Okay, so the guy wasn't really a nemesis, but still... he had a way of pissing people off. On purpose. He was one of those kind of guys who can't resist pushing just to see how far he could before someone would push back- and then once they started pushing back, he would promptly (and figuratively, of course) kick their ass.
I am one of those nicey people who just doesn't like to say bad things about others, so Steven Wells was pretty much my polar opposite. I first became aware of him because of these two articles he wrote about how knitting is completely not as cool as hipster knitters think it is.
Now, I have been crocheting since I was 17 and more recently started knitting, but before the apex of the trend really hit. I was kind of glad to finally see it being promoted as a punk-rock, hip type of hobby- considering that even my loving DH constantly referred to me as 'Granny' when he would see me knitting something (didn't stop him from enjoying the blanket I crocheted for him, but that's beside the point), I thought it was about time that crafting became kind of cool. There's nothing wrong with preferring to wear or use something you've made by hand, rather than using or wearing something that an underpaid worker in Guatemala made with a machine. I also enjoyed the fact that all kinds of people were interested in knitting and crocheting and crafting - from granola crunchers to dominatrices, there was something for everyone in the knitting world, it was no longer just doilies and cardigans.
Well, Steven Wells set me straight. He let me know that no matter what kind of gloss you put on it, no matter what you were knitting or crocheting, it was still not edgy or punk rock. After my initial pissiness, after composing comments in my head that I would never repeat (or type), I just had to laugh. I read a few of his back articles, and was hooked. He just seemed to be one of those people who can't help but tell the truth the way he saw it, everybody's pwecious widdle feewings be damned. Plus, he was hilarious. Since I can take a joke, even if it's on me, I immediately subscribed to Philadelphia Weekly.
Then, the Anticraft replied to his criticisms by posting these wonderful Vlad the Impaler hats. I literally laughed out loud when I saw the quote by Steven Wells at the top of the page. I thought, "Hey, that's a good idea, turn that anger toward creative pursuits, you've shown him." I continued to thoroughly enjoy both Steven's articles and the Anticraft's quarterly issues. My inbox had a new issue of PW this morning, with a surprising title - "In Memoriam: Steven Wells".
I didn't know him personally, or even as a writer for very long, but I really enjoyed his cynicism and sarcasm, so I spent a good portion of the morning learning about Steven Wells and his battle with cancer, and I think that it's a story that would touch all but his most vehement haters. Sure, the guy was abrasive, insulting, and often rude- but he was also honest, and his story is frightening and touching and just made me sad that he had to go now, when I was just becoming a fan.
Farrah Fawcett was before my time, Ed McMahon has always been old to me, and I was never a fan of Michael Jackson (or Billy Mays, for that matter), so other than the surprise of how close together their deaths happened, I haven't been saddened or personally affected by them - but I will sorely miss Steven's wit showing up in my inbox every week.
