Charles Thomas Blackmon
Charles Thomas Blackmon, age 69, died unexpectedly at his home. Thomas was born November 2, 1951. He is survived by his daughter, Adrianne, his mother, Anna Newkirk Kistenfeger, his sister, Sandra Nagel, six step-brothers & sister, grandchildren, nieces & nephews. He was a graduate of Illinois Wesleyan University. He was a free-lance artist, loved fishing & woodworking. He was preceded in death by his father, Charles M Blackmon.
Back when the sky was still clearly blue, the new neighbors blew our doors off with a cherry-bomb of cheer and chatter. Thus, Tom and Sherrill Blackmon sucked Angie and me into their mad swirl of delightful chaos, which featured relentless bouts of Pinochle.
Pinochle? Oh yeah. That quickly devolved into a crafty derivative of blood sport. Tom played the game like Wormtongue, slyly whispering ideas of doubt, descension, and confusion in the ears of his opponents. His approach—blatantly predictable yet utterly hilarious—was a masterclass in the art of living on the edge of absurdity.
Though Tom's sky later turned dark, the rogue above is the guy I choose to remember. I cannot even say his name without grinning. Tom?…