We’re blessed with beautiful weather the last few days, the clouds on the horizon so fantastic I had to take some photographs, to add to my large collection, From My Window.

Man, got to get on the good foot, as well as the bad, and start organizing the Princess Nut CD party we’re hosting Nov. 1. Figured I would have a Day of the Dead theme and sadly it’s not ironic. I am going to erect an altar honouring my sister, Peter and Merilene. There is talk of going to the Baja between Christmas and New Year’s and then I am possibly attending the San Miguel Poetry Week Jan 4-10. I’d like to stop off in LA on the way back to see Peter’s sister and my goddaughter Ava Rose. It would be nice to visit and not have to attend another funeral, however I haven’t made any travel arrangements, things are so crazy with renovating/converting the garage to an office for Josef, and AURAL Heather business. We found out the deadline for the Violet Femmes compilation album is Oct. 15! So we spent yesterday recording though I felt like crap and it was the last thing I wanted to do. “We are Ninja” as Roderick says and certainly we got the job done. We had considered doing the work at a local studio, I made inquiries but by the time they got back to us Roderick had started recording us amidst the mess that is the living room these days. He was able to isolate the vocal and guitar tracks and left with them this morning. The song is called Sun Hee, a Latin and jazzed tinged tune about unrequited love. Never fall for a banker’s wife. He had his trusty MacBook and new Telecaster in tow. Josef and I bought it for his upcoming birthday. Seems fitting somehow that Roderick was born on Halloween. I’m not big on astrology but I seem to attract Scorpios. One of my best friends, Candye is a quintessential Scorpio along with my son and his father. Anyway, it’s astounding that a guitarist of his caliber doesn’t own a good guitar. You deserve it I told him and I am happy he now has one of the most fundamental tools.

The Peter saga continues. He had told me he was sending along a copy of Bruce’s book so I could help get distribution for it in Canada. I was really hoping that it wouldn’t show up, that Peter hadn’t had time to send it but a signed copy arrived a few days ago. Actually it had been sitting at the post office for a while so he had very efficiently mailed it shortly after we spoke. Broke my heart all over again! There was a Yes Press business card inside with his named printed on it and a note enclosed saying they were going to attend Wordstock in Portland in early Nov. That made me cry. I thumbed through it and sure enough, as a friend in LA reported, the ending portrays a murder and this:

“TO THE LAPD: This book does not contain the confession to any past unsolved crimes (murders, shootings, arsons, narcotics infractions.)” Christ. He is a sick fuck. I don’t know how much more of this insanity my mind can process! It’s despicable, feels tainted. I wash my hands after handling it and I want it out of my house, psyche, need to put it in the recycling bin.

I am meeting with my friend Tina Schliessler tomorrow to discuss the possibility of collaborating on a coffee table/art book. She gave us set of fantastic nature photographs for our anniversary. They’re trees, mostly arbutus and framed to represent the human body. I’ve always received a feeling of beneficence from trees, as do others obviously, Ent Treebeard from Lord of the Rings being the most obvious example. Tina’s trees are very provocative and I am to write provocative verse to accompany the images. We will also discuss the possibility of a videopoem.

We were discussing the upcoming election(s) over dinner last night. I am looking forward to casting my vote though part of me is sympathetic to the anarchistic belief that “if voting could change anything it would be against the law.” I can’t read the writing on the wall, have no idea what will happen in our election. Of course I am hoping Harper and the Conservatives lose but I have no idea what the odds are. If Obama doesn’t win the U.S. election, I will be very scared. God forbid, McCain has a heart attack and Palin becomes president. Russel is having an election night party at his house so we’re going to go over there to watch the results and either celebrate or commiserate depending on the outcome which seems as hard to predict as our election. Russel is an American expatriate, a pediatrician and was imprisoned at one point in his life for burning his draft card or his opposition to the Vietnam war. We talk of many things but not that. I should ask him why.