Mourning the loss of a beloved local

JAMES PRIBRAM

You can always judge a good man by his smile.

It speaks volumes of a person, and judging by Joey Petrovich’s

award-winning smile, he was a great man who was loved by many.

He could light up any room with that everlasting smile of his.

Words are not coming easy for me right now. I can feel my tears

balancing themselves on the edges of my eyelids, all the while

wishing that lump in my throat will go away.

This isn’t the column I wanted to be writing, another sad story

about someone who has died, because when I think of Joey, there was

nothing sad about him or his life.

He celebrated his life every day. He loved it and lived it and I

loved him for that.

What inspired me the most about Joey was his passion for music.

The Theme Tots, the El Caminos and the Black Outs all set a standard

of live music here in Laguna Beach. This is where Joey thrived as a

person, up on stage and in front of his friends and family. I think

it meant more to Joey to play live at the “World Famous” Sandpiper

than anywhere in the world, because it meant more to him to play for

those he loved.

I will always remember Joey and his funny twitches, tapping me on

the shoulder and asking me “How I was doing?”

He was classic. A fixture here in Laguna Beach. A modern-day

realist who called it the way he saw it. A humorous cynic who had

more opinions than Rush Limbaugh. A man of many gifts who never gave

up on his dream of playing music and I admire him so much for that.

But what’s really funny is the way he used to run around on the

volleyball court, laughing and talking.

I have so many good memories of you and they all began and end

with a smile. Thank you for being you, Joey.

Peace.