Nick

Rest In Peace Nick Nemeroff.

There is nothing that can be said that has not been said. I do not even know where to begin so maybe I should not be writing this. However Nick needed at least one friend to write a Substack article about him…so I officially volunteer as tribute. This one is for you Nick.

It sucks because it just feels like such a short time ago I was seeing him, laughing with him and he was just there. He was just there standing, talking, and joking in a group full of people. Every time I have been with my friends since his passing I always think I am just going to see him, because he was always just there.

The last time I did see him was on June 17th when he came to a show that my group Buskers were putting on. He just came and he just watched man. I saw him show up a little bit late while I was doing tech during Graeme’s set. He walked into the room, slipped a twenty dollar bill under the cash box as he arrived and he just went to the back of the room and watched the show. He didn’t have to slip us a twenty dollar bill, but he just did. I went to his show a couple weeks prior and I did not slip him a twenty dollar bill. Nick taught me to slip twenty dollar bills to friends.

After the show, Nick, Sam, Tanner, Mere and I went to a different bar, but I had another show that I was on at 12:00 am so there was some urgency in our hangout together. We were all laughing at our table, it was fun, but in no time at all I had to leave to go to my show. I left the bar and felt kind of bummed because we were all having fun.

I got to my show and I did my set. After I got off the stage who do you think walked into the performance room? Well none other than Sam, Mere and Nick. They came to see me do stand up comedy. Where did Tanner go? Unfortunately I had already gone on so we all just went outside. They told me that they were thinking about going to go to another place to drink and asked if I wanted to come. I said no because I had to work in the morning so we parted ways. That was the last time I saw Nick.

It just sucks so much. I regret not going with them so much. I wish I could have spent more time.

I just hate thinking that the last image we have of Nick is now frozen in time in 2022. I hate thinking of looking back and knowing that whatever the last photos and videos of Nick that they will one day look dated. The video and picture quality will look like they are from the past. Nick’s fashion will never look dated though he always dressed timeless. He dressed like one of the Odd Future guys but he did not have to have any of the licensed Golf Wang or OFWGKTA clothing…this motherfucker found and picked out all of his clothing himself. He was the Tyler, the Creator of our friend group…Nick, the Ringleader…

I just wish we could have saw a grey haired Nick. I am picturing his grey curls coming out of his hat that I could not read the brand of because I am short and he is tall. Our friendship proved that short guys and tall guys could get along and be in a room together.

I just wish that we could have seen Nick react to the Montreal Canadiens winning a Stanley Cup. Watching a Habs game with him was always great. I never knew what was going on because I have Celiac Disease and am from Kitchener-Waterloo but it was just amazing to see him get so passionate and into it. Martin St. Louis make some trades mother****er and bring Nick a cup in 2023.

I just wish that Nick was still here.

The moment I felt closest to Nick where I felt our synergy truly aligned and God dammit I wish I got this on video was on October 29th 2021. A couple nights before we had performed together at Jane Bond in Kitchener-Waterloo, and I had suggested a tag to his “Micropenising Mushrooms Joke.” At one point in this joke he says something like “Micropenising mushrooms…sorry I mean Macropenising mushrooms…” (I am sorry if I am messing this up Nick).

So I said to him, “Hey Nick…why don’t the next time after you say ‘...sorry I mean Macropenising mushrooms’ you then say ‘oh sorry I mean PCropenising mushrooms???’ Like a Mac and PC thing…you know what I’m saying???”

Nick replied back, “yes…sounds good Ben…Nick gonna try this shit.”

So flash forward back to October 29th 2021, it is a Halloween themed show, Nick is on stage and he is killing. He gets to the point in his set where he is telling his classic “Micropenising Mushrooms Joke”...he reaches the part where he says “...I mean Macropenising mushrooms” and it gets a massive response.

As the wave of laughter fills the room, Nick sets his gaze upon me. I am standing near the back. The lighting is dim but we can still see each other. We lock eyes and I give him the nod. We both take a deep breath and Nick says into the microphone, “Sorry I mean…PCropenising mushrooms…”

Silence fills the room…nothing!!!

Nick then rebounds by saying “My friend Ben told me to say that” and the laughter resumes.

We talked about that moment a lot together and laughed and said that it felt like it was a movie and I was a janitor at the back of a gymnasium giving a nod to a basketball player shooting a 3 pointer or something like that. Damn man. What a connection we felt during that slice of time. I wish we were closer. We were friends but I wish we were closer.

This is such a huge loss for everyone. My love goes out to his family and anyone he ever knew. The world truly does feel emptier without him. In addition to being so funny and smart he was also just so supportive and kind. He truly just came out and supported whatever thing his friends were doing, and he would truly just hype us up to other people. Thank you for everything Nick I will love you forever. I miss you so much already.