Here’s the view looking down into the lobby from the hallway outside my suite!
I’m on the 3rd floor. That cute little fireplace seating area is on the 2nd floor.
And here’s the view outside the windows directly opposite that view of the lobby.
Can you see the swimming pool?
On the terrace just now, having my coffee. 8AM.!!
Last evening was very interesting, gang.
The lecture was about recent archeological updates on John the Baptist’s cave. Unfortunately, I was very tired from my trip and had been up since 5AM .
But the more interesting part—
After I had checked in (and posted photos of my unexpectedly huge suite to my blog!), I checked in at the conference room, got my badge and the printed materials for the conference.
Then I introduced myself to Dr. James Tabor! Finally. Yay!
We all had a 2-hr break for dinner before the conference actually got started. James Tabor walked with me to the hotel restaurant and we chatted like we’d known each other forever, but then he was meeting with 2 men who were already at the bar.
I somehow managed to start chatting with a group who were sitting at a round hightop table (they were wearing their badges, so I knew they were part of the conference).
Long story short, they left their table and, taking their drinks with them, sat down at a much larger table so that we could all have dinner together!
If you’re new to the blog — I have struggled my entire life with borderline autism. This makes it extremely difficult for me to feel comfortable around strangers (and that is putting it mildly, trust me).
But while having dinner with these 5 strangers — all around my age or a little older; 1 man from Texas; a married couple from Washington State; a married couple from Georgia. I suddenly realized that I felt totally, completely comfortable with them. I was at ease and we were all chatting about things like the Historical Jesus, the James ossuary, the Talpiot tombs.
It was such an incredible feeling — to feel how relaxed I was! That never happens to me, gang.
Normally, I put up a totally artificial barrier where strangers think I’m friendly but in reality I’m extremely tense and can’t wait to get away. I have been like this my entire life. Creating strategies for how best to survive being around strangers.
It was just such a beautiful feeling. After 66 years… I think that’s a large part of why I slept so great last night.
Okay. I’m gonna go get breakfast. The conference starts at 10AM.
I hope you’re having a great Saturday, wherever you are in the world!!
Thanks for visiting! See ya later, gators!!🥰☕️🍳🧇🥐
Best hotel pillows, ever.
I slept great, gang. Had detailed and vivid dreams all night.
It’s Saturday morning, 5AM.
Here’s the view from my terrace!
I was not expecting a huge suite!!
I can’t believe I’m going to be in this huge place all by myself.
Oh!! And I have a terrace!!!
Okay, well. Both flights went great. No hitches at all. I’m gonna unpack and find other conference-goers so that we can celebrate a Shabbat dinner!!
Hope your day has been great, wherever you are in the world!
It’s such a gorgeous morning.
Waiting on the kitchen porch for my ride to the airport.
It’s starting to get cold at night now, so these flowers are almost leaving us.
And check out Rasha!
And ready to go!!
I’m checked in for my flight. My Uber is booked to take me to the hotel. And my girlfriend is driving me to the Columbus airport tomorrow morning…
Yes, sometime in the next few hours, my birth mom arrives to spend a magical weekend with my many cats!!
(I’m hoping that the above illustration is a reasonable facsimile of how splendidly it will go!) (Except that my mom is a little tiny bit older than she appears in the above illustration…)
I’m excited, gang.
And I’m really, really hoping her visit here goes well. She knows some of my cats quite well, but as loyal readers of this lofty blog no doubt recall, I had quite a bunch more cats thrust upon me since my mom was last here.
But they are really sweet, really loving (if often super frisky) cats. So we’ll see!
I’m also excited to just be packing a suitcase again, gang.
I’m taking a smaller, lightweight one, since I won’t be checking it and I’ll have to wheel it around with me for an hour in Detroit, and I’ll only be gone for the weekend.
It’s my favorite suitcase. I’ve had it for quite a few years now. I was going through the outside pockets of it this morning and found a postcard from the Empire Hotel in NYC — where I stayed in July 2025.
And I found 2 receipts: one, from a dinner I had with Sandra that same trip to NYC; and the other receipt was from a newsstand in LAX airport! From a trip I took to Los Angeles to work with Peitor Angell in December 2018!!
I loved finding those!! So I stuck them right back in the pocket, to find again some other time.
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All righty.
I did have a splendid day yesterday. Mostly, my mood was just really good. Finally. It seems like I had some sort of turning point, energy-wise. Maybe it was the Equinox? I don’t know. But I feel a sense of relief, like I can finally move on from all the recent trauma.
I am indeed starting to get submissions for the M. Christian tribute anthology, so I’m thinking that I won’t really be doing any of my own writing until that project is complete. (The official deadline is next Thursday — a week from today — then my book signing is the following Saturday. After that, I’ll have to focus on editing everyone’s submissions.)
But whatever plays out, I’ll just flow with it.
Oh!
I loved this– Warren Ellis posted it this morning. It may seem a little down, but it had a really cool audio track that was extremely uplifting (plus I love F. Scott Fitzgerald). The 2 messages together captured how I’ve felt the last few weeks:
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And speaking of Warren Ellis–
A new selfie! Catnapping with adorable pups!
Although, on a sad note — the lead singer of Rose Tattoo, Angry Anderson, passed away on Monday:
Angry Anderson, Australian rock legend and Rose Tattoo frontman, dies aged 79
“Rose Tattoo frontman Angry Anderson has died just weeks after being admitted to a hospital in Germany during the Australian rock band’s European tour.
“The 79-year-old singer spent 50 years in the music industry and also became a television presenter, charity worker and youth advocate.
“Rose Tattoo’s hits included ‘Bad Boy for Love’, ‘Rock ‘n’ Roll Outlaw’ and ‘We Can’t Be Beaten’, while Anderson found solo success with the song ‘Suddenly’.”
And, from Warren’s selfie above — here’s this (1978):
RIP Angry Anderson
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And here’s this!
The Cars are taking requests!! What’s yours?? (Mine is probably still “My Best Friend’s Girl”.)
Okay– since you requested it! From 1978!!
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From Johnny Depp yesterday!
Another movie is on its way– “Day Drinker”! (More info is coming soon, but I know that Penelope Cruz is also in it.)
And just FYI — that is my least favorite Tarot Card (pictured above — The Devil), followed closely by The Tower…
But, oh! If you read Tarot Cards (I do), this woman in Australia has the very best site for reading them!!
I have used her website for about 20 years. Click on LEARN, then in the drop down menu: TAROT CARD MEANINGS
Her work is phenomenal.
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Okay!!
Most people probably know that London had a really hard time getting back to normal after WWII.
In fact, by 1966, still only the nouveau riche could afford outside plumbing!!
Keith, enjoying his nouveau riche lifestyle outside his legendary home, Redlands, with his pup in 1966!
And I loved this!
Keith doing what he does best!! Playing the guitar!! Smoking! Drinking! Wearing shades!! (1978)
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And I really, really did love this.
Keith with the Exile on Main St album cover art, 1972 (oh, and smoking):
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Okay, well, my Instagram feed yesterday was still jam-crammed full of birthday wishes for Nick Cave!!
So here are some more of those!!
Dinner? And smoking!
I loved this–
From Facebook!!
I had never seen this photo before. I love it!!
And one more!!
And that’s it probably — until September 22nd rolls around again (most likely in the wink of a fucking eye!!)!!
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Okay, yes.
I am going to quickly vacuum the house one more time before my mom and sister get here later —
Oh wait, I love this photo!!
This was from before I knew my mom. (I was raised by an adoptive family in Cleveland, and didn’t find my birth mom until I was 25.)
My birth mom and my 2 half-sisters and half-brother, on vacation, around 1970-ish. (The little tiny girl in the green pants is the one who’s driving my mom here today.) (Their dad, Sonny, is taking the photo.)
All righty.
Gonna get the vacuuming done and then pack my suitcase!!
Have a fantastic Thursday, wherever you are in the world, gang!
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Let’s close with this!
A little music to pack suitcases by!!
I loved this album. It came out when I was already married to Chong and we lived in The Camelot Building, on the corner of W. 45th & 8th Ave. (I bought it in a record store that was just up the block from us, in Times Square. I bought all my records there back then, but I don’t remember the name of the store!)
Anyway.
Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers’ huge hit from 1981, “The Waiting”!! From their fantastic album, Hard Promises. Enjoy, gang!!
“The Waiting”
Oh baby, don’t it feel like heaven right now?
Don’t it feel like something from a dream?
Yeah, I’ve never known nothing quite like this
Don’t it feel like tonight might never be again?
Baby, we know better than to try and pretend
Honey no one coulda ever told me ’bout this
I said yeah, yeah (Yeah, yeah)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you see one more card
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part
Well yeah, I might have chased a couple women around
All it ever got me was down
Then there were those that made me feel good
But never as good as I feel right now
Baby, you’re the only one that’s ever known how
To make me wanna live like I wanna live now
I said yeah, yeah (Yeah, yeah)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you get one more yard
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part
Oh, don’t let it kill you baby, don’t let it get to you
Don’t let it kill you baby, don’t let it get to you
I’ll be your bleedin’ heart, I’ll be your cryin’ fool
Don’t let this go too far, don’t let it get to you
Yeah, yeah (Yeah, yeah)
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
The waiting is the hardest part
Every day you get one more yard
You take it on faith, you take it to the heart
The waiting is the hardest part
Yeah, the waiting is the hardest part
c – 1981 Tom Petty
Hi gang!
No real post for today but I should be able to do a regular post tomorrow before my mom arrives!
I leave for the airport early Friday morning and return home late afternoon on Monday — I will be making quick blog updates from my phone throughout the trip, so that should be fun!!
Meanwhile, have a great Wednesday, wherever you are in the world, and I’ll see ya tomorrow!!
Thanks for visiting. I love you, guys!!
🥰
Wow, last night was, well — interesting, gang.
I’m not sure how much I want to post about it here, but I will say that I texted for about an hour and a half with a cold case investigative reporter regarding my memories of working with and knowing RC Hörsch. (Apparently the number of women who disappeared and who are now known to have been connected to him in some way is up to 7, and 5 are known to be dead.)
It was actually a sort of calming conversation. In that I was able to express what I remembered (from over 25 years ago). And also, ultimately, I got the feeling that these women will at some point get justice.
Other than that, I had a really productive day yesterday. ALL the housecleaning, laundry, etc., is DONE!! Today I’m going to touch up the paint on the walls.
Other than that, it’s all ready for my birth mom to come here and take care of the cats.
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Okay!!
Guess what day it is??!!
That’s right!!!
Happy 69th birthday, Nick Cave!!!
And some of my favorites from Instagram and Facebook today!
My favorite– which I saw on my phone at 3AM and then had a hard time going back to sleep!!
And here’s the photo I posted on Instagram–
And this was the music I chose to go along with the birthday wishes! “Forever Young,” by Bob Dylan!!
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Other than that, I am once again, wiped out. But I don’t feel terrorized, like I felt through most of the last 4 weeks for various reasons:
2. Then the first contact re: RC Hörsch being a potential serial killer;
3. Then that horrible car accident happening right in front of me in the intersection;
4. Then getting scammed out of all the money in my checking account ;
5. Then finding out that my girlhood school friend is now confined to a nursing home and is very seriously ill.
I’m just basically wiped out.
However, I really, really do feel like things are calmer for me, personally, and sort of on the upswing, because I also saw sides of people, sometimes total strangers, that were very compassionate and supportive.
And I am really looking forward to the conference this weekend in North Carolina. We have already been told that some very important announcements are going to be made regarding more 1st Century CE archeological/ossuary discoveries in Jerusalem.
Plus, I just love being in hotels.
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All right.
I saw this on Instagram yesterday and it thrilled me so much that I had to go find it on YouTube and watch it a few more times!!
I was never really into Guns & Roses one way or the other, but this is so cool. Axl Rose joins Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers on “Free Fallin'” at the MTV Music Awards in 1989. I have always LOVED this song, but the emotional energy of this duet was fantastic–
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And from Phyllis Stein!
Richard Hell, smoking in NYC in 1982!!
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I think that’s actually it. I need to sort of just re-group here mentally, and do a little painting around the house.
Have a terrific Tuesday, wherever you are in the world, gang.
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Let’s close with another one of my all-time favorites as we once again say:
Happy Birthday, Nick Cave!
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, “Jesus of the Moon,” from Dig!!! Lazarus Dig!!!, 2008. Enjoy, gang.
“Jesus of the Moon”
I stepped out of the St. James Hotel
I’d left y/ behind curled up like a child
well, a change is gonna come
& as the door whispered shut
I walked on down the high-windowed hall
y/ lay sleeping on the unmade bed
the weatherman on the television
in the St. James Hotel said
that the rains are gonna come
& I stepped out on the streets/ all sparkling clean
w/ the early morning dew
maybe it was y/ or maybe it was me?
y/ came on like a punch in the heart
y/ lying there w/ the light on yr hair
like a jesus of the moon
a jesus of the planets & the stars
well I kept thinking about what the weatherman said
& if the voices of the living can be heard by the dead
well the day is gonna come
when we find out & in some kinda way
I take a little comfort from that (now & then)
cause people often talk about being scared of change
but for me I’m more afraid of things staying the same
cause the game is never won
by standing in any one place for too long
maybe it was y/ or maybe it was me
but there was a chord in y/ I could not find to strike
y/ lying there w/ all the light in your hair
like a jesus of the moon
a jesus of the planets & the stars
I see the many girls walking down the empty streets
& maybe once or twice one of them smiles at me
y/ can’t blame anyone
for saying hello/ I say hey/ I say hello/ I say hello
will it be me or will it be y/?
one must stay & one must depart
y/ lying there in a St. James hotel bed
like a Jesus of the moon
a Jesus of the planets & the stars
I say hello/ hello/ hello
c- 2008 Nick Cave
We’re getting awfully close to Thursday around here, gang!
Thursday being the day my birth mom arrives to take care of my cats while I’m gone.
All the dusting and furniture polishing is already done, and the mirrors are sneeze-free! (Meaning, where the cats sneezed on them; not that the mirrors actually sneeze…)
So starting today, we’re doing all that heavy duty laundry that you only do when houseguests are coming — all the sheets, blankets, the bed skirt from the guest room. All the extra bath towels.
Then I’ll do the final vacuuming, too.
AND– I’m even gonna touch up the paint on the walls, where the kittens scratched at it when they were younger and totally delighted themselves while making me not quite so delighted.
It’s also time to cut back the rose bushes for autumn. I’ll do that probably tomorrow. Or whenever it stops raining.
You know, just try to not only make everything look like 15 cats don’t live here, but also take away ANYTHING that would tempt my mom to undertake the tasks herself!!
I just want her to be able to relax!
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Okay.
Well, this happened last night.
I discovered that in 11 days, reruns of the old TV show “Castle” are leaving Amazon Prime.
I loved that show when it first came out. And I only recently re-discovered it on Prime. I always watch it during dinner now and it totally makes me calm down. I love everyone in the show, but I especially love the interactions between Richard Castle (a writer) and his mom and daughter, up in his duplex apartment in Manhattan.
I had purposely been making myself only watch one episode a night, because I wanted it to last…
Now, I can’t possibly watch all the episodes in the next 11 days, unless I watch it around the clock. (It ran for 8 years.)
Dang! I will probably just buy the whole show from somewhere online and keep watching it. Honestly, it settles down all my anxiety.
A clip from 15 years ago, Castle with his teenage daughter (1 minute):
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And then this happened last night, too.
While I was doing yoga yesterday afternoon, my eye caught site of that children’s book Keith Richards and his daughter Theodora wrote. (Theodora illustrated it.)
Keith wrote it about his grandad, Gus, who taught him how to play, and to love, the guitar.
I’ve had the book since it came out in 2014. I did read it, but that was 12 years ago. So I took it down from the shelf and saw that it had a CD inside, attached to the inside back cover! I never even opened the little pouch! Never played the CD! It’s Keith, doing the audiobook reading of it!!
Wow. I thought it would be nice to listen to it in bed, in the dark!
So after everything was done yesterday, and I was in bed in the dark, and with the CD in the retro boombox next to my bed —
I turned it on and Keith’s amazing voice filled the room.
I was so delighted!!
But since it’s a children’s book — it lasted about 6 minutes. Shit.
Too bad there’s not an audiobook out there of Keith reading War and Peace or something equally indescribably long….
Anyway.
Here’s the audiobook version of the book, but it is not Keith reading it.
Gus & Me by Keith Richards (6 mins 29 seconds):
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Okay!
From Phyllis Stein!!
Richard Hell wearing his heart on his sleeve in London in 1977!!
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And back to Keith!
Looking intense! In black & white!
Also intense, and equally black & white, but also smiling in 1981!!
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And some more great photos from Facebook! (To be honest, it’s basically the only thing I do on Facebook now.)
Nick Cave! Singing, smoking, sweating!! (Apparently, I chose 3 words)
Nick Cave smoking!!
I loved this one!!
Nick Cave and Blixa Bargeld, smoking!! Near some alcoholic beverages!! Full color!!
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And that is actually kind of it for now.
I have a ton of stuff to do around here today.
However!
Enjoy your Monday, wherever you are in the world!!
Thanks for visiting.
I love you guys. See ya!
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Okay, this stuff has got to STOP!
I am already having way too much trouble dealing with TIME passing!!
That said–
Apparently, yesterday was the 22nd anniversary of the release of the phenomenal Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds double-album, Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus !!
22 YEARS!!! WTF??!!
Well, anyway.
Let’s close with this gem!
“Breathless”, by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, from the above-mentioned double-album with the very long title!! 2004!! Enjoy, gang. (I sure have — for 22 years…)
“Breathless”
It’s up in the morning and on the downs
Little white clouds like gambolling lambs
And I am breathless over you
And the red-breasted robin beats his wings
His throat it trembles when he sings
For he is helpless before you
The happy hooded bluebells bow
And bend their heads all a-down
Heavied by the early morning dew
At the whispering stream, at the bubbling brook
The fishes leap up to take a look
For they are breathless over you
Still your hands
And still your heart
For still your face comes shining through
And all the morning glows anew
Still your mind
Still your soul
For still, the fire of love is true
And I am breathless without you
The wind circles among the trees
And it bangs about the new-made leaves
For it is breathless without you
The fox chases the rabbit round
The rabbit hides beneath the ground
For he is defenceless without you
The sky of daytime dies away
And all the earthly things they stop to play
For we are all breathless without you
I listen to my juddering bones
The blood in my veins and the wind in my lungs
And I am breathless without you
Still your hands
And still your heart
For still your face comes shining through
And all the morning glows anew
Still your soul
Still your mind
Still, the fire of love is true
And I am breathless without you
c – 2004 – Nick Cave
