HAPPY BIRTHDAY BO

Bo was born in 1986 in Weaverville, NC. His birth was unattended. His father's name was never on the birth certificate. Bo lived with his mother, JB while she finished her undergraduate degree at UNC-A. He was loved by all of her teachers and friends. Bo and his mom lived with her friend, N. N was the secretary for the deptpartment where JB was getting her degree. Nilda had two daughters that lived with them. They were 3 and 4 years old. N and JB and Bo and the girls lived together until Bo was 8 months old and his mom graduated from college. Bo and his mom went to live with his grandparents (her parents) for a year while his mom tried to get into grad school. During that time, she worked as a nanny and maid for a family in New Jersey, and he went to work with her. When Bo was 18 months old, he and his mom moved to Knoxville, TN to go to grad school. Bo went to daycare, and came to rehearsal with his mom in the evening. They lived together through the whole school year, and it was very stressful because his mom had to work nights as well as go to school all day. He had a babysitter from Jamacia though, and everyone was happy. When Bo was 2 and a half, he developed asthma and had to be hospitalized several times. His grandmother came to visit one day and moved him up to New Jersey to live with her and grandpa and his 14 year old uncle. Bo had an OK time, but he missed his mom. His mom missed him too, and when she finished her degree when Bo was 4 she started making plans for Bo to come live with her again. It took 4 years for Grandma to think it was a good idea for Bo to come live with his mom again, but when he was 8, he moved down to West Virginia to live with her. Bo loved West Virginia, he went to 2nd grade and didn't make many friends because he could read and everyone else couldn't yet, plus, the kids and teachers didn't understand why he dressed like a cheetah every day. (the cheetah was his favorite animal). Bo got to meet the school psychiatrist and take a bunch of interesting tests. The psychologist thought he was smart enough to skip 3rd grade, so the next year Bo went to 4th grade. In 4th grade Bo made a lot of friends and got really interested in the Chicago Bulls. He especially related to Dennis Rodman and dyed his hair pink while his mom was at work one night. Bo was smart and artistic, but got really cruddy grades and was always in trouble for not doing homework. When Bo was 11, his mom fell in love with an old friend from NC who had moved to Portland, OR. She decided to marry him, so they moved out there. Bo was freaked out when he moved and really missed his friends alot. Plus, Bo was going in to 6th grade -- and in Portland that was MIDDLE SCHOOL with the 7th and 8th graders. Bo continued to have problems in school, he got bad grades and his sixth grade teacher didn't like him. The very first day of school, Bo got sent to the principals office because he drew a picture of a cartoon character holding a gun and smoking a cigarette on his name tag. Fortunately, Bo got moved to a "special" class with a more creative teacher. When he was in 7th grade, Bo played the role of Macbeth in his school play. Bo was recognized as being an artist and actor, and was always on the cutting edge. Bo and his friends listened to the Insane Clown Posse and Marilyn Manson. They drank a lot of Faygo Soda in many colors and burned incense in their rooms. Bo passed 8th grade by the skin of his teeth. He was accepted into an alternative high school and really loved it. He went to school downtown and hung out with a bunch of cool friends. Many of those kids were street kids who didn't fit in either. Bo was really close with them. He was also really close with his mom and step-dad who allowed him to bring all kinds of friends home. Most of Bo's friends still keep in touch with his mom. Bo and his friends started experimenting with marijuana. Bo's mom was concerned because she thought it made him unmotivated. She was also really worried that Bo would get mixed up with heroin -- especially since he now idolized Kurt Cobain -- a rock star who was a heroin addict and killed himself. Bo's mom was frantic. She kept having to have meetings with his teachers who said that Bo was not working to his potential, and that they were worried about him -- but loved him because he was such a gentle and kind and creative boy. Bo started a rock band and started teaching the younger kids how to play guitar after school. He got to be really good friends with a girl who was 12. Her mom was a pain patient who was on Methadone and sometimes, this girl would get some for the kids to try. A few times Bo tried Methadone with his friends. They didn't get high, but it felt really artistic. And it wasn't dangerous like Heroin. Bo's parents, of course knew nothing about this. Bo decided to drop out of high school and enroll in the high school completion program at the community college with new girlfriend who was 19. Bo's mom and step-dad were glad and thought thngs were really looking up. So did Bo. Bo's mom had a new job that was sending her to hawaii. Since she and her Bo's step dad had never gone, they decided to go and leave Bo in the capable hands of JB's friend from North Carolina and one of her daughters who would stay at the house with him while his mom was gone. Bo asked his mom if he could have a party. "No way", she said, but it is OK if you have one friend over a night as long as the babysitter is OK with it. The morning Bo's mom and step dad left, he got up at 4AM to say good-bye. He hugged his mom really tight and told her that he loved her very much and to have a wonderful trip and that he would miss her. That was the last time they hugged each other. Later that night, Bo called his mom's cel. It was about 1 AM in Portland and 10 PM in hawaii. He and his mom talked for about 10 minutes. She told him hawaii was hot. He told her that he and his girlfriend were recording music and eating skittles. He sounded really happy. Bo told his mom that she should take a bunch of pictures of her and his step-dad together having fun in hawaii and bring them back for him to see. That was the last time Bo and his mom ever talked. Ever. While Bo's mom and step-dad were out the next morning taking pictures of each other, Bo was dying of congestive heart failure brought on by taking methadone. His girlfriend slept next to him while he died. Bo's mom got a call from her friend N who told her the awful news.