Bret did my very first tattoo and meeting him was a life changing experience. He was a guest artist at a local studio and when I first called him on the phone to "meet" him, I was immediately drawn to his awesome energy, obvious love of his craft, his wonderful quick wit, and his overall attitude toward life. As busy as he was at the time, I expected a 15 minute phone call to set the appointment and that would be that. Quite the contrary. Bret and I talked for several hours on the phone about everything....art, music, life, love, death and what it means to just walk around every day observing "life." When I finally met him in person it was like I had known him all of my life. I showed him a couple of pictures of some ideas I had for a back piece and after we talked for a long time, he went to work. First drawing in pen the piece "we" had in mind. When I saw what he had done, it was like he had crawled into my mind and resurrected images that I could not even fully form myself. Amazing. The time I spent in his chair was one of the most cathartic experiences of my life. We laughed, told jokes and reminisced about the days gone by when we were kids and what it was like getting older. When he was finished, the piece was perfect. The experience was perfect. He was perfect. Recently, I wanted to have another piece done and went to look up where Bret was working. That's how I learned of his passing. I am so grateful I had the opportunity to meet him. He was one of a kind and a treasure to all that had the good fortune to know him and have them as part of their lives.