I decided to make this page in order to answer the numerous personal queries I frequently receive via e mail.
What's your name? - Robert.
What's your sign? -
In "Western" Astrology - I'm a Taurus male with Virgo/Libra rising and Moon in Scorpio. In "Eastern" Astrology, I was born in the Year of the Snake during the hour "right smack" between the Horse and the Goat.
How old are you? - Old Enough To Know Better -- somewhere between thirty and forty.
What Anti-Heroes Do You Identify With? -
Any Rebel, Pirates, "outsiders", Boromir (from Lord of the Rings), Kane (the most awesome Sci Fi Fantasy character of all-time created by Karl Edward Wagner), Elric (second only to Kane, of course, created by Michael Moorcock), The Outlaw Josey Wales, Jonah Hex (an obscure cartoon character with a mangled face), The "underdog" in any given situation, Assassins, Bank Robbers, Third World Countries, Indigenous People Groups, Hitmen, Shamans, etc.
If I may paraphrase one of my fav writers, Charles Bukowski,...I don't like Joe or Sue average or The Hero. I don't like their squeaky clean images, their clean jobs, their mediocre religion, or their rapid kindness which can and will decimate you very quickly. The Hero or Joe or Sue Average have been "double-culted" via materialism and patriotism (or their religion). Give me the bum, rebel, outcast, the freethinker, loner, or freak any day. "Normal people" are scary.
Where were you born? - In Europe -- yep, I'm a dual citizen by birth.
Where do you live? - On this planet (at least most of the time) in the Pacific Northwest.
Which High Schools did you attend? - The ones with four walls and too, too many pimple faced hormone driven fellow mortals. Specifically, three high schools -- one in Virginia; one in Bad Kreuznach, Germany; and one in Stuttgart, Germany, too.
What's your profession? - It all depends on whether I'm holding down a job or not.
If your life was a movie which one would it be? - It's too tough to limit it to just one, they'd have to be: Night Shift (my personality) meets "The Yellow Submarine" (my mind) meets "The Princess Bride" (my family) meets "Lost Horizon" (my goal).
If you could invite anyone from history (ancient or contemporary) to dinner who would you invite? -
Good question. Gosh, too many. You've prompted me to dedicate a couple of pages to this question -- click Here and Here.
What's your favorite food? - Ketchup (it goes with just about anything). Barbecue sauce comes in a very close second. Dang, any ethnic food, too!
Do you have a patron saint? - Yes, two actually. The authors Jack Kerouac and Charles Bukowski.
Who is your patron deity/deities? - Several of them, however, ultimately it's The One that cannot be named described in The Tao Te Ching, "...The name that can be named is not the eternal Name. The unnameable is the eternally real..." from The Tao Te Ching a New English version by Stephen Mitchell.
What do you think of Christianity? - Being an Extian (former Christian) now turned Pagan I have many thoughts and feelings about it. Stay tuned, I'm working on numerous pages addressing Christianity.
What's your favorite drink? - Coke or Sprite or anything similar to it (help, help my teeth are rotting). Orange Juice, fruit juice, and a cold glass of water are pretty good, too.
What's your favorite color? - More than one. Depends on my mood. Usually it's orange, red, yellow, black, silver, and green.
What do you like in a woman? - Aaaaaaaayyyyy. Run away! Run away! I just got divorced not too long ago, give me a break.
What are you top ten fav Movies? - It's impossible for me to do a top ten list when it comes to movies, here's my top 12:
1. The Matrix/ The Matrix Reloaded.
2. Waking Life.
3. Run Lola Run or Pi.
4. The Emerald Forest.
5. Apocalypse Now.
6. Triumph of the Will and Wizards.
7. A toss up between The Experiment, Natural Born Killers, Man Bites Dog, Fight Club, Jacob's Ladder, First Blood, The Legend of Drunken Master, Monsieur Verdox, American History X, Taxi Driver, M, Gladiator, The Road Warrior, Clockwork Orange, The Salton Sea, and One Hour Photo.
8. A toss up between Endless Summer, Endless Summer II, and Enlightenment Guaranteed.
9. A toss up between Ghost Dog and two Bogey & Bacall films Dark Passage and To Have And Have Not.
10. Comedy - Kentucky Fried Movie, The Pink Panther films, Monty Python's Holy Grail, Woody Allen, Charlie Chaplin, The Marx Brothers, Laurel and Hardy.
11. A three way tie between Papillon...Hombre... and The Outlaw Josey Wales.
12. Oh Yeah, there's also...Ghost World, The Yellow Submarine, Mask, The Wicker Man, Hedwig and The Angry Inch, The Princess Bride, Rashomon, The Seven Samurai, The Samurai Trilogy, Baraka, Lost Horizon, Underground, The Stalker, Alphaville, Wages of Fear, Wings of Desire, Night Shift, Heimat, 2nd Heimat, Following, They Live!, Tremors, The Seventh Seal, The Golem, Last Night, A Bronx Tale, Painted Faces, Star Wars (parts 4-6), Ben Hur, Baraka, Los Olvidados, The Godfather, Godfather II, Cabeza De Vaca, Pleasantville, Bringing Out the Dead, Sleepers, and way too many Asian films to list.
What are the best books you've read? - Hmmm...tough question to answer, lets break it down to several categories:
Literary Classics and Modern Classics books
Remembrance of Things Past by Marcel Proust - may be the most beautiful book I've ever had the privilege to read. Dante's Inferno - try the John Ciardi translation; the annotated notes are great. The Globe Illustrated Shakespeare Complete Works Annotated - Shakespeare's works may be the most eloquent, sagacious, symbolic, and all encompassing corpus ever written in the English language. The Lord of the Ring series by J.R.R. Tolkein - hooked me onto reading way back when I was in the 6th grade. All Quiet On The Western Front and The Road Back by Erich Remarque. Tropic of Cancer and Tropic of Capricorn by Henry Miller. Any books by Charles Bukowski (especially "Ham on Rye" and "Post Office"). Any books by Jack Kerouac (especially "Dharma Bums" and "Desolation Angels").
Esoteric, Spirituality, and Self-Help books
The Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu - try the Stephen Mitchell translation. The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hahn. How I Found Freedom in an Unfree World by Harry Browne. Care of the Soul by Thomas Moore - Wow! Talk about a mind expander! The Soul's Religion by Thomas Moore. The Soul's Code by James Hillman. Serpent In The Sky by John Anthony West - introduces the profound writing of R.A. Schwaller de Lubicz; then read Temple In Man by R.A. Scwaller de Lubicz. The Secret Teachings of the Ages by Manly Hall. Thorson's Principles of Native American Spirituality by Denis Renault. The Sacred Pipe by Joseph Brown. The Wisdom of the Native Americans. by Kent Nerburn (Editor). The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche. Autobiography of a Yogi by Paramahansa Yogananda. The Numerology Kit by Carol Adrienne. The 13th Sign by Mary Abbamonte. How I Found Freedom In An Unfree World by Harry Browne. The Path of Least Resistance by Robert Fritz. The Way of the Peaceful Warrior by Dan Millman.
Return To Nature books
The Secret Life of Plants by Peter Tompkins. The Education of Little Tree by Forrest Carter. A Language Older Than Words by Derrick Jensen. Walden by Henri David Thoreau. Desert Solitaire by Edward Abbey. In Search of Captain Zero by Allan Weisbecker. Walk Across America and Along the Edge of America by Peter Jenkins. The Snow Leopard by Peter Matthiessen.
Laugh Your Ass Off books
Night of the Avenging Blowfish by John Welter. Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes. I, Lucifer by Glen Duncan. The Burial Brothers by Simon Mayle.
True Life books
I Am Jackie Chan by Jackie Chan. The Bruce Lee Story by Laura Lee. Papillon and Banco by Henri Charriere. Dry Guillotine by Rene Belbenoit. Soledad Brother: The Prison Letters of George Jackson by George Jackson. Monster: Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member by Sanyika Shakur.
Philosophy and/or Metaphysics books
A Beginner's Guide to Constructing the Universe by Michael Schneider. Principia Discordia by Omar Ravenhurst. Socrates Cafe by Christopher Phillips. The Seven Life Lessons of Chaos by John Briggs. Aikido In Everyday Life by Terry Dobson. Philosophy for Beginners by Richard Osborne.
Hallucinogens, The Mind, and Spirit books
The Doors of Perception by Aldous Huxley. Breaking Open The Head by Daniel Pinchbeck. Mushrooms and Mankind by James Arthur. Food of the Gods by Terence McKenna. True Hallucinations by Terence MCKenna. In The Arms of Morpheus by Barbara Hodgson. From Chocolate to Morphine by Andrew Weil.
Absinthe by Barnaby Conrad III.
Write! or Create! books
The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron. If You Want To Write by Barbara Ueland. Escaping Into the Open by Elizabeth Berg. A Whack On The Side Of The Head by Roger Von Oech.
Look at History with New Eyes books
The True Believer by Eric Hoffer - I HIGHLY recommend this book. Albion's Seed by David Fischer. 1984 by George Orwell. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. And The Truth Shall Set You Free by David Icke. Bloodlines of the Illuminati by Fritz Springmeier. The Gods of Eden by William Bramley. Maya Cosmogenesis 2012 by John Jenkins. Galactic Alignment by John Jenkins. The Monkey and the Tetrahedron by David Jinks.
Martial Arts and Self-Defense books
Boston's Gun Bible by Boston T. Party. Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai. The Sword and The Mind by Yagyu Munenori. The Tao of Jeet Kune Do by Bruce Lee. The Secrets of Aikido by John Stevens.
Work the Body and the Mind books
The Way of Energy by Kam Lam Chuen. The Tao of Tai Chi Chuan by Tsung Hwa Jou. Yoga by Erich Schiffman. 5 Tibetans by Christopher Kilham. Chakras for Beginners by David Pond. Kundalini Awakening by John Selby. The Book of Chakra Healing by Liz Simpson. Healing Mudras: Yoga for Your Hands by Sabrina Mesko. Arnold: Education of a Bodybuilder by Arnold Schwarznegger.
Freedom books
My Enlightenement by David Duke. Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler. The Monkey Wrench Gang by Edward Abbey. 101 Things To Do 'Til The Revolution by Claire Wolfe. Justine by Marquis De Sade. The Psychopath's Bible by Christopher Hyatt. The Turner Diaries by Andrew MacDonald. Hunter by Andrew MacDonald. Civil War 2 by Thomas Chittum. Saving the Savior by Abubakr Salahuddin. A Search for the Historical Jesus by Fida Husnain. The Unknown Life of Jesus Christ by Nicolas Notovich.
Information or Reference books
Love Is In The Earth by Melody. Introducing Japan by Donald Richie. The Guiness Book of World Records. An Incomplete Education by William Wilson and Judy Jones. The Book of Lists 1, 2, and 3.
Fantasy books
The Lord of the Ring series by J.R.R. Tolkein.
The Kane series by Karl Edward Wagner.
The Elric series by Michael Moorcock. Conan the Barbarian series by Robert E. Howard. Jurgen and The Cream of the Jest by James Cabell.
Graphic Novels
Lone Wolf and Cub by Kazuo Koike et al. The Sandman series by Neil Gaiman. From Hell by Alan Moore. The Ring of the Nibelung by Gil Kane.
What are you're favorite songs? - It depends on my mood, but after some thought the best, IMO, would be:
My two favorite songs are Spiral Architect by Black Sabbath and Hemispheres by Rush.
What are your favorite CDs? -
Gosh, I like so many. My three favs are Sabotage & Sabbath Bloody Sabbath by Black Sabbath and Hemispheres by Rush.
I also like just about anything by:
1.Led Zeppelin.
2. Yes.
3. Blue Oyster Cult or Pink Floyd.
4. Miles Davis.
5. Mozart.
6. Handel.
7. Motorhead and Judas Priest.
8. Bob Marley.
9. Louis Armstrong and Bob Seger.
10. And a whole bunch of other Classic Rock, Alternative Rock, Jazz, and Classical music artists.
Who are your favorite sports teams? - The Raiders; Arizona Cardinals; the Philadelphia 76ers and just about any expansion team.
Are you married? - Nope, I hope I learned my lesson the first time round and you have my permission to kick my ass if I ever try it again.
If you weren't you who would you want to be? - My ex wife's car on the day she left.
If not that who else would you want to be? - My son's guardian angel -- that way I could be with him all the time. I sure do miss him :(.
Who were you're heroes when you were a kid? - My father; Too many athletes to mention; Clint Eastwood; James Arness; Inspector Clouseau-Kato-Chief Inspector Dreyfuss; The wrestlers Ric Flair, Andre the Giant, and Jimmy Snuka; Doctor Doom; Doctor Strange; Wolverine; Daredevil;
Sgt. Rock & Co., Thor, Spiderman, and The Avengers (q.v. the Marvel comics group); Kiss, Pink Floyd, Yes, and Rush. Corny, huh?
What do you look like? - Myself (*g*). I feel silly answering this question, but because this is one of the most frequent queries I receive I'll finally answer. I'm over 6' tall, I'm 235 lbs., Caucasian, Shaved Head -- Shaved hair? (maybe it's both?), goatee, Blue eyes, blah blah blah yadda yadda yadda. If I keep receiving requests to post a pic I will do so inevitably.
What are some things you have a "soft spot" for? - Spirals/circles (everything is a spiral or a circle), Anything about an Anti-hero, Music, Literature, Films, Surrealism, Chaos, Chaos theory, Living moment to moment, Spiritual Schematics (i.e. the pleroma, chakras, sacred geometry etc), Laughter, Humor/Comedy, Quotes, My fiancee, Kinky Sex (wohoo!), Women who dress a certain way, Japan, Asian cultures, anything about Samurais, Paganism, Native American culture, Enigmas, Existentialism, The Soul, Eastern Mysticism, Contemplating how to beat the system at its own game, Screwing with established paradigms, Sound, The French Mediterranean, Abstraction, Ketchup, Memories of the son I lost, Long walks, Connecting with like minded rebels or crazy bastards, Mythology, Misfits, Rebels, The downtrodden, The outcasts, Strays, Sports, Philosophy, and Spirituality.
What is love? - Maybe there are different types of love? Maybe it's bullshit? I don't know. If true love could be described would it lose its essence and quality? I'm not sure I could construct an answer in such a way that would give your question its due. However, if it exist let's experience and live it rather than merely attempting to describe it.
Who are your favorite philosophers? - Scooby Doo and Shaggy (hang out with your friends, eat well, have fun, and stick together); my child (he asks more deep questions than I can answer); Joseph Campbell; Buddha; Lao Tzu; Arthur Schopenhauer; Oswald Spengler; George Santayana; Kierkegaard; Camus; Sarte; Frank Zappa; Thomas Moore; James Hillman; Snoopy & Woodstock (there's a time for peanut butter & popcorn and there's a time for turkey with all the trimmings); Boethius (he left Christianity and embraced philosophy -- way to go -- that took balls); Just about any Grandfather; Forest Carter; Marcus Aurelius (may be the best candidate for the Philosopher/King); Erich Remarque; James Cabell; some of the Transcendentalists (Thoreau and Emerson); and the working poor (because of all the continual shit we have to swallow).
What would your personalized fortune cookie say? - I wouldn't have one fortune cookie, I'd have three:
The first one would read "Everyone is someone else's weirdo".
The next one would read "Deal with it".
The last one would read "The time is always was always NOW. The time is always Now. Live in the ETERNAL NOW."
Na nu Na nu.
If you've gotten this far you deserve a reward. Here's a game for your enjoyment, and yes, it's ready to play.
Just click on any legal square. Have fun.
