In Memory of K-Mart Dude

About five years ago, I picked up and moved to an island in Florida.  I didn't know a single soul there, and of course, I was apprehensive about picking up and starting a new life on my own.  To top it all off, I moved smack dab in the middle of the Summer, when the islanders all flee home for cooler climates.  Needless to say, no one rolled out the red carpet for me.  Except for one individual.

There is a duplex across the street from my condo unit.  At the time, an “older” couple lived there.  They were extremely friendly.  They smiled and waved and told me what day to put out the trash.  Were it not for them, it would have taken me a lot longer to settle in.  In fact, he was the first local I spoke to after taking possession of my house, outside of the Realtor.  No one in the condo took the time to even notice I arrived, but the couple across the street went out of their way to notice me and make me feel welcome.

I remember my first trip off of the Island.  I went to the local K-Mart to buy those things you inevitably find you need in a new house.  As I was browsing the aisles, I had a sense of someone behind me.  I turned around to see the friendly man across the street. 

“Hi there,” he said warmly.  “Are you finding everything you need okay?”

“Thank you.  I'm still trying to figure out all it is I need, “ I replied.

“Do you know who I am?”  He asked.  Without waiting for an answer or an awkward moment, he continued “I live across the street from you.  Welcome to the neighborhood.  Can we do anything to help you settle in?”  he asked.

Being that we live in a resort community, his next question didn't phase me at all.  “Are you a seasonal person, or are you going to be here more often?”

“No.” I replied.  “I'm not in a dual-residence income bracket.  I can only afford one home,” I joked. 

“Glad to hear that.  You're just what we need in the neighborhood.  We think we're going to like having you across the street.”

That conversation meant more to this scared little transplant than I ever let on. 

Two days later, Hurricane Charley approached, and we had to evacuate the Island.  K-Mart Dude saw me as I pulled back into my driveway, and took the time to welcome me back.

“Don't worry.  We don't have evacuations like that very often around here.  And as you can see, the Island made it through all right.”

A few short weeks later, another storm approached.  I still knew like nobody in the local area.  K-Mart Dude saw me out walking my dog, and he took the time to approach me, to calm me about the oncoming storm.  He told me that most of the locals were not going to evacuate, and I shouldn't feel like I had to either.  He told me we'd probably be flooded in, but said that they'd be sitting it out across the street if I felt scared.  When we all waded out front a few days later, again, he took the time to check on me to see that I'd made it through my first storm all right.  He joked that at least I'd had power a day longer than he, and we laughed while trying to figure out how to string an extension cord across the street so they could save what was still cold in their freezer. 

Unfortunately, after a few short years, K-Mart Dude and his wife moved off the Island.  I never saw him again, but I thought of him often.  Today, I heard that he passed away.

Ironically, in the time since K-Mart Dude moved, I have become very close with the person who lives in the other half of the duplex, someone I never really got to know until K-Mart Dude moved away.  Duplex-mate and I went out for a drink in K-Mart Dude's honor.  Duplex-mate always drinks Rolling Rock, but when we got to the local watering hole, they had run out.  He had a Bud instead, and we raised our glasses in a toast to K-Mart Dude.  Then we decided to we needed to invent a drink in his memory.  We called over the bartender, and we told him we were going to invent the Blue Light Special, in honor of a very special person who had ended his run on Earth earlier that day.  We mixed Blue Curacao, Vodka, and Pineapple Juice, dubbed it the K-Mart Dude Blue Light Special, and raised our glasses. 

“To K-Mart Dude.  A guy as special as you deserves a drink as tasty as this.  We love you, and were lucky to have known you.  Here's to you and your life!”

Two minutes later, the bartender came out from the back.  “Look what I found hiding in the back of the cooler—a single Rolling Rock.”

At that moment, we knew K-Mart Dude had heard us, and that he was sending us a drink in return. 

“How like him,” I commented.  “Only K-Mart Dude would decide to return a toast from across spiritual planes.  Even now, he's still making sure everybody else is okay.”

I never did tell him how special he was for me.  K-Mart Dude was the first person to help take a strange place and make it feel like home to me.  He was the first neighbor I met when I moved to this Island, and as it turns out, my first real friend here.  I never realized how much I appreciated having them as my across the street neighbors until they moved off the Island, and I surely never realized how much K-Mart Dude had meant to me, had done for me, until he was gone.  Now, he has literally and truly moved on to a better place, and this place is all the worse for it. 

Here's to you, K-Mart Dude.  You touched many people in your life.  We love you, and we'll miss you!

(Real names have been replaced to shield the individual's privacy.  But K-mart Dude, you know who you are!)