it, but I have little doubt it will bring the a cease fire to his backyard.


    Hot pepper sauce or cayenne pepper in with your bird seed.  Birds don't mind it, they have no capsaicin receptors and won't even taste it.
    But mammals, like squirrels, definitely do taste it, and don't like it.

    I think I would make a good survivalist growing up on the farm and spending a great deal of time in the woods, but dang your knowledge in this area is far beyond mine.  I could survive, but it would not be pretty, I wish I could download that knowledge for a 'just in case I need it someday'.  I would definitely buy the book.

    Parent

    Fortunately, (none / 0) (#43)
    by Zorba on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 11:49:14 AM EST
    most children nowadays have been immunized and most adults had chickenpox as kids, so I would say your chances of getting chickenpox are fairly low.
    However, adult chickenpox can be very much more severe than childhood chickenpox, and it's nothing to mess with.  If you don't get the vaccine, and you develop any symptoms, run to your doctor and get anti-viral medication ASAP.  And for pity's sake, if you do get chickenpox, stay away from any woman who is pregnant or might be pregnant, just in case she is not immune.  Chickenpox can cause very severe abnormalities in the developing fetus.
    I should also mention that you may well have had chickenpox as a child and had such a mild case that you didn't know it.  You can get a blood test to see if you had it.
    Thanks for the compliment.  The science stuff I have soaked up over the years mainly because I have my own, personal, in-house molecular biologist (Mr. Zorba).
    And the farm stuff we have both acquired from over thirty years owning and running a farm.  We're in pretty good shape as far as knowing how to grow and preserve our own food, how to butcher food animals, how to fish and hunt, and so on.  
    We have over 40 acres of woods, by the way, Scott.  Our kids spent a lot of time when they were growing up walking in the woods (as did we).  (You just have to be careful, and wear orange, if it's deer hunting season.  We only allow a very limited number of neighbors to hunt our woods, but there have been occasional trespassers.)
    And now, we have truly hijacked this thread!  Sorry, Jeralyn!

    Parent
    I'm not taking down these comments (none / 0) (#44)
    by Jeralyn on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 11:56:58 AM EST
    and I've made some as well, but please get back to Glenn Frey. This isn't an open thread

    thanks.

    Parent

    Again, apologies, J.! (none / 0) (#46)
    by Zorba on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 12:24:21 PM EST
    n/t

    Parent
    You may not think you've had chicken pox, (none / 0) (#47)
    by Anne on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 12:51:08 PM EST
    but it's entirely possible that you were exposed to it and never developed a full-blown case of it; I have a friend who didn't think she'd had them, but an antibody test when she was pregnant revealed that she had antibodies, so probably had an extremely mild case.

    The bad-news aspect of that is that if you do have antibodies, it probably means you could get shingles.

    Parent

    I had chicken pox at age 21. (none / 0) (#34)
    by Donald from Hawaii on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 07:47:57 PM EST
    I came down with it while in Pasadena visiting my family, before returning to school in Seattle. To this day, it remains the most painful and horrible physical ordeal I've ever endured.

    Then I had shingles twice, both times while my immune system was compromised while undergoing chemo for Hodgkin's lymphoma. Not nearly quite as bad as chicken pox, but certainly unpleasant nonetheless.

    Varicella has to be the single most miserable virus I've ever experienced. Once a vaccine for shingles became available, I was right on it. I don't ever want to go through that again.

    And if you haven't had chicken pox, get yourself inoculated against that, too. It's dangerous and potentially deadly to adults.

    Aloha.

    Parent

    I hated chicken pox (none / 0) (#37)
    by Jeralyn on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 08:41:58 PM EST
    and I was somewhere around age 3 when I got it. I remember the itching and my mother telling me over and over "don't scratch." I still have a few (very) tiny scars from it.

    Parent
    I don't remember (none / 0) (#38)
    by CaptHowdy on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 09:04:55 PM EST
    Having them.  But my sister says I did.  She says she remembers because I gave them to her.

    Parent
    Chicken pox were the worst. (none / 0) (#39)
    by caseyOR on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 09:07:53 PM EST
    My sister and I, ages 3 and 4, had them at the same time. Hers were worse than mine. My poor sister had pox in her mouth.

    What I remember most is the horrible itching. My mother taped our socks to our hands to try to limit our scratching. I still remember the two of us holding our little hands up so my mother could pull the socks over our hands and wrap tape around our wrists.

    I think I better get the shingles vaccine.

    Parent

    The owner of Nick's Gyn, (none / 0) (#22)
    by fishcamp on Tue Jan 19, 2016 at 10:13:15 AM EST
    where I go to work out and argue, is totally against vaccinations for himself and his children.  He says many vaccines are batched up with animal parts and aluminum, which is possibly true.  He is continually fighting the school about vaccinating his children.  TL has helped me tremendously with the many gym arguments that I encounter.  It gets easy when they state what they think is a fact, and then continue with their ideas which they think have become facts.  The lawyer is the toughest, but he takes the time to explain his ideas and beliefs.  The others just rage on, and I have to step back from the unvaccinated spittle.  They are all Eagles fans, and Nick plays their music regularly.

    Meadowlands.

    Nothing I can say that J didn't say better.

    RIP Glenn.

    Only time I saw The Eagles (none / 0) (#32)
    by Repack Rider on Wed Jan 20, 2016 at 06:00:28 PM EST
    ...was at a show I worked on, July 4, 1975 at the Orange Bowl.  I was the roadie for Sons of Champlin, also on the bill were Leon Russell, The Band, and Lynyrd Skynyrd.

    Please keep this to Glenn Frey (none / 0) (#45)
    by Jeralyn on Thu Jan 21, 2016 at 11:58:44 AM EST
    there are open threads for our chicken pox stories and stories about vaccines. I'm not taking any down for now (since I'm also at fault) , but please put further ones in an open thread.

    Thanks.