Jeffer is losing his battle.

It's a sad time for me. One of my dearest friends is losing his battle for life to brain cancer. His pain level is down but his brother Scott tells me he is fading away, both physically and mentally.

That's a shame for the Mountain Man. Yes, Jeffer as we like to call him, flipped the bird to the ladder climbers a long time ago and did what all of the rest of us threatened to do. He moved to the beauty of the Colorado mountains and for the most part, he made a go at it. He knew his wines and could cook with the best of them as he went through a variety of hotel management and chef jobs. He lived where he wanted to live and did what he wanted to do.

He finally settled in the stone business and was the guy to call when your million dollar condo need some nice high priced stone counter tops.

Even in his mid 50's, Jeffer was in top shape. While some of us developed new belt sizes and had to move over the bigger pant sizes, Jeffer continued shopping the skinny section. His closets were busting with designer suits and shirts and shoes, but close to the door were his muddy work boots and a working man's hoodie.

His skin looked like it was painted on him and he blazed up and down Vail pass on his expensive bike when the rest of us could barely negotiate a steep driveway.

I went trout fishing with Jeff several time. We never caught a thing and never had a strike. There was a good reason. Jeffer plowed through the bushes and weeds and into the stream with the gentleness of a bull elephant on the way to a late lunch.

The trout were long gone by the time he whipped his line back and fourth and sent it upstream in search of the"big one." He laughed and talked loudly about the beauty of the day and the mountains. I don't think anyone appreciated his life as much as he did--with the possible exception of his big sweet dog Zusie.

I always thought Jeffer would meet his maker in some kind of spectacular mountain event, like running into a tree while skiing on his 82nd birthday. But, he is wasting a way an inch at a time.

Jeffer is a lone wolf like me. His Mom and Dad, brother Scott, and sister Annie are the ones suffering the most because Jeffer's memory has been claimed by cancer.

The end is never fun and even though Jeffer may be around a long time, the Jeffer I knew is the guy in the picture I took a few years ago.

He will always be the happy-go-lucky Mountain Man who put life first and everything else, including the IRS, in a distant second place. That's a two howls up for this Mountain Man.

Jeffer is losing his battle with cancer but put a smile on your face. He won the war.

Good for you, Jeffer. Good for you!