A dear friend of mine died last Sunday.
I just found out about it today.
Ironic that I was looking for something in my closet just the other day and
looked up on my bookshelf to see my old copy of
"Zen and Art of Motorcycle Maintenance",
the cult novel by Robert Persig.
Its pink and black cover reeking 'classic lit'.
Rod had given it to me many years ago during one of my visits to see him.
I thought, "I should really call him one of these days."
Looks like I waited a bit too long.
His last words were supposedly, "With a little more time, I would've gotten it right!"
You were wrong, HRB.
You got it right this time, from where I'm standing.
Although there are no calling hours I thought some music would be appropriate.
He loved music.
This is your swan song, my dear friend.
I will miss you.

 

Out on the street I was talkin’ to a man
He said "there’s so much of this life of mine that I don’t understand"
You shouldn’t worry yes that ain’t no crime
Cause if you get it wrong you’ll get it right next time (next time).

You need direction, yeah you need a name
When you’re standing in the crossroads every highway looks the same
After a while you can recognize the signs
So if you get it wrong you’ll get it right next time (next time).

Life is a liar yeah life is a cheat
It’ll lead you on and pull the ground from underneath your feet
No use complainin’, don’t you worry, don’t you whine
Cause if you get it wrong you’ll get it right next time (next time).

You gotta grow, you gotta learn by your mistakes
You gotta die a little everyday just to try to stay awake
When you believe there’s no mountain you can climb
And if you get it wrong you’ll get it right next time (next time).

"Get it right next time" by Gerry Rafferty

Reading 'Carver' right now.
Please READ THIS.
You will spend 20 minutes of your life and thank me.
This is one of Carver's most amazing short stories.
Please take the time and read it.
The man was amazing.
Simply amazing . . .

 

Writer reading.
It is winter and a time of introspection and reflection.
I am in the midst of a badly needed reading spree.

On the list?

*Just finished: Wishin' and Hopin': A Christmas Story
by Wally Lamb (Christmas gift from my girls. It was hysterical)

*Next: Raymond Carver: 'A Writer's Life'
by Carol Sklenicka (this years birthday gift from Pamela. I love Carver. Always have.)

*Next: (finishing)  The Hour I First Believed
by Wally Lamb (should have finished this long ago)

*Next: A Confederacy of Dunces
by John Kennedy Toole
(a used book from Hyannis, Cape Cod, July 2009, remember, Moe?)

*Next: The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao
by Junot Diaz
(always wanted to read this)

Is this a wish list?
Nope.
I have every book on the list (except for the Diaz which I plan on getting sometime tomorrow)

There's more after that but I'm thinking that's a pretty good start. Yes?
Might be a bit quieter than usual around here but hey, it's winter.
Time to chill out.
And definitely time to read . . .

 

It is that time of year. This short story by Ray Bradbury was written in 1948. Oddly enough, it seems like something you would see gracing the front pages of today's morning paper. I've decided to re-post this perennial favorite simply because it is horrifying. Just to warn you, it's a fairly gruesome tale. Bradbury was so far ahead of his time. If you haven't read The October Game and would like to, click on the picture above. (or HERE)

I began reading the new Natalie Goldberg book  'Old Friend from Far Away' a few days ago. It's a book custom-tailored for writers of memoir. So far the book is quite good (like all of her books). Page 14 has a prompt that I've decided to turn into a post. The chapter is quite short: "Die" Tell me what you will miss when you die. When I die there will be many things that I will miss. This list went on for quite a few pages but I've chosen an abbreviated version for your perusal. If I included food you'd be here for a few days. I mostly chose things from the category 'matters of the heart'. Feel free to steal this as a 'meme'. For you writers visiting, it's a wonderful exercise. Do it. Even if you don't consider yourself a writer, it's worth your time. You can look at some of the things that really make your life worthwhile. Here I go.

I will miss:

-Whispers in the dark -Pamela's eyes, voice, face and beautiful soul -hearing the phrase, "I love you, Daddy," whispered in my ear -my three beautiful girls -the sound of little footsteps coming down the stairs on Christmas morning -my sister, my twin, the other part of my very soul -Caitlin's smile -Ryan's loveable way (and awesome jumpshot) -Billy's laugh -All the people I truly love (if I've talked to you in the past year, consider yourself on this list) -a warm and gentle rain -the silent beauty of falling snow (yeah, I wrote that) -the sound of surf at the Cape -the smell of freshly cut grass in late spring -stars (especially the constellation Orion, someday possibly the Southern Cross) -my cats purring -Cuban cigars -Guinness (or any fairly decent dark beer like Porter or Stout) -Makers' Mark -writing with a nice fountain pen on some fine quality paper -the feeling of creating -entering 'the Zone'  (artists of all kinds know about this one) -music (playing and listening) -my piano -weekend phone calls to a country far, far away with two incredibly special people -memories of the Camp -Bermuda -the aroma of an apple pie baked by my grandmother from summer's long ago -Blue Cheese -Bill Hicks, Denis Leary, Sam Kinnison, George Carlin, Lewis Black and Dave Chapelle -sunsets -reading -most importantly, my blog And yes, I will dearly miss sex and exceptional breasts. I'm not a freak. Truthfully, what will you miss?

I made it through the holiday, y'all. Christmas Eve found me a bit crazy though (as my wife will attest) What can I say, Maker's Mark bourbon makes me silly. Go figure. But, I had fun, 'kissing-my-brother-in-law on the cheek' fun. Yeah, I don't think he liked it though. My sister did give me the holiday hat of my dreams though. We had all kinds of wonderful food to eat, music playing, inspired conversation, barrels of laughter, Rum Swizzles on ice, wine, beer and we were comfortably surrounded by family; everything one needs to make the season bright. You can probably tell from the picture at the top of the post which book I'm currently reading (a present from my 3 wonderful girls) I love Wally Lamb but his books do take some perseverance to get through. Not that I'm complaining. As a Patriots fan, after yesterday, I have lots of time to get my nose stuck in a book anyway. I have realized that I've been seriously slacking in the reading department, something that changes today, not on January 1st. To write, you have to read. And today, it started with no conceivable end in sight. As far as writing goes, reading helps me and pushes me in a forward direction. I have no doubt that 2009 will be a great writing year for me. As far as the blog goes, I won't be very far away but I've made some serious creative promises to myself and will try like hell to keep them. (or Laho will kick my arse) Damn these New Year resolutions. Will I give up Guinness? Yeah, right. Will I give up blogging? Don't think so. Will I cook less Risotto? Not if my daughters have anything to do with it. Will I stop smoking cigars? Puuuhleeese. It's a new year and a fresh chance to chase my dreams. Many will come true this year. I just have to keep on believing and praying. Catch all of you in '09. I wish all of you the very best that this life has to offer. The candles are lit and the prayers waiting to be whispered. Please let me know if you need one. Happy New Year, folks. And go easy on the MSG, okay? My pen is ready. It's time to rock, folks . . . :mrgreen:

I have caught up on most comments and commented on many blogs. But I will admit, I have been a bad blogger lately. Not the worst but definitely not the best. A very long work week combined with a busy life in general has grabbed me by the cojones. I am taking a vacation starting at 6PM tomorrow. (EST) I will be around and plan on posting a few things during the week but, in the words of the AWB, I have work to do. I thank all of you for the visits and the comments. I will visit my folks on the blogroll as well. No worries. See you all on the flipside of the blogosphere. Gonna take Frankie's advice for now . . .

An emergency service brought to you by me. Stuck in your writing? Of course you are. Then again, aren't we all? Found this site and thought that it didn't hold much promise for me. I was wrong. If your writing is as stale as a 7 day-old loaf of bread, click the picture above. Problem solved. Kinda. Coolbeaners.

It was a beautiful night as I rode the Red Line into Cambridge. From my window, the Longfellow Bridge offered up a brilliant panoramic view of Boston's Back Bay settling into 'night mode'. I made my way to the Harvard Bookstore wondering what the evening would hold. If you like bookstores, you would fall in love with this antique of a shop (est.1932). I wandered around Harvard Square until 6:30 before going in and purchasing The Ghost in Love. It was a very intimate setting with @20 chairs set-up. I grabbed the closest seat to the podium that I could get. God, I was excited. The reading started promptly at 7 as Carroll read the first chapter of 'Ghost' in its entirety. A brief Q&A session followed. I asked him about his advice for 'Writer's Block'. He laughed and said he never had a problem with it. He answered honestly and to paraphrase said

"Always leave the windows and doors (of the mind) open . . . if they should shut, put the pen down and go cook a meal, take a walk, see a movie, have sex . . . anything but think about writing. Eventually the doors will open."

He spoke of his craft in a way that was easy to relate to but unique in its approach. Personally, he could have talked until midnight and I would have stayed. After being gently prodded to begin the book signing, yours truly was 1st in line. I did tell him how much he's inspired me over the years to which he responded with a smile and a genuine 'thank you'. He asked my name and we talked a bit as he signed "Ghost" (~a ghost for Michael . . .) I pulled The Panic Hand from my bag. He smiled again. As he thumbed through the first few pages he said, "Ah, First Edition, US. Very nice." I told him about the email I'd sent him years ago after winning the book on Ebay as well as my love of his story The Sadness of Detail. He mentioned how many people really liked that story as he signed my 'Panic Hand' book . . . I shook his hand and thanked him saying I would definitely see him on his next US book tour. I wondered what it must be like to meet so many people that truly idolize you as an artist. Carroll takes it in stride and is one of the most down to earth and personable writers you will ever meet. He will be in California in a few days for anyone on the West Coast that wants a chance to see and hear this brilliant man. I floated back (a few feet off the ground) to the Red Line and made my way across the Charles to Backbay, opening the two books every five minutes thinking the magical script would suddenly disappear. This morning I realized just how wonderful last night really was. It's always nice when a dream comes to fruition. And Vienna waits . . . Click on the book for a little surprise!

ps. saw Stephen King again yesterday as well. What a day for authors . . .

This post is approximately 5 years in the making . . . I've been an avid fan of writer Jonathan Carroll for the better part of ten years and have read almost everything the man has written. Although he's relatively unknown in some literary circles he possesses an almost cult following for many readers, like me. It was January 10, 2004 (my birthday) that I happened to find a rare book by Carroll floating about on Ebay. It was called ‘The Panic Hand', a collection of short fiction. The item on Ebay was listed as ‘first edition, hardback, excellent condition'. For whatever the reason, I had to have this book. If you're a reader, you understand the desire and obsession. I began bidding and got into a war with someone that wanted the book almost as much as I did. As I said, almost. I was working that night and gave my wife instructions to place a bid of $60.00 about 30 seconds before the auction ended. If the book was destined to be mine, then so be it. I ended up winning the auction and the book was mine. I'm looking at it as I type this. ‘The Panic Hand' has some of the best short fiction I think I've ever read especially a story called, ‘The Sadness of Detail', my personal favorite. Seeing that it was a first edition book, I wanted to have it signed and began looking for the next time Carroll would be in the states. Sadly, I came up empty-handed and sent him an email inquiring about his schedule (and the fact that I had just purchased a first edition of said book and would love to have it signed). To my surprise, I received a reply back from him that same afternoon. He thanked me for writing and said that he didn't get over to ‘this side of the pond' too often seeing that he lives in Austria but suggested I keep an eye on his website for future visits. In my email, I also mentioned how much I loved his story, ‘The Sadness of Detail' asking where the inspiration came from. He wrote that the story was a ‘very old friend' and one of his favorites but the inspiration for it escaped him at that time . . . but that he would be happy to sign the book should we ever meet. Well, folks, next Tuesday night I'll be going to Cambridge to the incredible Harvard Bookstore to listen to Carroll read from his new book, ‘The Ghost in Love'. He's doing a short Q&A session and a signing after that. And yes, I plan on asking him about how he deals with ‘Writer's Block'. I will happily buy a copy of his new book and have it signed and hopefully be able to tell him just how much he's inspired me in my own writing, although I write in a very different genre. Then I will plead with him ask him to sign 'The Panic Hand' and hope he smiles. Judging from the tone in his email, I should be one damn happy writer this time next Tuesday night. Look for a follow up post. If you haven't read anything by this brilliant man, at least visit your local library and take something out. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. Don't sound too excited, do I?