Read Some Stewf

Adrian & Stewf, Builders

Back from a trip to Berlin, Copenhagen, Malmö, and Stockholm. Many photos will go up soon, but first, my pal Peter Bruhn caught this moment of his son Adrian letting me join in on some construction with vintage Plasticant. Believe it or not, I was once that blonde.

Thanks, Dad

During James’ move we found an unopened poster tube that was mailed to him and me in 2006. The handwriting was unmistakably Dad’s but was strangely neat and clear compared to other things he’d written at the time he was affected by Lewy Body Disease. We opened the tube to reveal eight travel posters he and Mom must have collected during their travels to Europe in the '60s.

Mom and Dad in the Swiss Alps, Fall 1963

Papa Joshua

My pals Jineui and JLT just returned from Korea with a New Year gift, their adoptee Olivia. I asked him what it feels like to be a dad:

it feels really, really, really, really good. pretty much better than anything else ever. even better than a really good sandwich, a MAGIC sandwich.

Ok, that’s pretty convincing. Maybe I'll reconsider my long-held stance against having kids of my own.

Smörgåsbord

Thanks to Mama’s steadfast keeping of her Swedish traditions, this is almost exactly what our table looks like every year, all the way down to the candlestick holders.

From a little piece in Volvo Magazine.

N Kishishita on Stenograph

Watch her smash hit video debut now and soon you can tell all your friends, “I was kicking to N Kishishita way before she got famous!”

Robert Coles, 1934–2006

A week ago, I took an unexpected flight to my hometown Salt Lake City to see my Dad who was suffering from Lewy body disease. After several years of gradual decline, during which we saw the disease take its toll on his strong body and sharp mind, there were signs that the end was very near. In his dependable wisdom and foresight, Matt moved up my previously-scheduled Christmas ticket and I left a few days early to say goodbye to Papa.

I was given a full day with Dad. He was unable to open his eyes or speak, but he could hear and responded with small movements as I read to him from the newspaper and from his own notes and journals. Among these was a list of lifetime goals. Nearly all of these he achieved, including “live to age 70”. Dad died the next evening, in his sleep, in his own home, surrounded by family, at 72. What he did with those years was always impressive to me, but only after this week’s memorial services did his impact really sink in. Thousands of people were influenced by Bob Coles. Many of those in a deep, life-changing way. But before I say more, I’ll leave you with Matt’s excellent obituary which does much better justice to his legacy than I can. My own personal experiences and photos will come soon.

From the time of his birth on May 23, 1934, to his death on December 12, 2006, Robert Joseph Coles left an indelible impression on the multitude of people who knew him.

As a child on the Avenues, he was the marbles champion of Ensign Elementary, and he organized sports leagues with several friends he would retain for life. He had two dear younger sisters, Annette Coles Dunford and Julie Coles Moore, and attended Bryant Junior High and West High School in Salt Lake City. He identified closely with the Swedish culture and loved the people he served during his LDS mission to Sweden from 1953–55. The Swedish Group of his former missionary companions still meets monthly, and he visited converts during several trips to Scandinavia, including a memorable visit with his wife and all five of his grown children in 2000. After his mission, he wrote for the Daily Utah Chronicle and earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Advertising and Journalism at the University of Utah. Bob was a reporter for the Deseret News from 1957-59 and an editor of several trade publications such as Intermountain Contractor and Intermountain Industry.

He married Solveig Johansson on November 29, 1962 in the Logan LDS Temple. He loved her deeply and completely. “She’s as beautiful on the inside as she is on the outside” and “she lights up my life,” he said. Bob started Utah Holiday in 1971 in the basement of his home without outside investment and grew it into an influential, award-winning magazine before he sold ownership in 1987 and resigned as editor in 1989. Professionally, Utah Holiday was his most meaningful and satisfactory creation. He often regretted the demise of the magazine, but he said his father, Joseph William Coles, taught him: “The important thing is the process, not necessarily the end result. It is often the struggle and the sacrifice that satisfies.” He then acted as director of communications for Beehive Travel, allowing him opportunities to see the world, and later worked for the Garff Automotive Group. He served as secretary of the Salt Lake Rotary Club, and was a member of the board of directors of the University of Utah Alumni Association, the Salt Lake Convention and Visitors Bureau, and the Utah Council for Citizen Diplomacy.

His service in leadership positions in the LDS Church revealed him to be a marvelous counselor. Many of those who met with him as bishop of the University 14th Ward and Ensign 4th Ward told him, “Bishop, you saved my life.” Another said, “He has not been afraid to climb mountains with us, play softball and drop occasional pop flies, to weep and laugh with us, or share his weaknesses. He has been human and, in that humanity, has been a wonderful example.” In heartfelt letters to his children, he advised tolerance of those difficult to love and helpfulness through service to others. Maintain perspective and a sense of humor, he wrote. He taught a reverence of God and Jesus Christ and a familiarity with their teachings. In all of this, his example outshone his words. His love of nature was captured in his landscape photography and fostered on hikes in the canyons of Utah, frequent vacations to Sun Valley, Idaho, and outings to the cabin his father built in Silver Fork.

The tender care he provided his father and his mother, Florence Bird Coles, in their dying days was surpassed only by Solveig’s exceptional caregiving as he struggled with the debilitating effects of Lewy body disease. Even as the brain disease robbed him of his athletic ability and remarkable gifts of verbal and written expression, it unveiled a tender, submissive side of Bob few previously knew. He loved to hug and play with his nine grandchildren. Thanks to the IHC Hospice staff, dear friends, and volunteers for kind caregiving in the final years.

Donations in Bob’s name can be sent to the Perpetual Education Fund of the LDS Church. Personal messages and memories can be posted in the comments area below and they will be forwarded to Solveig and the family.

Elsewhere:
Photos from Dad’s life »
Photos by Dad »
Photos from the funeral »
Audio from the funeral »
Salt Lake Tribune article about Dad and Utah Holiday »
Scans from Utah Holiday magazine »
A dream about Dad »
One of Dad's good latter days »

11:59 PM in Kin | Permalink | Comments (15)

November 23, 2006

Happy Thanksgiving

Despite many generous invitations, I kind of relished being ⬆ this guy today. See more of Chris Ware’s covers for The New Yorker »

01:03 PM in Kin, The Bay, Who Is Stewf? | Permalink | Comments (2)

April 07, 2006

Oakland Hills Walk

Sherry and I joined Memphis for a stroll in the hills of Oakland, near Fruitvale, the neighborhood Jen and James now call home. It took me a few weeks to get the pics up, but here they be.

12:35 AM in Beautiful Things, Kin, The Bay | Permalink | Comments (1)

February 26, 2006

Dad’s Still Got It

Matthew Coles: in sports news
Matthew Coles: Joe's team won its first game
Matthew Coles: They really came together
Matthew Coles: 22-12
Matthew Coles: Mom and Dad watched
Matthew Coles: then came over and Dad and Ben
Matthew Coles: squared off against Mom and me
Matthew Coles: At first Dad didn't seem like he was going to be able to do it
Matthew Coles: He almost shot at the plastic play fort instead of the hoop
Matthew Coles: but then his mind suddenly clicked
Matthew Coles: he was setting screens and doing his little jumper
Matthew Coles: and cheering for Ben
Stephen Coles: wow
Matthew Coles: It went to overtime
Matthew Coles: and Ben drove the lane and dished it back to Dad
Matthew Coles: He swished a jumper and they beat us
Matthew Coles: 36-34
Stephen Coles: jumper?
Stephen Coles: full on?
Matthew Coles: remember how he shoots those 12-15 footers?
Matthew Coles: same motion
Matthew Coles: may not have left the ground tho
Stephen Coles: wish i got to see that
Matthew Coles: Ben had about 26 pts
Stephen Coles: played that long?
Matthew Coles: Bob made at least 5 baskets
Matthew Coles: yeah, 8-foot hoop
Matthew Coles: everyone was on fire
Matthew Coles: I think I missed 1 shot
Stephen Coles: good energy on the court
Stephen Coles: Sylvia would say

03:25 PM in Kin | Permalink | Comments (7)

January 02, 2006

My Place

A few rooms of my palatial estate have already been documented, but some of you nonlocals have requested more pics of the apt. Here then: some friends were kind enough to take a few shots the other day.

08:11 PM in Amusements, Beautiful Things, Kin, Mindless Consumerism, The Bay | Permalink | Comments (0)