refused to take away our carpets and then refused the rest of the stuff saying they had a rule that they either take everything or nothing! So today we are trying the Salvation Army.
John Bleasdale canât come and paint until December 18, because he has to redo some work for Lon McCallister; 55 the rains ruined the first job. So the floorers, a Mr. Cvar is one of them, are coming in first, on the 14th. We are still waiting to hear when Mr. Berg can get our roof leaks fixed.
The weather is cold but absolutely classical in its beauty; that rose-golden desert light on the palms and white buildings and on the mountains. [Mount] Baldy is under a heavy snowfall.
(At this point Glenway [Wescott] called about Maurice . He is longing to write a huge piece on Forster to be published at the same time as the book. He said of himself that he has a terrible habit of jumping onto bandwagons. I am encouraging him to write a foreword to the book because I know that if I write one myself I shall offend the touchy and devious Furbank; yet Furbankâs foreword, alone, simply isnât right for America, it is too inner-circle. We shall have to publish it with something else by an American writer.)
The day before yesterday I saw Swami, for the first time since his holiday in Arizona. He seemed tired and is still engaged in this tug-of-war with Belur Math about the demanded assistant. It will have to stop before so very long, however, because he doesnât want to be on bad terms with them when Len [Worton] and Mark 56 and Paul [Hamilton] go over there in February to take sannyas . He gives me the impression that he is play acting his indignation, a bit; and he has written a very warm note to Gambhirananda, whom he regards as his arch-opponent, appealing to him to cooperate. I asked him if he had had any spiritual experiences while he was away. He said no. While I was sitting there I tried to meditate on the fact that I was in the presence of The Guru. I find that I can now meditate on the memory of having done this, just as I meditate on the memory of having sat in front of the shrine.
Peter Schneider has now applied for reclassification as a C.O. This last-minute move is really shameless and I canât believe it will work. But he is so cute. Jim Gates has strangely obliterated himself by shaving his head and wearing glasses. He told me after the reading that he wants to talk to me. I wish he would. Iâm curious about him. I want to know what heâs up to.
Â
December 8. Swami is sick, up at Santa Barbara, but Ananda doesnât think itâs serious.
Have just finished the second folder of Kathleen and Frank (through chapter 13) which Iâm rereading for possible places to cut. The most obviously cuttable part is chapter 9, which consists largely of wearisome details about Frederickâs financial demands on the Isherwoods; these are undramatic because Frederick is really only bluffing anyway, as I finally have to admit. I think a lot can be taken out here, but even so it is very little in relation to the size of the book.
No news from either Methuen or Simon and Schuster.
On Saturday next, the 12th, Mr. Lemke the carpenter is scheduled to come and take the big bookcases and my desk apart, so they can be removed from the room before the floorers come on Monday. So thatâs the beginning of chaosâfor at least three weeks (during which time, a heavy rainstorm could fuck us up, but good)! All we can do to prepare for it is to collect cardboard boxes, lots and lots and lots of them, from markets etc., to put the books in.
Seth Finkelstein gave me my dolphin clock back yesterday. He only wanted ten dollars for all that work; I insisted on his taking fifteen. It now runs beautifully again, but itâs slow! 57
Don has heard nothing whatever from San Francisco about his show. It might as well never have happened. Heâs disgusted, naturally, and says whatâs the use of going on with this
John Bleasdale canât come and paint until December 18, because he has to redo some work for Lon McCallister; 55 the rains ruined the first job. So the floorers, a Mr. Cvar is one of them, are coming in first, on the 14th. We are still waiting to hear when Mr. Berg can get our roof leaks fixed.
The weather is cold but absolutely classical in its beauty; that rose-golden desert light on the palms and white buildings and on the mountains. [Mount] Baldy is under a heavy snowfall.
(At this point Glenway [Wescott] called about Maurice . He is longing to write a huge piece on Forster to be published at the same time as the book. He said of himself that he has a terrible habit of jumping onto bandwagons. I am encouraging him to write a foreword to the book because I know that if I write one myself I shall offend the touchy and devious Furbank; yet Furbankâs foreword, alone, simply isnât right for America, it is too inner-circle. We shall have to publish it with something else by an American writer.)
The day before yesterday I saw Swami, for the first time since his holiday in Arizona. He seemed tired and is still engaged in this tug-of-war with Belur Math about the demanded assistant. It will have to stop before so very long, however, because he doesnât want to be on bad terms with them when Len [Worton] and Mark 56 and Paul [Hamilton] go over there in February to take sannyas . He gives me the impression that he is play acting his indignation, a bit; and he has written a very warm note to Gambhirananda, whom he regards as his arch-opponent, appealing to him to cooperate. I asked him if he had had any spiritual experiences while he was away. He said no. While I was sitting there I tried to meditate on the fact that I was in the presence of The Guru. I find that I can now meditate on the memory of having done this, just as I meditate on the memory of having sat in front of the shrine.
Peter Schneider has now applied for reclassification as a C.O. This last-minute move is really shameless and I canât believe it will work. But he is so cute. Jim Gates has strangely obliterated himself by shaving his head and wearing glasses. He told me after the reading that he wants to talk to me. I wish he would. Iâm curious about him. I want to know what heâs up to.
Â
December 8. Swami is sick, up at Santa Barbara, but Ananda doesnât think itâs serious.
Have just finished the second folder of Kathleen and Frank (through chapter 13) which Iâm rereading for possible places to cut. The most obviously cuttable part is chapter 9, which consists largely of wearisome details about Frederickâs financial demands on the Isherwoods; these are undramatic because Frederick is really only bluffing anyway, as I finally have to admit. I think a lot can be taken out here, but even so it is very little in relation to the size of the book.
No news from either Methuen or Simon and Schuster.
On Saturday next, the 12th, Mr. Lemke the carpenter is scheduled to come and take the big bookcases and my desk apart, so they can be removed from the room before the floorers come on Monday. So thatâs the beginning of chaosâfor at least three weeks (during which time, a heavy rainstorm could fuck us up, but good)! All we can do to prepare for it is to collect cardboard boxes, lots and lots and lots of them, from markets etc., to put the books in.
Seth Finkelstein gave me my dolphin clock back yesterday. He only wanted ten dollars for all that work; I insisted on his taking fifteen. It now runs beautifully again, but itâs slow! 57
Don has heard nothing whatever from San Francisco about his show. It might as well never have happened. Heâs disgusted, naturally, and says whatâs the use of going on with this
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