Jen and I have been having fires every night for almost a month now for two reasons, neither of us has lived in a house with a fire place and neither of us want to turn the heat on because we live in California and are both stubbornly clinging to the idea that California is supposed to be warm all year.   Last night we were burning text books in the fire place over one of those fake logs made of compressed saw dust and oil, "Fuck you College," Jen said, throwing ripped up pieces of a used Geography book into the flames and laughing as the pages folded into themselves in coils.  She says she's not going to college next year and I believe her this time.  School smothers artists which is why I left and which is why Jen plans to leave. 
Last night Jen pulled out a book from the pile of paper by the fire place, it was Mein Kampf by Adolf Hitler.  "Ask the Mein Kampf a question," she said holding the book with her right hand and gesturing with her left hand for me to place mine on the book and ask it a question as if it were an 8 Ball or a deck of Terrot cards.  Resting my hand on the Mein Kampf I asked, "will I finish my book this year?"   Jen opened the book and fanned it's pages in front of me, I could smell the age of the paper as a small breeze tickled my receding hair line, I took my pointer finger and stopped a page; my finger landing on the sentence, "You can see how totally inadequate the historical education of these people is." 
"Maybe that means you need to educate yourself more about the book buisness before you get published," said Jen.  "Okay now it's my turn."
Handing me the book I took it and held it for her to set her hand upon.  "Is it going to work out with Brianna?" Brianna is the Jewish girl Jen is currently falling in love with.  Jens pointer finger dive bombed the Mein Kampf and stopped on the words, "Damedable Alliance."
"Uh oh Jen, I think that means it's not going to work out."
"Whatever, that guy hated Jews of coarse he's not going to like Brianna," she said covering up her fear that the Mein Kampf was correct in it's fortold outcome of her relationship with nervous laughter. 

We have been consulting books for years for anything ranging from relationship advice or weather or not we should go to a bar or stay in and watch Netflix.  "Should we go for a walk?" we may ask Burning in Water Drowning In Flame by Charles Bukowski.  "I got out of bed and yawned and scratched my belly and knew that soon I would have to get very drunk." 
"Looks like we aren't going on a walk, we're getting drunk instead."
Sometimes I think we put to much stock in the universal signs that seem to come our way. For instance Jen and I were in the San Francisco Bay area at a coffee shop when Jen said, "This would be the perfect place to open a book store." No sooner were those words poured out of her mouth, we saw a sign for the retail space next door that said, "For Rent."  Jen was on the phone with the realitors within minutes, "it's a sign!" she said. 
I feel like it was more of a coincidence than a sign from the universe, but then again it's hard to ignore such a relivent coincidence. 


"it was entirely in our power to make the movement eternal on the very first day by blindly and ruthlessly fighting for it." - Adolf Hitler.