Reading one’s horoscope rides high on many folks’ lists of guilty pleasures. Yet somehow, turning to Rob Brezsny (pictured below) for psychic advice has always proved a very rewarding, if no less self-conscious, experience. Brezsny, a man Utne Reader has referred to as a “Culture Hero,” is one of those truly inspired weirdos; he’s been known to pepper his astrological column, “Free Will Astrology” (formerly known as “Real Astrology”), with references to things like Aboriginal folktales and Superstring theory. While his attempts at running for the Santa Cruz (Calif.) City Council (on a platform of legislator mud wrestling matches and yuppie immigration quotas), reverse panhandling (giving money away on street corners–believe it) and becoming a rock superstar (his Jungian beatnik funk band gained some acclaim in the ’80s) haven’t completely panned out, he’s cranked out a novel, The Televisionary Oracle, that ties together many aspects of this renaissance man’s life into a witty, yet strange, love story. The former Durham resident will be back in town to peddle his book at the Regulator Bookshop on Friday, June 2, at 7 p.m. Call 286-2700 for details. —Laura Hatmaker
