I was a poster here back in the early 2000s as a high school student. curmudgeon was a very helpful and popular poster at the time, especially for those of us who were looking for merit aid. He was kind enough to help me with some challenging stuff I was going through at the time, and thus, I learned his real name.
I was nostalgia googling recently and was deeply saddened to learn that he died in May 2022, following a long battle with depression (to quote the obituary I found). His obituary made it clear what a deeply kind, valued, funny, and admired man he was and also the depth of his love for his family, including daughter and grandchildren, all of which also shone through in his posts on CC. It is a deep loss for those who knew him and even felt by those of us (including me) who really didn’t know him per se but felt his impact.
I know there are some long time posters who will remember him and who I thought might also want to know this news, however sad it is.
I am so sorry to hear this. Remember his posts well, funny, kind, informative and often offering a different perspective. Very sad news. Thank you for posting it, sounds as though he was as lovely IRL as he seemed here…
Do I remember Curmedgeon correctly? His gifted daughter was a premed applicant to top colleges. He would ride his mortocycle to some of those college visits ? Or perhaps, he wrote about his motorcycle trips,
He was always amusing, Clever, kind, with great posts, intelligent, insightful, a non conformist, as his screen name implied.
Was he in the southeast ? Did his daughter attend a school in the south ? Eventually , med school ?
This is a sad update. I often wonder about Northstar, and others during those early times ( I joined in 2004). I hope they are faring better than, Curmudgeon. Thanks for this memorial post.
Oh, wow. This makes me sad. We corresponded often, and he was so helpful when ds1 was applying to colleges. He wrote “We Texans need to stick together ;).”
Curmudgeon helped me tremendously when my mom died & my dad was considering legal action against the hospital. He pm’d me his contact information, and I was blessed to benefit from not only his wisdom, but his wicked sense of humor. He was a straight shooter, a smart guy and a very kind human. May he rest in peace.
So sad to read this. His posts were so clever, witty and engaging. His daughter is incredibly impressive and his pride in her shone through every post about her. RIP curmudgeon.
I too remember Curmudgeon. His daughter got into Yale as an undergrad, but attended Rhodes for financial reasons. IRC she ended up at Yale for med school. He was a great proponent of bloom where you are planted and funny as all get out.
@jerseysouthmomchess I can tell you about Northstar. As you may recall her last posts were about her increasingly unhappy marriage. Anyway, she got amicably divorced. Got involved in community theater and with a fellow thespian. They decamped to Mexico when Trump was elected and are thriving. Her kids appear to be doing well.
I just looked up curmudgeon’s obituary. It really seems to capture him. I am so sorry that he spent the last years of his life battling depression, but I applaud his family for presenting him honestly.
I actually have thought of him often; so sad to hear this news. I always expected him to pop back on with a update, but assumed he left like many others with one of the forum’s update.
Curmudgeon represented the best of CC. I knew he had a hard time with diabetes, but his pride in his D and his generosity in giving hard-won and contrarian advice with a big side of humor, kept me following his every post. I’m so sorry to hear this news.
Since current and former posters feel like we went through a similar experience, I’m very sad to hear that curmudgeon went through a dark period of life that ultimately ended it.
His memory is definitely a blessing to so many of us
Thanks for posting this.
I have fond memories of his humor and compassion; a shining example of why I am still lurking here though my baby is 34!
I always looked for his posts.
he surely will be missed. He was a huge cheerleader for kids on this forum. And was always kind and caring with his responses.