Friday, February 27, 2004

Biographical Note (as promised)

People often ask about my name and/or (if they listen to recordings or see me reading) my accent. Well, I am Swiss. Yes, Swiss. Like Nobel Laureate Carl Spitteler, author of Der olympische Frühling (The Olympian Spring) and Prometheus der Dulder (Prometheus the Long-Suffering). Not Swedish like Gunnar Ekelof (whose "Elegies," incidentally, I greatly admire).

Here in California people confuse the two countries. I have published several books, the covers of which are visible on my home page, along with some sample poems. I am currently at work on a manuscript called The Picky Hound.

My affinity for the Umbrists stems from my reading aesthetic being broader than my writing aesthetic. This is typical, I think.

Since CP Galom has seen it fit to describe his living arrangements, I will provide mine, by way of conclusion. I live in a guest house, behind the mansion of a fairly successful Hollywood actor, a distant cousin, who feels he is "giving back to art" (his words!) by supporting my residency here in the sun. I would like to say that I drive his Ferrari around and investigate crimes, but no one is that lucky in real life. Also, the "criminal element" is not conducive to my work. I share a Prius with Asulcena, my cousin's housekeeper.

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