Sun. Aug. 8 

I spent some time with the works of Edgar Cayce back in the late-'80s, intrigued. I'm equal parts Penn Gillette and The Skeptical Inquier - all this psychic stuff is bunk - and UFO-lologist and ghost story nut. Two parts I can't quite reconcile, and I'll give either side the nod, when properly persuaded to so and then swing back to my determined conflicted status vis-a-vis the supernatural. Why do I bring this up? The latest e-mail from guitarirst and buddy Asa Brebner (Modern Lovers, Chartbusters, Family Jewels, solo artist). "I was standing in the Goodwill in Davis Square," says Asa, "when I decided to give Edgar Cayce another chance. The book beckoned me. The ghost of Wayne Viens was standing next to me whispering in my ear and I want you to know - thank god, he is not even dead, he just gifted me his Iphone... Suffice it to say it was one of those moments when all elements collide- Time, space.. and why not?  In my own way I became 'unstuck in time' The people who first introduced  Edgar Cayce to me  ARE dead. Except (barring an unforseen incident), Mickey Clean.
  Steeped in atheist lore, I always dismissed him (Edgar) as another snake oil perveyor .  Closer now to the end than to the beginning,  I am prone to these existential paroxysms of vanity as a matter of course. Beware of the man who offers you a reward in this life or the next!  There are no atheists in foxholes as my father, Win Brebner, so simply, pointed out... My Father, though an atheist , left me open to the impossible.
 God rest his soul..
 Anyway - to those who don't know who Edgar Cayce is - He was a famous psychic born in 1877 who captivated the nation(or those who are interested in such entertainments) for his brief time on earth. He made a living divining peoples problems during the depression and we have many speculative documents to attest to that fact. He was known in the tabloids as " the sleeping prophet  ". I am really jealous of anybody who makes money while sleeping. As far as the supernatural goes The Christian God may exist -so might the gods of Olympus or  the ones of some now extinct African sub country. All these representations of fundamental reality are beyond the possibiltiy of this humble bimbo proving or disproving them.
  Unfortunately, since they all disagree, only one can  be right. The improbable is here. Unfortunately I can see why people believe in god but their fashion choice makes me blush. An old drunk crying from his perch at the subway stop... Where are you?
 I can tell you that when one searches for meaning - you need to look no further than your heart.
 Does the absence of god make a burning sunset any less beautiiful? The pang of a lover's goodbye any less filled with sorrow?
 I think it is only the human ego demanding the option of permanence that continues to plague us. Its all about ego management..
 And that brings me back to Edgar Cayce... I predict: I am going to play Toad on Sunday night July 18 with Billy Loosigian (of Willie Alexander and the Boom Boom Band, Real Kids and Nervous Eaters fame) and Kevin Shurtleff (of Scissorfight fame). Starts at 9. Free.

1920 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, 617-497-4950 www.toadcambridge.com