And as soon as I saw her, I couldn’t help but crying. Luckily, my wife and I work near each other, and I was able to meet her for the ride home. I had plans to go for a workout after leaving the office, but with that initial shock I couldn’t get myself to do it. But it turned out to be true: my musical hero, the man that made me a better person through his words and beats, had passed away. In the age where a new euphemism for lie is created every day – “fake news”, “deep fake”, “post truths” – I kept hoping this was just an internet hoax, another one in an ever-expanding collection. At around 4pm though, people started texting me with news that Neil had died. Up until that point, the day was going well for me – I was wrapping up a sourcing process at work with significant savings and celebrating an interview I had done at lunch time with a great musician. It turns out that Neil died on January 7 th, but for some reason not yet explained, this was kept a secret for a few days. 2020 added another entry to this extensive list – the day that the world at large came to know of the passing of arguably the greatest drummer to ever live, Mr. On a more universal level, it marks the taking of effect of the Treaty of Versailles, officially ending World War I, the release of Fritz Lang’s “Metropolis”, the birth of Frank Sinatra and Rod Stewart, and the death of David Bowie. January 10 th for me has never meant anything else but the birthday of one of my dearest friends. Today, 365 days later I feel exactly the same… One year ago I gathered all my courage, sat down and wrote this article.

Neil peart video