The Screen Door Slams, Mary's Dress Waves

So, on Wednesday night, I went to my friend Brett's book release party in the cozy seaside town of Jersey City, New Jersey. It was a school night, the music was tight, and my oh my, I was doing all right.

Brett's book is a rather tender affair. It consists of a series of letters he wrote in the wake of a crushing heartbreak. It's called, "Greetings from Jersey City, New Jersey" and it's a lot like Rilke's "Letters to a Young Poet" except if Rilke had a fishing pole, a good buddy named Chuck, an obsession with the song "Thunder Road" and if he wrote letters to ex-girlfriends instead of Young Poets.

I won't get into a big sell on the book, but suffice it to say, it made me cry in front of a homeless man on the PATH train home that night. Granted, I can burst into tears when a traffic light turns red, but this really was a touching collection, this little book of his.

As for the party, well, it was a real champagne jam, held at the Brettmeister General's local bar Lucky Seven's, which probably took equal turns at both nurturing and inhibiting the creative forces that inspired this book.

Brett invited all his good dudes to guest DJ one side of one LP at the party, and I chose a real crowd pleaser, "Flight of the Eagle" by Om, taken from their latest album, Conference of the Birds. One side, one song, clocking in at 17 minutes and 27 seconds. It's really quite the brain melter.

You can and should buy Brett's book HERE.

Likewise, you can also buy Om's brilliant record HERE.

I leave you with this: a picture of Brett playing air saxophone, a concept I really can't get enough of. I mean, is this guy multi-talented or what? I hope that it brings you as much joy and happiness as it does for me.