My Friend Roger

This is another lost 360 blog that I thought about the other day.

I owe my friend, Roger, a great debt. Roger is my friend, Kathy's, brother. Roger had no idea who in the world I was. When Kathy realized that I didn't have anyone to help me when I was sick and that I was homeless, she called her brother, Roger, and asked him to let me move in with him. He didn't hesitate.

I moved into his small apartment complete with my oxygen machine late one evening. Roger did what he could to make me comfortable even though he is disabled and doesn't have much himself. He even quit smoking in his own home and wouldn't allow any of his party hardy friends to smoke inside as well.

He wouldn't take any rent from me either. He told me to just save my money to get my own place. He was also a perfect gentlemen in every way. I was so grateful to him for taking me in that a couple of weeks after I moved in he asked me to go to the store for him. He gave me his foodstamp card but when I bought his groceries I paid for them out of my own pocket as a thank you, thinking he wouldn't notice. He did notice and when he did he made me take his card any buy myself some groceries with it. If I didn't he said he would ask me to leave.

I was with him about 6 weeks when I got my Social Security Disability. He allowed me to pay some of his utilities that he was behind on and I was glad to do it. Also he asked me if I wanted to just stay with him and pay him rent which was fine with me because I knew it would help us both out.

Then Roger got cancer in his eye. I took him back and forth to Dr. appointments and helped care for him after his surgery as best I could.

We eventually parted ways but we are still very good friends. I go see him a couple of times a year and I try to have some little do dad for one of his collections when I go. He has an extensive album collection as well as a Playboy magazine collection that dates back to the 40's. He even has the Marilyn Monroe edition as well as the Anna Nicole Smith editions.