We'll Always Have Paris

by Jer

A bunch of us lost a good friend this week.

Former colleague, always a friend, and forever a brother, Jason Presley passed away Monday due to complications from a congenital liver disease. Only in his late 30s, he leaves behind his wife Michelle and their two young daughters.

Now, not many of you had the displeasure of being in the same office as Jason and me when we would break into song together, the following is a favorite memory of my dear friend...

I worked in an office with Jason, and six other music lovers, at a west coast university from 2003 to 2005. At any given moment, on any given day, there were usually eight different songs being played on eight different PCs in our small hallway. Every so often - to diverge from the norm - I would go retro and listen to some old standards; Nat King Cole, Blossom Dearie, Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, etc, etc.

One of my personal favorites is "I Love Paris" as song by Lena Horne. The chorus goes:

I love Paris in the spring time
I love Paris in the fall
I love Paris in the winter when it drizzles
I love Paris in the summer when it sizzles

Whenever my iTunes would play this song, I would reach to my right, turn the volume button clockwise and look over my shoulder at Jason - whose desk chair was in perfect alignment with mine from across the hall - and start to sing at the top of my lungs:

I love Jason in the spring time
I love Jason in the fall
I love Jason in the summer when it sizzles
I love Jason in the winter when it drizzles

I love Jason every moment
Every moment of the year
I love Jason, why oh why do I love Jason?
Because my love is here!

Being completely confident in his own masculinity, Jason would grin widely and sing back in kind.

The strangeness of seeing two grown men declaring their love for each other in song notwithstanding, this silly scene truly was about the friendly affection I felt for my colleague and brother.

Dare I say it?

Jason and I will always have Paris.

We'll all see you someday soon, my friend.