Jean's Universe
The collector from Texas had flown to LAX and rented a car to haul the guns 1,557 miles back to Houston . He picked out a Toyota Camry for both its gas mileage and large trunk space but neglected to mention to the person at the Hertz counter that he would be transporting nearly a hundred rifles and pistols across state lines. When he pulled up at Jean’s place in Culver City , it took him only two hours to inspect the guns, pay Jean and load up the Camry before starting out on his 22-hour drive home. Two days before the collector arrived Jean and I had laid out the guns on tables in her dining and living rooms. I particularly enjoyed the juxtaposition of the table strewn with rifles that sat beneath the Barbara Streisand painting. It fit so well with the alternate universe that Jean inhabits. There are life-sized metal sculptures of a man, a girl and a pig that have been in Jean’s living room for many years. When the gentleman from Texas came inside the house he was rea