5 Fave Books

In no particular order except Number One…
1. Leaves of Grass by my beloved Uncle Walt. Any page I turn to has me in his divine embrace, I can actually see the twinkle in his eye. I also call him Saint Walt. So ahead of his time in terms of accepting and adoring the holiness of the flesh, and how the soul can reside very comfortably there….Anybody banned in Boston is OK by me.
2. Any poem collection by Rumi. He widens my soul and expands my heart with his exquisite wisdom and eternal insight into who we really are as human beings.
3. Letters to a Young Poet - Rilke. His studied passion and stern devotion (not to mention clear-headed advice) are a reminder of what we are all capable of.
4. The Power of Now and A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle. No nonsense truth told in a way that is actually fairly easy to understand. Putting it all into practice is another story, but I have had many ‘aha!’ moments reading Tolle.
5. The Gospel According To Jesus by Stephen Mitchell. He and several biblical scholars trim down to a couple dozen pages what the Good Lord actually said, without a single mention of Sin or Hell.

“Wonderful how I celebrate you and myself!”

Hello Dear Dolls o’ Mine!
Here’s hope hope hoping that you enjoyed your yummy Thanksgiving feasts and that you had a whole lot to be thankful and grateful for. I know I do, and try to thank the good Universe many times a day for all  my blessings. Just drawing breath is a glorious gift.  It’s been a  busy dizzy season for me already, and I’m just popping in to give you  dolls some lovin.’  My darling Mike Stinson was here from Houston for  Thanksgiving and I prepared us heaping platefuls of free-range turkey (god love the gobbler!) yams, mashed taters, many many veggies and some incredible gluten-free organic berry pies that I get from a savvy baker here on the Westside.

The next morning we got up and drove to Vegas for a couple of nights. Primm, actually, which is the border into Nevada. It’s really for people who are salivating to gamble and can’t wait another 40 minutes to hit good ol’ Lost Wages proper.  One of our mutual faves, Dwight Yoakam was playing Buffalo Bill’s, so it was a perfect opportunity for a little romantic getaway. Our musician whiz pals, Josh Grange and Eddie Perez are in Dwight’s band and we spent some quality time with them under a huge fake tree with gold-mining dummies above us panning for faux gold and holding phony guitars. Once inside the casino, you’re surrounded by an ersatz version of a vintage western town amidst the shrill clink clank beep beep of the one arm bandits. It’s kind of like a bizarre version of Disney’s Frontierland. I think the powers-that-be want to lull you into a fantasy world where you might believe your money is as fake as the bewigged western mannequins, and toss it around like Monopoly dollars. Luckily, neither Mike or I have any interest in throwing our dough down the fictitious drain of folly.

Dwight was on fire,  especially with his hot young raging band revving him up. He was in divine voice and still sliding those long skinny legs around the stage at age 52. The gals were screaming and swooning. Dwight recorded one of Mike’s genius tunes, “Late Great Golden State,”  a few years ago and its on 2 of his albums. The drive to Primm was cool, but coming  back we got stuck in Vegas           traffic .  . . so what, just being with Mike  ANYWHERE is magic. I sure do miss his face now that he resides in Houston. It’s my turn to visit him next. I realized that I have been  in love with him longer than any other fella except my ex hubby, Michael. 6 years in February. Sigh. If you haven’t heard his music,  dolls, check him out! www.mikestinson.net. We did get into Vegas for some fine vintage thrifting. Mike got the most wicked pair of 70s Larry Mahan patchwork boots you’ll ever see.

On another note…whenever I have guests, they wonder who the heck is that old man with the long gray beard, positioned prominently on my wall. My precious soul brother, Walt Whitman, is often mistaken for my grandfather.  It’s comforting to know that Uncle Walt is out there, whirling around in the cosmos, singing the body electric for all eternity. It’s a very long story, my attachment to Walt, and he will be heavily featured in my upcoming tome,  ‘Blinded By the Light-Confessions of a Gurupie,” but I’d like to share a little tidbit with you now. A tale of manifestation. I knew that Walt’s fave image of  himself was a photo taken towards the end of his robust life, and I set out to find a copy of it for my very own. I called several photographic agencies to no avail. Frustrated, I was still determined  to find that photo! Aha! “Why don’t I just ask Walt to find it for me?” I thought. After all, I felt very close to his spirit, indeed. So I beseeched Mr. W. to lend me a cosmic hand. A couple of weeks later, my ex, MDB took me to a swap meet in Malibu. It was a lovely day as we strolled among the collectibles and treasures, hand in hand. As we turned one corner, I saw something miraculous and actually stopped in my tracks and rubbed my baby blues. Could it be? At the very end of  the row, a large painting sat high upon an easel. As I got closer, I  realized joyously, yes! It was the very image of Walt Whitman that I had been seeking.  A flawless, living, breathing oil painting of the Great Poet smack dab in front of me. Breathless, I asked the seller “How much is Walt?” he was so impressed that I knew who it was that he offered me the majestic artwork for $600. I didn’t have that much, so he kindly let me pay it off, and one fine day I brought Walt home with me. That was about a dozen years ago and the painting continues to bring me constant joy, and a reminder that we create our own miracles by believing in them. Recently I discovered that the artist, Roberto Lupetti, worked on the restoration of the Sistine Chapel before he passed on in the mid nineties, and that dear old Walt is worth quite a bundle! Of course, he’s staying right where he is, under a poster of my all-girl band, The GTOs.

“Wonderful how I celebrate you and myself!
How my thoughts play subtly at the spectacles around!
How the clouds pass silently overhead!
How the earth darts on and on! and how the sun, moon, stars, dart on  and on!
How the water sports and sings! (surely it is alive!)
How the trees rise and stand up, with strong trunks, with branches and leaves!
(Surely there is something more in each of the trees, some living soul.)
Oh amazement of things-even the least particle!
Oh spirituality of things!”

Walt!

Shake, Rattle, and Roll

Greetings my dear dolls!

I had a small gathering of my darling doll-pals to celebrate my birthday a few days early last night, and it was such a comfy sweet groove. I adore my girlfriends. . . yummy red velvet cake was gluten-free and deee-lish! Lots of tasty potluck and thoughtful gifts. My friend Vicki made me some ‘bottle art’ and included a photo of me and my new fave-rave, Jack White. Talk about Yum. Loads of Elvis prezzies – my girls know me well! One of them asked about my Top 5 and it’s actually 6.

1. Jesus

2. Elvis.

3. Walt Whitman

4. James Dean.

5. Mary Magdalene

6. Bob Dylan.

In no particular order except Numero Uno! Rounding out the Top Ten would be All Four Beatles and William Blake. Eleven, but who’s counting? I leave before dawn tomorrow to visit Mike Stinson, my bf of over 5 years. We visit his mom on the Eastern Shore often, and I just found out it will be pouring with rain on my actual birthday, 9-9-09! I am meeting him at the Houston airport and will be stunningly excited, as I haven’t seen him in 2 months! He moved away, alas, to pursue his music career in Texas, where it is already going swimmingly for him.

My next Rock Tour of Hollywood and Laurel Canyon is October 3–come see where I rolled around with Jim Morrison! And I just decided to hold a writing workshop in Fairmount, Indiana on my annual trek to James Dean holy ground. It will be at my dear pals, Dave & Lenny’s James Dean Gallery September 29. Let me know if you can attend! I feel so at home in that tiny midwestern town. I love to loll and laze at Jimmy’s grave and catch him up on all my latest shenanigans. I also have a 2 nighter coming up in Austin, Oct 16-17, and another in Manhattan Nov 2-3. Come meet me and get your muse to wake up and scribble! I am also one of the guests at the upcoming Chiller even in Jersey Oct.30-Nov.1, and will be selling GTOs cds, photos, shirts etc. Ann Margret is going to be there. Wowie! She touched the king, she shimmied with him Viva Las Vegas, baby!

Every day I still wake up and say ‘Yay!’ I am always excited about something and that’s the way it should be. Remember dolls, we’re all in this together.

Shake rattle and roll . . .

XP