Marilene and I had spent a great deal of time at the cemetery....at Rudy’s crypt. My quasi-journal continues.
I slept well last night. But the time change is still getting to me. I read until about 9PM and was so sleepy I had to turn off the light. But then, I woke up at a quarter to 5 in the morning. I dozed until 5:30, but was wide awake, so I got up.
Marilene and I are going to Chateau Marmont for lunch. That is our only plan for today until we go to Yamashiro’s for dinner. We’re going to meet Whitney and have dinner with her. Then tomorrow, I’m hiring a car for the day, so we can see something without having to deal with taxis. The cabs here are horrible.
5:00PM....Marilene just called. She said something about going to Grauman’s Chinese Theater. Evidently, Whitney has some ideas of a couple of places to go after dinner. This evening should be interesting.
Friday, May 15:
We had a fabulous dinner last night. Whitney is wonderful. She is one of the bravest people I have ever met. (Whitney unexpectedly lost her eyesight. She is amazing. I’m not sure how I would deal with a horrible blow like that.)
We ate at Yamashiro’s, a Japanese restaurant way up in the hills. After dark, the panoramic view of LA with all the lights on was spectacular. We tried to go to Grauman’s after dinner, but there was a premiere of some movie. Christian Bale was there. Talk about a crowd! Huge search lights lit up the sky. You couldn’t get near the place.
Thank God, we don’t have to depend on cabs. Today, I am going to see the place where I/she spent 12 magical days in 1926. Where Falcon Lair used to be.
It started with the car. A beautiful, black Denali pulled up. Our driver, Steven, could not have been more perfect for the day we had planned. It was going to be so nice when we picked up Whitney and her friend, Robert, the man who had lived at Falcon Lair for a year. He was marvelous.
But before we picked them up, we took another trip to the cemetery. When Steven drove us to the cemetery, he was shocked. First, he thought he’d be taking us shopping all day......WRONG! He was also surprised because after living in LA for 19 years, he had no idea the cemetery existed.
I didn’t have any problems with grief at the crypt this time. My only problem was NOW I didn’t want to leave him. I walked away from the crypt twice, only to turn back. Silly. In the beginning, Marilene had to fight to get me to go there, then she had to fight to get me to leave. We did some other grave sightseeing. We saw Cecil B. DeMille’s tomb. It’s very impressive as you would expect. Marilene and I both felt a definite cold spot by the tomb.
We left the cemetery and drove to Whitney’s house in Laurel Canyon where we picked up Whitney and Robert. Robert was a famous dancer and choreographer. He choreographed the film, “Gypsy”. He and his wife were good friends with Doris Duke who owned Falcon Lair for a while. She asked them to live at the estate for a couple of years which they did. She wanted the property occupied when she wasn’t there. (I am sorry to say that it was Doris Duke who started selling off chunks of the estate instead of keeping it whole. She let the stables go first. What a shame.)
Robert is a charming, older man. He has many stories, not of Rudy, because he didn’t know him, but Hollywood stories. We left Whitney’s and headed to Falcon Lair in Beverly Hills. When we turned up Bella Drive, I thought I was going to faint. Memories came flooding back. I got light headed for a little while. I was crushed when I saw that the beautiful wrought iron gates had been replaced with horridly ugly solid steel ones. The place looked like a fortress. It was then that the anger began to build in me.
(Marilene quickly shot this photo at Falcon Lair. Spirit told her to start shooting pictures. Good thing, cause we weren’t there very long. Look at the lower center of the photograph. You’ll see the mist. My jaw hit the floor the first time I saw this.)
We hadn’t been there very long till a groundskeeper came out to ask us what we were doing. Evidently, we’d set off alarms and motion sensors. (See what I mean about the fortress?)
I felt very frustrated. I was completely shut out. I also picked up very quickly that Rudy was furious. I now know that my anger was coming directly from him. (If any of you know anything about body language, look at my posture and my stride in the next photo that Marilene took. You’ll see the anger I’m carrying!)
I was very glad to leave there. Unfortunately, the drive back down Bella Drive was worse than the drive up. Too many memories!
Whitney came up with a great recommendation for a restaurant for lunch. The Inn of the 7th Ray. It is up in Topanga Canyon. It was beautiful and so peaceful, perfect for the four of us to talk. I really needed the respite!
On the way back to Whitney’s house, we were stopped at a light. Robert leaned over to me and asked me if Rudy had had a funeral Mass in LA? I said that yes, of course he had.....a large high Mass at the Church of the Good Shepherd. As soon as I said the name of the church, Robert pointed out my window. We were stopped right in front of it. I just smiled at him and said, “Nicely done.” (I have since been back to LA and went into the church. I didn’t stay for Mass, but some day I intend to. It is a beautiful church, and looks exactly like the pictures from 1926.)
Saturday, May 16:
I was hoping that the physical manifestations of this trip, especially yesterday, would not appear until I got home. I was wrong. I got up this morning coughing with attendant gut problems. Plus, my feet hurt so badly I wanted to cry. I know I’m not sick, this is all the result of tumultuous emotion. A final purging, if you will.
I didn’t sleep well again last night. I can’t get my contacts in. My eyes simply will not accept them. I just spoke to Marilene. She had a bad night, too. Actually it was worse than mine!
I finally got my contacts in!
I’m struggling to find the words to describe yesterday. How do you describe the indescribable?
This day turned out to be a day of rest for me. I stayed in my room and kept shoes off my feet. I needed a day! Marilene stayed in her room, but she had several readings booked.
That evening, Marilene, Whitney and I had dinner together on our last evening in LA. We ate at the hotel, but on the terrace by the pool. It was so lovely. Then it was back to the room to pack. Leaving here is going to be very hard.
Sunday, May 17:
It was an uneventful trip home. I didn’t want to leave. It is going to take some time to process everything that happened during this amazing trip.
On the plane, I had a new experience. I was thinking about Rudy and everything that happened when I got an uncontrollable urge to write. I grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. The only thing I can say is that Rudy, always the poet, dictated while I wrote.
“The only thing that has changed, my dear, is that we are closer, as close as we can be until the day you come to me.”
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