Joseph Eddy died early yesterday morning in Phillipsville. Musician, martial artist, pirate and sweet guy.  His raspy voice carried laughter to those of us lucky enough to know him.  It would be hard not to smile around Joe as Capt Jack Sparrow was a part he played and a part he lived.  A rogue with a charming smile and gorgeous eyes, Joe was easy to love and hard to watch die.

Humboldt is full of characters.  Folk who come here because the rest of the world won’t leave them be. Elsewhere folk need the movies to find men like him—colorful and crazy with life. But they don’t really want them around.  They want people easy to peg and control. Joe was neither. Joe was a man who could tear up.  A tough guy who was sweet. A rogue with a twinkle.  A punk musician who was never punky. Joe never meant to hurt anyone though it was hard for us all to watch him hurt himself.

Most of all Joseph was a man who loved his children.  He could never see enough of his three oldest—Rane, Oliver and Iris who live in the Sacramento area.  He delighted in them and in his youngest, Jorin.

I’ll miss you, Joe.

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2nd from the bottom photo taken by Armida Scopazzi