It blows my mind Ryan died. I hadn’t had a beer with him in a decade or exchanged texts for like 7-8 years. 

The last time I saw him in Duluth, he was working at Lake Ave. Cafe, then he was at Lucia’s in Minneapolis (which got a James Beard award), then he was in North Carolina. I just assumed he’d always be kicking ass in kitchens and being a good dude. 

I don’t know what the song is called, but I have fond, faded memories of a Black Labels song that hit the bridge, at which point Chunk would start playing the drums like a train - like a choo-choo train; I can’t explain it any differently. If you were there, you know what I’m talking about. I know it isn’t a complex beat that anyone else couldn’t play. But over the years I’ve reminisced over that whole scene - drunk on 75¢ beers in a hot bar on a Wednesday night, knowing I had to be at work at 7am, with a random 17-year-old drummer who had to go to school at the same time controlling everything.