Just walked to Ralph's - the over crowded location at 3rd and La Brea. Even on a Thursday morning at 11am people are waiting in line at the deli counter. Walking home, turning down Sycamore as I always do with it's beautiful canopy of trees and four bedroom, 2 1/4 bathroom two story apartments and bougainvillea lined balconies, I wondered how people could afford to live here. If everyone is at Ralph’s buying ham on sale at $8.99 pound, how do people come up with their rent money. How do I come up with it every month? I barely do - last week I withdrew over my limit by $3. That left me with $0 in my account. Actually, it left me with a negative balance of -$13. Should I put an add on craigslist under adult services?

Bobby took me to a movie last night at Laemmle Theaters in Beverly Hills. "Throw Down Your Heart" - a documentary about American banjo virtuoso Bela Fleck. He goes to Africa to explore the little known roots of the banjo and record an album. He travels through Uganda, Tanzania, The Gambia, and Mali. A gorgeous, inspiring film. I now have a desire to go to Tanzania.

I had a dream last night that my step-dad told me to put down the manuscript I have been working on and start something new. He said the old stuff is full of clichés and that it is bad, everything about it is bad.

Time to get to work - on that bad manuscript.

Later -
Why does everything else sound so interesting when I'm about to write? Doing my nails, cleaning, sweeping, plucking my eyebrows, calling my mother, going to the bank . . .