RIP keristor.

[poltr1]

I found out this morning that keristor passed away after being involved in a head-on collision.

I never met him in person; all I know of him were his posts on LJ. And I'll admit, there were times he came across to me as a know-it-all. I don't like know-it-alls because they're always trying to prove they're a better person than me by demonstrating that they know more than me. But I'll own that as my projection. He may not have been like that at all in real life.

I do know that the filk community in the UK will be poorer because of his absence.

Comments

[katyhh.livejournal.com]

He was not like that at all in real life. In fact, he was very very humble, and very kind.
People sometimes come across differently in writing. But also, as you say, own projection has to do with it.
I dare say that the whole European filk community will be poorer - Keris was just as much a part of German filk fandom as of the British.

[stevieannie.livejournal.com]

I second Katy's opinion. He was the complete opposite of that in real life. Tim and I have been talking today, and over 16 years of friendship, neither of us can think of a single occasion when he was unkind, petty or mean of spirit. His driving purpose in life was to help other people - you only had to struggle with a bag and Keris would be there, offering to help you with it. He spent countless hours (and I mean *entire conventions*) on tech desks because he liked to help people sound good. If he had a spare instrument, he'd offer it to you. If you couldn't afford a drink at a convention he'd buy one for you. He wasn't a man who liked to talk about his own belief system (which I think was probably best summed as "tolerance and love in all things") but could always find something beautiful and valid when anyone else discussed theirs.

He really *did* know an awful lot of things, though, and loved to have a good heated discussion about them - and he never ended one of those discussions without making you feel that although his views might be different, he respected yours.

I never took the time to tell him how very much I loved and cared for him and how very grateful I was for all his support over the years. I hope he knows now.

[phillip2637.livejournal.com]

Although I met him at a few conventions, I was more familiar with him on-line. Thinking about it, what I'll probably remember most is that we shared a kind of unholy joy in what a twisted mind can do to bits and pieces of the English language. It's not something I've seen anyone else mention and maybe I note it only because I'm receptive to that kind of thing.

It's as if we all play the part of both the blind men and the elephant.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_Men_and_the_Elephant#The_story