Year Two

It followed all the rules of physics and so I saw what I saw and very unlikely an optical illusion. Have told this story many times and it has always seemed curious to me, that people who didn't see what I saw are always ever so happy to tell me what I did see which was not a flying saucer.

I have always felt that it was a true flying saucer, and have always been thankful that I got the opportunity to see it. It gives one an opportunity of expanded mental possibilities, with at least some empirical evidence. Sleeping under the stars for eight months travelling all over Europe, I always looked for them but never saw one, only a slow moving satellite now and then. I have seen two for fairly sure since. Back in my teenage days of Illinois, four of us drove out into a farmer's field at night one time to try to call down a flying saucer. We sat silent meditating for at least five minutes. Well one can never know for sure.

I had taken a photography course at the Art Institute. Ford and I set up a dark room in the bathroom, which we painted a dark red for some reason. Ford had bought what was called a Magic Lantern at an antique store. It was an old black metal contraption with glass lenses and a bright light. It would project a drawing or a photograph onto a wall. I used it to project a few of my drawings onto photographic paper in the dark room and develop it as a photograph. Thought I could combine photographs and drawing. Probably could have done something with it, but I lost interest in photography. The exact moment was when I was developing some film, a friend came over and I got involved with him, and forgot that I had film in a developing container. Think I ruined several roles of film.

I don't remember where I met this guy. He was from an original California land grant family. He lived up on Holly Park Circle at Bocanna Street across from the Park. He was a nurse of some kind and he gave me tips for joining the elite, like having my teeth straightened. I was still smoking a pipe some of the time in those days and trying to find some good pipe tobacco that I could afford. He brought me a pipe one time that he said was his grandfather's. I took one puff and gave up pipe smoking from that minute. It was the best puff I could have ever imagined and I knew that I could never duplicate it, so I quit pipe smoking then and there. It was probably as much the pipe perfectly seasoned with good tobacco over many years as anything.

(24 of 46) Next Page