This is probably the greatest work of fiction since the 19th century. Think Moby Dick. Or the 20th century. Think Milton, Shakespeare, John Donne (Wallace Stevens, same thing), Keats, Swinburne, and all the moderns from Updike to Cheever to O’Hara to Barthelme. He played with Eliot. Did he leave Hem and Fitz alone? Not really. And Homer and the Book of Samuel. With make-up faces and art to match.
So last night Robert was singing along to Springsteen. Which was quite surprising to me. Why you ask. Because as long as we have been together it has always been Jagger, Jagger, and Jagger. The great Rolling Stones. Sympathy for the Devil, Jumpin Jack Flash, Gimme Shelter... Never Bruce.
But Robert is a Jersey boy too. Never said much good about Springsteen. Hates his politics. But there he was singing. Not just singing, but accompanying Bruce. He knows all the words. He knows all the tunes. And he joins the songfest in harmony.
Boy can he sing. And then he told me about his perfect pitch.
Tougher Than the Rest
He asked me if he was. Like every woman I told him I'd get back to him. (You bet he's tougher. Sheer cussedness.)
If I should fall behind
This is the one he actually came forward and sang in my ear. Perfectly. High romance.
No Surrender
This one goes back to his driving days. They never ever stopped going a hundred. He doubted Bruce could say the same thing.
Living Proof
He sang this for me too. He is.
Dancing in the Dark
And then we did.
Born to Run
Last because ancient history. He told me this is how he got through his first year in business school as a Jersey boy at Cornell. What he probably won't tell you is that he also listened full time to a German song called Autobahn by Kraftwerk. The rock star rising inside.
Rough Justice
As his wife I can tell you the Springsteen thing is probably just a night's pose. He is always for the ages. He doesn't belong to us, not New Jersey, not you, not anyone. He falls asleep dreaming of William Blake.
I don't know of anyone who has had a more amazing, interesting, and diverse life than Robert. There are so many rich tales of a life unique that they seem impossible for one person. And yet they are all true. I have known him a large part of my life and I still haven't heard it all. And we keep making new ones.
Robert has been posting stories of his life on Facebook in addition to posts on a huge variety of topics. Be sure to take a look and comment. The videos cover all different areas of his life from growing up in Salem NJ to his life as a corporate ronin to his life as writer.
There are moving stories about his grandfather Laird, who was afflicted with a hole in his back from a radiological error. There are tales of posh parties at the Hine estate in Greenwich Township. And so much more. Hear about his beloved father, the sole survivor of a group of six fighter pilots that fought in the European theater in World War II; summers at a man-made lake; and a boyhood trip to France.
You all must know that Robert is the author of The Boomer Bible. But you might not have seen the The Boomer Bible on the internet. Using the link below, you can access any of the chapters of The Boomer Bible and most importantly you can use a live intercolumn reference. What does this mean? Many parts of the text have references to other chapters in the book. Now you don't have to turn those pages; the links are all electronic. This is the vision that was in Robert's head when he created this book, and he was years ahead of his time. Technology has finally caught up to his vision.
What's it like to live with a writer? It's inspiring, it's maddening, it's crazy, it's delicious. But RFL is so much more than all of that.
He's the most widely read, creative person I have ever met. Just last night our conversation ranged from disecting current movie and TV fare, to quantum physics and the people and theories behind it (of which I knew little), to what really happened at the advent of the year 2000 (which alternate universe do you live in?). Here he is in his own words.
