On January 10th, Gregory Hagan of local experimental rock band Common Eider, King Eider was shot in an attempted mugging as he walked to a music class in Oakland. As Gregory wrote on the band’s blog, it was a scary situation that left him with a seriously injured foot and financial uncertainties.
Demanding a wallet I didn’t have, the situation escalated until I was shot in the right foot – in the moment I barely felt it, instead screamed curses at them and they eventually gave up and left the scene. Thankfully I was just by a fire station, was able to call for help with a passer-by’s assistance, so on and so forth. What I didn’t know then is that the bullet shattered a bone that rests on my heel, just missing two arteries and only touching the neighboring bone. What that has come to mean is a bone patched together with plates and screws, three months on crutches, a few more months of physical therapy, no ability to work until July, almost certain arthritis and the possibility of the bone partially dying and eventually crumbling, a life that was moving at a rather exuberant pace suddenly slowed to a sometimes literal crawl….
So this is a plea then – a humble request for small financial donations for a bay area musician-type who’s not sure how he’ll pay his rent in the coming months, but more importantly a plea for everyone to take care of each other, keep eyes open and look out for friends and loved ones, find ways to make the streets safe or transport people safely through them. We shouldn’t live in fear, but life is displaying too many reasons to be cautious.
Take care and best wishes to all,
Gregory.
Donations for Gregory can be made via PayPal to robotmonkeys
