Tag Archives: Nick Cave Red Hand Files

Totally NOT Me Today!

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Jeepers McCreepers, gang. The kittens just won’t quit this morning.

Can you say:

“Jesus fucking Christ, do NOT tell me you just knocked over my ENTIRE cup of Coffeeee!!!!”

“Jesus fucking Christ, will you STOP chewing on my phone charging cord??!!” (times 4)

“Jesus fucking Christ, who the fuck just THREW UP??!!”

That’s a little bit of what it’s been like around here this morning — in my room. The rest of the housecats are as quiet as little mice.

I had so much extra time this morning and I was planning on really just relaxing in bed with my cup of coffee before heading out for my shift.

But I had to switch over to Plan B and I have no real clue what Plan B is…

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Anyway.

Yesterday turned out to be reasonably okay, regarding having to work a double on the 4th of July.

My 94-year-old Japanese man and I will go get sushi/sashimi today, because Peony Bistro was indeed closed for the holiday yesterday. But we had a nice time just hanging out in his air- conditioned living room, chatting about Hong Kong, Tokyo, NYC — and all his many memories from the past.

And, as always, my shift with the woman who has returned from Florida flew by in a nano second. I left there just as fireworks were getting ready to start all over the place. (And I even got to see some fireworks as I was pulling up into Crazeysburg — one of my neighbors was putting on a really impressive show in his backyard.)

So, I’m just trying to face forward, you know? And hope that things come together soon and I can stop having to work on holidays, and I can start just sitting at my desk again and writing everyday.

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Nick Cave sent out a Red Hand File yesterday about his songwriting process. It was very interesting — and very different from any songwriting process I ever experienced. He said, in part:

“The hard part for me, the most agonising and uncertain part, the part that keeps me up at night and makes me a complete pain in the arse through the day, is in the initial creation. That is, the unpredictable arrival of those first two lines….”

You can read it in full here.

And don’t forget!!

Tonight and tomorrow night in Paris!! TWO sold out shows, neither of which can you attend if you don’t already have your precious ticket!! Alas…

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Okay. I don’t have much to post about today. I’m not only focused on trying to get my suitcase packed as minimally as possible, I am also a little out of sorts mentally, since my prized morning Cup o’ Joe ended up all over my night table AND all over 3 brand new books!!!

But here’s what I’m grateful for– the coffee didn’t spill all over me in the bed, and the coffee mug didn’t break… because I only have about 17 million other coffee mugs to choose from…

I’m going to be out of here early tomorrow morning, in that Uber heading to the airport (an hour from here), but I will probably post something from my hotel tomorrow evening.

Enjoy your Saturday, wherever you are in the world.

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Not me this morning… but it’s something to aim for.

A song I have LOVED since the very first moment I heard it on my AM radio.

Enjoy, gang!

The Eagles. “Peaceful Easy Feeling”, 1972.

“You’d think she’d be better at this, right? I mean, I’m just saying…”

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Glory hallelujah, gang! As if I didn’t need more on my plate!!

“Yes, please, I’ll have some more!”

Something caught my eye this morning that alerted me to these new facts:

Bobbi Jo is, in fact, Bobby Joe.

And Betty Jo needs a new name…. Arrrgggh!

Since my beloved 2-legged Billie Jo is still indeed a female, I guess I have to give her name to Betty and now Betty will be Billy Joe. (Or I could just call them all by the same name. I don’t think they will ever know the difference.)

But there we have it! I’m going to have a summer full of expensive visits to the new veterinarian! And here I’d thought I only had one (neutered) male in the house and could take all the time I wanted…

“Why does it take so long for those 2 little things to show up?”

Oh, and another happy thing!!!

My upstairs bathtub drain is completely backed up. Nothing accents a house full of overwhelming heat and humidity like a tub full of stagnant water!!

Well, I’m planning to remove the water. But I really, really, really don’t want to call a plumber…. I ordered a Zip-It. So we’ll see, although I don’t feel too encouraged. A (hopefully really, really good-looking) plumber is likely in my immediate future, too.

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Good news, though! Yay!

After posting that photo I took of the poor heat-stroked kittens (see the end of yesterday’s post), I did finally open the bedroom door yesterday. I propped a box fan in the doorway, and stacked some hard cover books precariously on top of the fan, in the event that any cats wanted to try sailing over the top of the fan, in either direction.

Well, it worked! I only had one cat try to get into my room yesterday afternoon, and the books and fan tumbled noisily to the floor and it scared the bejeezus out of him — and all the other cats & kittens! And so that took care of that. No one else tried it.

Now, the kittens and the Mommy-cat stay in the room, and the other cats stay out. And we all get some air circulating in here, finally!!

Today is supposed to be the final day of the actual heatwave. And I have to say, gang — you know me and my conspiracy theorist friends!! There is something truly strange about this heatwave. 93 degrees Fahrenheit isn’t usually this unbearable.

The summer temperatures here have always gone into the 90s at some point, but it never felt like this. (And, add to that, the White Hat WWIII scenario, pushing people to the “boiling point”… hmmm.)

Anyway. It’s not just me thinking stuff like this.

Valerie in Brooklyn texted yesterday and said, “What the fuck is going on with this weather?? What are they doing to us now?? We always have heat in NYC in the summer, but it’s nothing like this. I can’t even breathe.”

Well, I digress a bit.

Today is the final day of the heatwave, although the weather won’t be really enjoyable until the middle of next week. But just getting these temperatures out of the 90s will be such a relief. (And I’m not talking about music or fashion, because, you know, the 90s were kinda cool — if I can mix metaphors all over the place.)

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Okay!

The shooting range sent out an email this morning, a reminder that a new shooting club starts there today. So I won’t be going to the range today, either. All the lanes will be filled up during the time when I usually go.

And it means I won’t be going to town to visit those clients who are in rehab until maybe Thursday.

Which means ANOTHER day to sit and work on the novel!! Yay!!

What a blessing, gang. To suddenly have all this time (unbearably hot as it’s been) to sit and work on the novel. It has been such a long time. And FYI — all the sections and songs we will be working on for the rehearsals of the play (in 2 weeks!!!) are already completed. So I get to just truly focus on the novel. It feels so great.

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Nick Cave sent out a really incredible Red Hand File this morning. At least, it moved me a whole lot. Even though he was referencing what he does spiritually to prepare to go on stage (and then blow people the fuck away!), it resonated with me so much — how it feels to go into my clients’ homes and face life, mortality, love, loss, the quality of being human — and all the people from my own past and from my clients’ pasts who “show up” in spirit and spend time with us while I’m there.

He said, in part:

“…I appeal to these individuals, and many more, much like a devout person might petition the saints for assistance. I remember all these people and I feel a deep spiritual empowerment, so that when I take to the stage, I am carried along by this unearthly fraternity and their special powers. For me, this is an immense strength – an energy that illuminates what is truly meaningful and what is not. Communing with the dead is, in that respect, as clarifying an exercise as anything can be. We are quickly reminded of what matters and what does not. …”

You can read it in full here.

[Below, a photo of an old friend of Nick’s who just passed away.]

David “Dud” Green

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All righty!

Laundry got done yesterday. And the light housecleaning got done, too! And the backed-up water can sit in the tub for now (I have another shower downstairs), so this means I’m going to get back to The Curse of Our Profound Disorder.

Have a terrific Tuesday, wherever you are in the world!!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Blast from the 90s past, gang!

“Pass the Dutchie”, 1995, from the album Thump’ N Reggae Jamz by Musical Youth. Stay cool and enjoy, gang!!

Everything from now on is gonna be weird!!

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My life has just gotten so strange, gang. But not in a bad way.

It stems mostly from joy. So much beautiful stuff in my world right now, but the “weird” part is that I had to get old before any of this could happen.

Well, most of it.

This first thing has nothing to do with age — the Agency texted to say that my favorite client, the woman who is now back from Florida and who has all those Theology Degrees from Yale Divinity School, has an open shift for today and did I want it?

Yes!! Thank you!!

So, even though it’s my day off, and even though I will also be seeing her on Thursday, I was more than happy to get started seeing her again as soon as possible.

So I’m spending the afternoon with her today, for the first time in 8 months. She has physical issues, obviously, or she wouldn’t need a caregiver round-the-clock, but it’s her mind that I really, really love. So we will soon see how it goes!

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Okay!

It is, of course, the novel-in-progress that is primarily consuming my life right now. And after working on it yesterday (The Curse of Our Profound Disorder) I realized two important things:

  1. I absolutely could not have written this novel if I had started it today because I wouldn’t have had any clear memories of most of the stuff that is the crux of this book.
  2. I couldn’t have COMPLETED the novel 26 years ago — when I first began writing it. Because I needed to get this far in life to be able to stand back and discern how it needs to end.

And since I believe both of those statements to be true, it makes me wonder “who” is really behind this novel? Me? A younger me? An older me? A “me” that’s set apart from anything physical that ages at all?

It’s a really profound feeling, whatever it’s pointing to. And in a way, it almost feels like I was in a whole other realm of existence these last 26 years, and now I’ve suddenly “come back”.

Whatever is going on here, it is a really beautiful thing. It gives me a chance to look at my entire life in a different way.

And, oddly enough, there is an undercurrent to the novel that is similar to “The Guide to Being Fabulous.” Even though, that play, is the story of Sandra’s life, not mine.

I can’t really put my finger on it yet, but there is just something really beautiful going on here, creatively, with both of these intense projects, after all these years, landing on my plate again at once.

[There is a new excerpt from The Curse of Our Profound Disorder on my substack page today, if you are interested. Mature readers only.]

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Nick Cave sent out a really beautiful Red Hand File this morning. He answers a few different questions this time, but all of them address that quality of being human in some way. I really loved it. It’s hard to really quote from it without reposting the entire thing! But here’s this:

“…Certain music has the ability, at least temporarily, to fill that void, making us feel whole and less abandoned. We feel complete when we listen to music we love, while being guided towards the goodness of things…”

You can read it in full HERE.

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Okay. That’s really it for now. I want to get a few things done before heading out to my client.

I hope you enjoy your Monday, wherever you are in the world!!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys, See ya!

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After posting that video yesterday of Joan Baez singing the Steve Earle song, “Jerusalem”, it reminded me of how much I used to love Steve Earle’s music!! I used to play his CDs all the time in NYC!!

I am conflicted, though! Which one to post here??? So I will probably post a few of them this coming week.

For now — “The Devil’s Right Hand”, from the album Copperhead Road, 1988. How many times have I played this song in my wee bonny lifetime??? I have no clue!! What a great song.

Enjoy, gang!!

“The Devil’s Right Hand”

‘Bout the time my daddy left to fight the big war
I saw my first pistol in a general store
In a general store, when I was 13
Thought it was the finest thing I ever had seen

Asked if I could have one someday, when I grew up
Mama dropped a dozen eggs, she really blew up
She really blew up, I didn’t understand
Mama said, “The pistol is the devil’s right hand”

The devil’s right hand, the devil’s right hand
Mama said, “The pistol is the devil’s right hand”

My very first pistol was a cap and ball Colt
Shoot as fast as lightnin’, but she loads a mite slow
Loads a mite slow as I soon found out
It can get you into trouble, but it can’t get you out

So then I went and bought myself a Colt 45
Called a Peacemaker, but I never knew why
Never knew why, I didn’t understand
Mama said, “The pistol is the devil’s right hand”

The devil’s right hand, the devil’s right hand
Mama said, “The pistol is the devil’s right hand”
The devil’s right hand, the devil’s right hand
Mama said, “The pistol is the devil’s right hand”

Well, I got into a card game, in a company town
Caught a miner cheating, I shot the dog down
Shot the dog down, I watched the man fall
Never touched his holster, never had a chance to draw

My trial was in the morning, and they dragged me out of bed
Asked me how I pleaded, “Not guilty, ” I said
“Not guilty, ” I said, “You’ve got the wrong man”
Nothing touched the trigger but the devil’s right hand

The devil’s right hand, the devil’s right hand
Mama said, “The pistol is the devil’s right hand”
The devil’s right hand, the devil’s right hand
Nothing touched the trigger but the devil’s right hand

My mama said, “The pistol is the devil’s right hand”

c – 1983- Stephen F. Earle

“I’ve heard that thing about a day making a difference and all, but this is like night & day…”

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Wow, gang!!

I slept great. My wee bonny peepers didn’t pop open until 5:28 AM!! The sun was coming up! It felt incredible, knowing I didn’t need to spring out of bed; didn’t need to go anywhere or do anything today unless I wanted to…

And it turns out — I want to!!

Me and Wendy and Kara are meeting up in Granville, later, to either have a late lunch or an early dinner and I am so excited!!

Downtown Granville

Not only because I get to hang out with them (yay!!), but also the weather is going to be fantastic!! Sunny. Upper-70s Fahrenheit. Which means I get to wear one of my new sun dresses. And sandals. So I’m finally going to paint my toenails!!

I usually keep them painted from May through September, but it’s been so cold and rainy this Spring, that I haven’t bothered. Until today… Yay!

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Okay.

A Happy Heavenly Birthday to Charlie Watts!!

I know people really like Steve Jordan, and I know Keith loves playing with him a lot. I have nothing against Steve Jordan, but for me, it’s just not the Stones sound without Charlie.

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Another happy thing about today, gang — I’m gonna go outside for a bit and pull some weeds, and then get the pots and stands and flowerboxes out of the barn and ready for when I buy the flowers and put them all out on the porches.

One step closer, gang! It makes my heart sing.

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Oh, and speaking of making my heart sing…

The other day, when I was in Rural King, there was a guy working the register that I’d never seen before, but it was clear he’d worked there a long time, just not on the register.

I was going to his lane but the customer in front of me had a lot of items, so I moved to the next lane, instead. But his lane freed up right away, so he actually called me back over.

“Come on, ” he said, waving. “I’m free.”

You don’t usually see that kind of enthusiasm in a checkout lane, least of all from a guy. So I went right over.

Let me say here that I am absolutely 100% old enough to be his grandmother… but, wow, was this guy totally my type.

The kind of long-haired, tall, dark, skinny guy that you can tell is nothing but trouble when he’s not on the clock. The kind of guy who would have driven a race car way too fast back in the old days. While smoking. You know, a wild thing.

And when he asked me what my “rewards” number was, and I told it to him, he stared right at me, while entering the numbers into the register — he never had to look down at the keyboard once and he got it completely right. “Marilyn?” he said. And then he sort of flirted with me … but not too much.

And , yes, my heart sang!

Shit! I couldn’t believe God still made guys like him!!! Wow. What a great day at the Rural King.

[Tom Petty & the Heart breakers, “Wild Thing ( You Make My Heart Sing)”, 1982]

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Nick Cave sent out a really beautiful Red Hand File this morning, affirming the value of having children, regardless of the state of the world at any given time. In part, he said:

“...I think that if we are to attribute any value to the future of the world and invest in its continuance, we must keep on populating it. Children are indicators of our faith in the world itself, they are emissaries of optimism, charging into the future with their pockets full of hope…“

You can read it in full here.

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And what finally happens one week from tomorrow???

That’s right!! A mandatory meeting at the Agency to get new uniforms NO!!! Nick Cave’s Solo Tour of Europe (with bass player) begins!! It is mostly sold out, but buy those few remaining tickets here!

And here’s another one from my desktop stash of fave photos of Nick Cave!!

And I think that’s going to be it for now.

I turned in all the revisions to Peitor yesterday afternoon and until I hear back from him, I get to sit here and work on my novel!! Yay!!

Honestly, such a great day around here. So different from yesterday.

Enjoy your Monday, wherever you are in the world.

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Okay!!!

Our new Daily Feature continues!

Gifts Keith Richards gave me when I was a wee bonny girl!!

Wherein I regale you with “songs Keith loved, that he would talk about in an interview in some magazine, and then I’d go out and try to find the record and then buy it with my babysitting money, and then I’d listen to it alone in my intense little room, playing it on the portable record player that my dad bought me, and the song would change my life. “

Today’s selection!! 

Howlin’ Wolf, “Little Red Rooster”, 1962. Enjoy, gang!!

“Little Red Rooster”

I have a little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
I have a little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
Keep everything in the barnyard
Upset in every way

Oh the dogs begin to bark
And the hound begin to howl
Oh the dogs begin to bark
Hound begin to howl
Ooh watch out strange kind people
Cause little red rooster is on the prowl

If you see my little red rooster
Please drag him home
If you see my little red rooster
Please drag him home
There ain’t no peace in the barnyard
Since the little red rooster been gone

I have a little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
I have a little red rooster
Too lazy to crow for day
Keep everything in the barnyard
Upset in every way

c- 1961 – Willie Dixon

Good Morning, Good Morning!!

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Yes, I am up! I’m outta bed!!

And — NO!! — it wasn’t anywhere near 4AM.

It’s seems like 5AM is the best I can really do right now. So why fight it??

Okay, gang. Things just get better and better. Even though I had to wait 3 HOURS (!!) at the Honda dealership after my shift yesterday, so basically my entire day was a washout…

I did get a very quick update yesterday from the small press that has agreed to read my unpublished novel from 26 years ago, The Curse of Our Profound Disorder, with an eye toward perhaps publishing it — and she said that just after having read the opening sentence of the novel, she was VERY interested. [Her caps, not mine.]

Yay!

This still doesn’t mean a “book deal” — she’ll have to read the whole thing. But it made me feel fantastic, gang. (When her email came through, I was up to my eyeballs, trying to find out why the nurse hadn’t come to see my client last FRIDAY to see if she had a UTI. And we needed someone to come out and see her ASAP. The last time she had a UTI, she was in rehab for over a month.) Anyway. Many phone calls. Trying to be polite. Not wanting to bite anyone’s head off because I know everyone, including the quite comely but rapidly aging moi, is so fucking busy right now…

Anyway. The mobile urgent care was on its way as I was clocking out.

So that email just made me feel so happy, gang.

And then, while sitting for an eternity in the Honda waiting room… the Agency texted me and said that the wife of my client who’s in the facility with deep cognitive impairment issues, can no longer afford us so he is no longer on my schedule, at all.

Even though it’s a difficult situation for his family, and I really like him, that news suddenly and quite wonderfully freed up FIVE HOURS of my schedule, indefinitely!!! Yay!!

Because I of course received many many WhatsApp texts from Peitor yesterday, needing me to look over many many edits on Episode 2. (And I did finally get to sit down at my desk last night, after dinner. And the edits were GREAT.)

And I’ve decided to start illegally acquiring Adderall in order to get all of this stuff — revise a novel, revise a play for Off-Broadway, write a television series — DONE! Yay!

[I am, of course, totally kidding. Who the fuck has time to be addicted to Adderall right now??]

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Okay!!

Here’s this!!

Yesterday, I discovered a playlist of ALL my favorite songs from 2024!! So I thought, hmmm, and I hit the play button and drove off to town.

Wow, so bittersweet. So amazing. Most of the songs were the songs I’d listen to while driving back & forth to see my dad last year, during the final year of his life.

When THIS song came on, my heart hit the moon!! I immediately remembered how much I not only LOVE the sound of Johnny Depp’s voice, but this song, specifically, means so much to me. I loved Jim Carroll so much. He was such a big part of NYC for me in the 1980s.

The Hollywood Vampires’ version of “People Who Died”. (Song written by Jim Carroll, who, as fate would have it, died.)

I don’t really know what Johnny Depp is up to. The last I saw on Instagram was this (not smoking, but at least drinking…so, yay!):

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And here’s this!!

Just coz I’m not sure how he thinks we’re supposed to wait 14 more days before he goes on tour again for 912 months… (most shows are sold out already, but buy tickets here!!) Another personal fave photo from my desktop stash!!

And speaking of Nick Cave…

He sent out a quick Red Hand File yesterday, wherein he revealed that he and I have only ONE movie in common on the “favorites” list. He chose Living In Oblivion as the “movie that makes him laugh”.

[I love this movie, gang. I have seen it I don’t know how many times!!}

Anyway. You can read Nick’s favorite films in various categories HERE.

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From James Tabor — A Young Christian Believer Asks Dr Tabor Four Questions about Paul (47 mins):

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And that’s it! I gotta scoot and drive 30 miles to see my favorite 94-year-old Japanese man!! We’ll be going out for either sashimi and sake, or sushi and sake today. We’ll see what he decides.

Have a wonder-filled Wednesday, wherever you are in the world!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Okay!

Our new Daily Feature continues!

Gifts Keith Richards gave me when I was a wee bonny girl!!

Wherein I regale you with “songs Keith loved, that he would talk about in an interview in some magazine, and then I’d go out and try to find the record and then buy it with my babysitting money, and then I’d listen to it alone in my intense little room, playing it on the portable record player that my dad bought me, and the song would change my life. “

Today’s selection!!

Hank Williams, “Honky Tonk Blues”, 1952. Enjoy, gang!!

“Honky Tonk Blues”

Well I left my home down on the rural route
I told my Pa I’m going steppin out and get the
Honky tonk blues,
Yeah the honky tonk blues
Well Lord I got ’em,
I got the ho-on-ky tonk blues.

Well I went to a dance and I wore out my shoes
Woke up this mornin wishin I could lose
Them jumpin honky tonk blues,
Yeah the honky tonk blues
Well Lord I got ’em,
I got the ho-on-ky tonk blues.

Well I stopped into every place in town
This city life has really got me down
I got the honky tonk blues,
Yeah the honky tonk blues
Well Lord I got em,
got the ho-on-ky tonk blues.

I’m gonna tuck my worries underneath my arm
And scat right back to my Pappy’s farm
And leave these honky tonk blues,
Yeah the honky tonk blues
Well Lord I got ’em,
I got the ho-on-ky tonk blues.

c – 1952 – Henry B. Glover, Shep Sheppard, Bill Doggett, Billy (usa) Butler, Clifford Scott

“I wonder how that great new schedule is working out for her??”

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Yessirree, gang!!

That great new schedule I have around here — the one that’s going to give me an extra hour at my desk on those mornings (like, TODAY, for instance) when I have to drive to town and go see a client but I have WAY TOO MUCH script-writing to get to around here….

YES!! So far it’s looking a whole lot like the old schedule.

Hmmm….

I am trying really hard to get out of bed and get started around here at something that resembles being within the realm of 4AM…

However.

I’m getting there. I’m at least lying there at about 4:07AM, eyes open, telling myself, “Marilyn, you gotta get outta bed. Now. People the world over need to see some PAGES.”

But the peculiar thing about my bed, which perhaps I have never mentioned here on the blog before, is that it is REALLY REALLY comfortable. It’s super soft and cozy, with bunches of fluffy pillows, and the all-cotton Portuguese sheets are, like, a 3,924-thread count…

My, no, SOMEONE’S actual bed…

This morning, though, I was really tired because I’d had some incredibly cute kittens racing around all over me last night — at several different times during the night.

But eventually I got out of bed. At my usual 5:09AM.

But what are you gonna do? Right? You just keep trying…

And the texts from Sandra and Peitor keep arriving.

At least when Sandra texts me, it’s just a text. When Peitor texts me, it’s on WhatsApp and the moment I’ve read it he can see that I’ve read it…

Meaning that a response is needed. In a reasonable time-frame. The old excuses don’t work anymore–

Sorry!! Too drunk to reply right now!!

Anyway!!

I confess. This morning is not really gonna happen. And after I see my favorite 94-year-old Japanese client today, I am meeting my girlfriend for LUNCH!! Yay!! An actual social obligation!! At Tequilaville!! One of my few remaining favorite restaurants. So the phone call I might be having with Sandra today regarding the play, at about 5PM, may or may not be super productive. But we shall see!

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Okay!

I saw this on Instagram yesterday. And I realized that if I could somehow maneuver myself into James Fox’s position at Keith’s dining room table there, I could probably get a whole lot of really great work done on my own memoir (which heavily features my adoration of Keith in my wee bonny girlhood)!!

Isn’t this a great photo??? Keith at work on his memoir, LIFE, from about 15 years ago.

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Here’s this from earlier this morning!

Kittens doing what they don’t do a whole lot of anymore!! (Sleep…)

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And here are these!!

More vintage Nick Cave. (The woman in France who posted these photos said that she will “never stop loving Nick Cave”. I’m guessing that I concur.)

And speaking of Nick Cave…

I think it was yesterday, but I am seriously losing track of the days here, but he posted a new Red Hand File, wherein he thanked everyone imaginable for such an incredible Wild God tour of North America. He said in part:

“I think of them all – The Bad Seeds, so deft, so expressive, so anarchic, so bloody awesome, and all I feel at this restless hour is a profound gratitude….”

You can read it in full here.

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Yesterday, I took my favorite 94-year-old Japanese man out to Peony Bistro for lunch, but you know what???

He wanted sushi!!

I guess hell froze over or something because he always, always, always wants sashimi. With sake. He still wanted sake, but he insisted, yesterday, that he wanted sushi.

And we did not have our usual waitress. We had a young Malaysian woman who tries really, really hard, but who nonetheless did not bring us exactly what we’d ordered. And I didn’t want her to feel bad so I didn’t say anything, but she brought us one order of the sushi lunch special — to split.

So. We did not get a lot of food, but at least we went out to lunch and we had a great time.

Oh! And, oddly enough, our fortune cookies had no irony whatsoever. None. Zippo. So I guess maybe hell really did freeze over yesterday. So I guess be on the lookout for random devils and demons is big puffy fur coats…

After lunch, though, when we were back at my client’s house, I showed him the trailer on YouTube for that show I’m currently watching on Netflix, “Samurai Gourmet.” I posted the trailer here the other day — it’s entirely in Japanese. Although the show itself has English subtitles.

Anyway, my client of course speaks fluent Japanese and he was actually chuckling quite a lot while watching the trailer!! It was really fun. It was clear, he really wanted to watch the show but he doesn’t have Netflix.

(Here it is again, in case you speak Japanese and missed it the first time. What a cool show! From 2017.) (2 minutes):

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Meanwhile…

James Tabor has a new (re-issued) book out that I just started reading, it is really good!! How Abraham’s faith in God underlies Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.

And, yes, I’m still studying Chinese and French every day, too… so I am really just sort of off the charts around here.

But on that happy note, I better scoot, gang!

I need to sort of pull my head together here and then drive to town. It is actually quite lovely here today, so it should be a really nice drive.

Enjoy your Saturday, wherever you are in the world!!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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I know I’ve posted this here before, but, wow, gang! Every time this song comes on my playlist, every single cell in my entire being RELAXES. At last.

Andrea Bocelli, “Besame Mucho”.

Enjoy, gang!

“You know how they say things can change overnight?”

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Just unbelievable, gang. (Regarding the news from yesterday.)

I still have the same pile of work to do, but now, just knowing that I am going to be able to retire at some point and (most likely) spend the twilight years of my illustrious life, sitting at my desk, writing…

Wow. It is a dream come true for me. It makes everything that’s going on in the here and now totally bearable.

Future me. Multiply the cat by 182…

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I don’t want to spend too much time talking about my relationship with my adopted dad on the blog, because it is going to be in my upcoming memoir (Joy: The Shortest Season) and I would, of course, prefer that you bought that!!

However, I do believe that my dad has been with me since the moment he died, and I think he was the one who “told” me to email the lawyer’s office and ask them for a copy of my dad’s Will. (This was at 4AM yesterday morning, when I’m not usually in bed on my phone, writing emails to lawyers.)

As you can imagine, it has changed my outlook on everything. I had been getting so unbelievably exhausted and depressed — that feeling that I was going to be exhausted forever. And never be able to stop working. Never be able to sit and write again… (My own stuff, I mean. Not the play or the TV show. I want to do those, but I want to do my own stuff, too.)

Anyway! Things can certainly change overnight.

Me, this morning. YES! Good news made my hair go back to being brown…

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Okay. Here’s this! Two incredible guitar heroes in one interview!!

(No, they have nothing to do with the novel I wrote [purchase here!!], but I do absolutely love both of these guitar heroes)…

Joe Satriani and Steve Vai discuss the SatchVai Band with Guitar Player Magazine (40 mins):

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And on a completely different topic– More from a deep dive into the Book of Leviticus!

Ross K. Nichols – Who’s the Neighbor You’re Supposed to Love? (56 mins):

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And here’s this!

From Seattle last night!

And you know what that means, right?

Only ONE MORE regular show left — tomorrow night in San Francisco. And then the gig at the festival in Pasadena on Saturday. And then the tour is OVER. Buy tickets here.

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Nick Cave sent out a Red Hand File yesterday. Another one about how people get his and Nicolas Cage’s names confused! Nick Cave said, in part:

“…Then Diego started crying again. I was about to explain that he’d made a mistake and mixed me up with the actor, Nicolas Cage, but he looked up at me with such a pitiful mixture of tragedy and wonder that I didn’t have the heart. “She just loves you, man,” he said. Then he asked me about my acting career. I said something like, “I’m just an ordinary person like you. Hollywood is not all it’s cracked up to be. It can be a cruel place. It gets lonely sometimes,” and so on…”

You can read it in full HERE.

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On the home front —

I planted two more wonderful rose bushes yesterday!! Right underneath my kitchen window. Roses are my favorite flower (followed closely by lilacs) and I am so happy to now have 3 rosebushes.

BTW — here’s the song that the Emmylou Harris song from the other day, references! The Texas Swing classic, “San Antonio Rose”! It was originally composed by Bob Wills & his Texas Playboys, 1938. But it is sung here by another full-on favorite of mine: Merle Haggard!!! 1970. I love this version!!

And Peitor and I got some great work done on Episode 2 of the TV series proposal yesterday. So that felt great, too.

Other than that, I gotta scoot and head out to my shift now!!

Have a terrific Tuesday, wherever you are in the world!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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Yes! Emmylou goes on and on and on around here!

Here are some words to live by!! (And sort of my life story in my 20s, if you switch the West Coast for the East Coast!!) From1978, “Two More Bottles of Wine”. Enjoy, gang!!!!

“Two More Bottles Of Wine”

We came out west together with a common desire
The fever we had migtha set the west coast on fire
Two months later got trouble in mind
My baby moved out and left me behind
But it’s all right ’cause it’s midnight
And I got two more bottles of wine

The way he left sure turned my head around
Seemed like overnight he just up and put me down
Ain’t gonna let it bother me today
I been workin’ and I’m too tired anyway
But it’s all right ’cause it’s midnight
And I got two more bottles of wine

I’m sixteen hundred miles from the people I know
Been doin’ all I can but opportunity sure come slow
Lord I’d be in the sun all day
But I’m sweepin’ out a warehouse in west L.A.
But it’s all right ’cause it’s midnight
And I got two more bottles of wine

c – 1975 – Delbert Ross McClinton

And It Begins Again!!

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I’m seriously hoping, gang, that nothing went wrong at the dentist and that my favorite 94-year-old Japanese man has teeth again!!

I’m planning to FINALLY take him back here for sashimi and sake today, if all went well!

We shall soon see! (And it also means a trip back to the incredible restaurant at the golf club will be right around the corner!!)

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Okay, I am officially extremely tired here but I am so excited about developments with the TV Pilot package, and I’m over the moon with what’s happening with “The Guide to Being Fabulous” and the women who are working with us, helping to get the staged reading to the Off-Broadway stage.

It is such a thrill for me, gang. Not just to be finally taking it to NYC, but the fact that this will be the version of the play that is true to Sandra’s life. The professional caliber of the people getting onboard makes me feel pretty confident that people will finally get to see the play as Sandra and I have been envisioning it for so many years.

I can’t tell you how much this means to me. After 11 years.

A rarely seen photo!! Back when Sandra and I first started working on the play!

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The kittens this morning!!!

And way in the back, there (a close-up of Wee Bonny Billy’s eye!) —

They no longer hang out in their playpen at all. And they scamper all over the room — even Wee Bonny Billy, with his 2 lame legs. I now have to look down at my feet at all times, so as not to step on anybody.

They are too cute, gang.

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I started watching this show on Netflix last night and I love it!! From 2019, in Japanese with English subtitles: “Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories”. Here’s the official trailer:

I also started watching this film on Metrograph, but I am only halfway through: “Leonor Will Never Die”.

So far, I love it. The plot is incredible. As an aging woman writer, it really gives me something to think about.

It’s a dramedy. From the Philippines. This is the plot:

“Leonor Reyes was once a groundbreaking figure in the Filipino film industry during its ragtag action cinema glory days, but now she struggles with old age, mounting bills, and the untimely death of her son. While revisiting an unfinished script about a fearless protagonist trying to avenge his brother’s murder, Leonor is struck on the head by a falling television set and knocked into a coma. As she lies unconscious in the hospital, fantasy and reality begin to blur when Leonor finds herself awake inside her script, becoming the hero of her own story.”

Here’s the trailer:

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Here’s another photo of Nick Cave in Kansas City the other night!

They play Denver tonight! You can buy tickets here!

And Nick Cave sent out a really beautiful Red Hand File yesterday morning, giving spiritual advice to a young woman whose father recently died. He said, in part:

“I suspect your father will hear your words, but I do not know. At the very least, by acknowledging the sacred and mysterious nature of things, these words will impact the general condition of the world, not to mention your own injured heart. I believe we must take our subtle spiritual intuitions seriously and view them as the quintessence that underlies the ordinary world. The rejection of the sacred is the fundamental reason for our existential discontent. “I love you” and “I am sorry” spoken into the universe are two sentiments forever worth declaring….”

You can read it in full here.

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And I think that’s it for now!

Enjoy your Wednesday, wherever you are in the world!!

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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I never play music when I have a client in the car, because I need to pay 125% to my driving.

But if I were going to play music today, while heading out for sashimi, it would be this!! A great song for driving on a sunny day!

I’ve posted this song here many times, but it is such a classic!! France Gall, 1964, “Laisse tomber les filles” !!! Play it loud and try really hard to stick to the speed limit. Okay! Enjoy, gang. (Remember: No dancing while the car is in motion.)

Okay! Back to Work!

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But what a great couple of days off it’s been around here, gang.

More great feedback yesterday on our pilot script, this time from a European producer. (If I may quote just one line of his email: “I absolutely loved it.”)

AND — great feedback from Wayne! He liked this version better than the first draft he’d read.

Yes, Peitor asked me to give Wayne a copy of the revised script, so I did. He was really busy but when he finally got a chance to read it yesterday morning, he texted back his various thoughts and all of them were good! So, yay!

I also sent Wayne a photo of my target practice from yesterday at the shooting range.

Wayne texted back last evening that someone owed him some money and when he showed the guy my target practice from the shooting range, the guy said that he’d pay up, pronto — “Thanks, Marilyn.”

I found that so funny.

Anyway!

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The weather report for Columbus on Friday — and now, also on Saturday! — continues to be absolutely lousy, gang.

Obviously, it doesn’t matter what the weather is outside while the Bad Seeds are inside onstage, but I really hate driving to (and from ) Columbus, just in general, but I also really hate driving anywhere in the rain.

Here’s hoping that just being with Kara will be enough fun to make the rain and cold temperatures unnoticeable. But I still think it sucks…

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Yesterday evening, I was in the kitchen getting dinner ready, chatting with all the crazy cats who follow, quite exuberantly, every move I make in every room I’m in, when one of the little girls from next door was suddenly on my kitchen porch, tapping on my screen door!

A visitor!! I never have visitors!!

Not only a visitor, but she had a little fistful of “flowers” — mostly bedraggled dandelions, but there was a pretty iris in the bouquet, and a couple of wilting parrot-tulips.

She wanted to know if I would buy the bouquet!

ME: “How much do you want?”

SHE: “$5. I want to buy my mom a cake. But it’s a secret.”

She was so cute. She’s only about 8 years old and she was clearly very proud of her fistful of bedraggled little flowers…

And it’s been a REALLY long time since anyone brought me flowers (although I didn’t ever have to pay for them in the past, but still, beggars can’t be choosers).

And since, for some long-forgotten reason, I knew I had a stack of $5 bills stored up in my room….

So I came back and gave her TWO 5-dollar bills and she was absolutely thrilled. It was so fucking cute!!

And, yes, I put the flowers in a vase full of water, dead dandelions and all.

And, NO — I didn’t do it as a sort of pre-planned bribe to get her to persuade her mom to adopt a kitten come June….

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Okay!!

Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds played Chicago last night and it looks like it was just off the charts, gang (even though, rumor has it, that Nick Cave called it Detroit…):

But he also sent out a great Red Hand File yesterday, clearly stating that he knew he was in Chicago last night!

But, seriously, it was a great Red Hand File — basically a love letter to the whole world. You can read it here.

You can buy tickets to tonight’s show in Chicago (and tickets for other shows for the rest of the tour) HERE.

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And that’s it. I gotta scoot!

Have a terrific Tuesday, wherever you are in the world (Chicago, Detroit — you name it; have a terrific day!!).

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys. See ya!

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For obvious reasons, I leave you with this gem , performed live in 1972!!

The Rolling Stones, “Dead Flowers”. From their classic album, Sticky Fingers, 1971. Enjoy, Gang!!

Wow, what day is it??

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Correct!! Monday! Which means I’m off to the shooting range!

And I am really, really, REALLY trying to use creative visualization here this morning so that I can simply show up at the range and not have to ask for help with — yet again — loading the fucking bullets!

Once they’re in the gun, I seem to be okay!! (I’m also hoping for 50 out of 50 bullseyes today!! We shall see, gang.)

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Okay, if you follow Simon Parkes, be sure to listen to his update from yesterday.

(If you aren’t a member of Connecting Consciousness, you can join HERE — it’s free. You can’t listen to Simon’s updates without being a member.)

His updates agreed with what Phil has been reporting recently (regarding tariffs, gold, silver, etc.), but I have to say that Simon gave more detailed information and I found it very, very interesting (and really good news for many countries around the world, not just the US).

Also, Phil is supposed to be live again tonight, at 7PM Eastern time. Check here later to confirm.

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Some sort of sad news — Blackie’s little grey kitten has some issues with her back paws. One of them is sort of like an underdeveloped club foot, but the other didn’t develop at all. It’s sort of like a tiny dead little paw.

So either it will be missing both back legs as it gets a little bigger, or it will have 3 legs, with one of them deformed.

So I’m guessing we’re keeping the little grey one, and choosing a name for it soon, and giving it a lifetime of LOVE.

On we go, gang.

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I follow Metrograph (a NYC indie movie theater) on Instagram but I only found out yesterday that for $5 a month, you can watch their movies online in the US (and/or get a discount on tickets for watching movies in the actual theater in NYC).

On their website, they also have interviews, columns, essays — exclusively about independent films, both domestic and international, past and present. Check it out below to see what’s currently playing online and in the theater, or read the great online Journal. They’ve got some great films:

Metrograph

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As luck would have it, Nick Cave just now sent out a new Red Hand File — all about what he was doing & thinking about yesterday morning in a little town in Pennsylvania!

It’s another short one. You can read it HERE.

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And don’t forget!

TOMORROW! In Boston, the Wild God tour gets underway in North America!! Followed by a show in Brooklyn on Thursday, April 17th. BUY TICKETS HERE!

And you know what this all means — that in 18 days, Kara and I will be driving to downtown Columbus to see them at the Palace Theater, and staying overnight, HERE!!!

Yes, I have an alert on my phone to remind me to pack the tickets!! They’ve been stuck on the front of my fridge for something like 6 months already…. the envelope is covered in big black exclamation marks (!!!) and arrows pointing to the name “NICK CAVE” so that I won’t forget to bring the fucking tickets!!!

And I still don’t know what I want to wear. Kara always looks incredibly amazing, so it’s better to dress down than to try to outdo her. She still smokes cigarettes and drinks more espressos per day than you can shake a stick at, so she weighs about 1 pound and everything looks great on her!!

Kara, one Saturday afternoon, when we went to the movies last Spring!

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Okay, I guess that’s it for now. I need to proofread the work I did on Act 2 of the pilot script yesterday and send it off to Peitor. Then, after I come home from the shooting range, work on the revisions of Act 3.

We’re getting there, gang! Only half of Act 4 needs revisions, and none of Act 5, so we are seriously, almost there!!

Enjoy your Monday, wherever you are in the world.

Thanks for visiting.

I love you guys! See ya!

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I thought this was appropriate today!

Since it’s apparently going to take Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds two days to get from Boston to Brooklyn, I figure that they must be walking there…

So, once again, the Beastie Boys classic, “No Sleep Till Brooklyn”. 1986. I love this fucking song!!!! Enjoy, gang.