The former internet home of Los Angeles writer Tessa Strain.

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strain.tessa@gmail.com

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Essays about the San Fernando Valley:
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http://number1pennumber2thoughts.blogspot.com/

12th April 2011

Photo reblogged from fuckyeahdavidlynch with 138 notes

I saw Eraserhead for the first time a couple months ago. It was kind of a big deal because there had been nearly a year’s worth of buildup, and by the time I actually saw it, the film had acquired a great deal of personal weight for me.
Those of you who don’t know me personally may not be aware that David Lynch has played a pretty big role in my relationship with Geoff. I drove up to LA from school last spring to go to a party at his house the night before the LA Festival of Books, at which David Lynch was doing a signing. What we intended to be buddy/buddy hangout time with the added bonus of meeting one of our favorite directors (Lynch asked me in that delightful voice of his, and I quote “Would you like a little bit of gold?” as he signed my sketchbook) ended up being an unintentional first date. Auspicious start, no?
So far so good.
The first text I got from Geoff following this was about Eraserhead, saying that we should watch it together next time we hung out (neither of us having yet seen it). Which we never quite got around to doing. The watching Eraserhead, not the hanging out. We did a lot of that. Plans to watch Eraserhead together became plans to watch Eraserhead over the phone once he moved to New York, and again, we didn’t quite get around to it. Then in February, I came to visit. It was a great time, and we ate a lot of pizza, as one is apt to do in New York. We were together over Valentine’s day, having all kinds of fun around the city before going home for the evening. At which point we had a great idea.
“Wouldn’t it be fun,” we mused collectively (conversation condensed into single quotation for the ease of the reader), “if we finally watched Eraserhead together?”
O wretched young lovers (as my elementary Latin reader might phrase it), you do not understand the foolishness of your plan (I swear, some variation on this sentence appeared in every. single. story)!
Those of you who have seen Eraserhead can surmise, I’m sure, why this was such a comically misguided idea, but also why it would have been even more comically misguided during the burgeoning stages of our (really any) relationship. At no point were either of us under the impression that it was any kind of date movie, but we were little prepared for the sheer depth of grotesqueness to which we were about to bear witness. In short, it was one of the most unspeakably horrifying movies I have ever seen (remember, this is coming from a huge David Lynch fan, so calibrate accordingly!), and we both spent most of it tense and nauseated, and thank god we ate our dinner first, and then we also had to watch The Omen afterward as a kind of mental palate cleanser. (Have you seen The Omen? It’s really good and creepy, and Gregory Peck rocks some super inspiring fashions, you should check it out.)
So basically it was the most romantic thing that ever happened in the history of all time.

I saw Eraserhead for the first time a couple months ago. It was kind of a big deal because there had been nearly a year’s worth of buildup, and by the time I actually saw it, the film had acquired a great deal of personal weight for me.

Those of you who don’t know me personally may not be aware that David Lynch has played a pretty big role in my relationship with Geoff. I drove up to LA from school last spring to go to a party at his house the night before the LA Festival of Books, at which David Lynch was doing a signing. What we intended to be buddy/buddy hangout time with the added bonus of meeting one of our favorite directors (Lynch asked me in that delightful voice of his, and I quote “Would you like a little bit of gold?” as he signed my sketchbook) ended up being an unintentional first date. Auspicious start, no?

So far so good.

The first text I got from Geoff following this was about Eraserhead, saying that we should watch it together next time we hung out (neither of us having yet seen it). Which we never quite got around to doing. The watching Eraserhead, not the hanging out. We did a lot of that. Plans to watch Eraserhead together became plans to watch Eraserhead over the phone once he moved to New York, and again, we didn’t quite get around to it. Then in February, I came to visit. It was a great time, and we ate a lot of pizza, as one is apt to do in New York. We were together over Valentine’s day, having all kinds of fun around the city before going home for the evening. At which point we had a great idea.

“Wouldn’t it be fun,” we mused collectively (conversation condensed into single quotation for the ease of the reader), “if we finally watched Eraserhead together?”

O wretched young lovers (as my elementary Latin reader might phrase it), you do not understand the foolishness of your plan (I swear, some variation on this sentence appeared in every. single. story)!

Those of you who have seen Eraserhead can surmise, I’m sure, why this was such a comically misguided idea, but also why it would have been even more comically misguided during the burgeoning stages of our (really any) relationship. At no point were either of us under the impression that it was any kind of date movie, but we were little prepared for the sheer depth of grotesqueness to which we were about to bear witness. In short, it was one of the most unspeakably horrifying movies I have ever seen (remember, this is coming from a huge David Lynch fan, so calibrate accordingly!), and we both spent most of it tense and nauseated, and thank god we ate our dinner first, and then we also had to watch The Omen afterward as a kind of mental palate cleanser. (Have you seen The Omen? It’s really good and creepy, and Gregory Peck rocks some super inspiring fashions, you should check it out.)

So basically it was the most romantic thing that ever happened in the history of all time.

Tagged: david lynchmotion picturesshut up about your boyfriend

11th April 2011

Chat with 2 notes

Hey, I'm trying

  • Me: I should work on being less of a misanthrope.
  • Geoff: Yeah. But people also just need to be better.

Tagged: shut up about your boyfriendconversations between glum 20somethings

15th March 2011

Photo reblogged from KiNdAfaBuLous with 171 notes

kindafabulous:

THAT SMIRK.

May or may not have posted this on Geoff’s Facebook wall with the instructions: “For your inspiration board.”

kindafabulous:

THAT SMIRK.

May or may not have posted this on Geoff’s Facebook wall with the instructions: “For your inspiration board.”

Tagged: shut up about your boyfriendyou are all free to use this for your inspiration boardsand if you don't have one it's a good place to start

16th February 2011

Photo reblogged from Geoffrey is Working with 4 notes

geoffreyisworking:

Taken with instagram

My Valentine’s Day started off with this here Batman Pez Dispenser and ended with The Omen, so I’m gonna go ahead and call that one a success.

geoffreyisworking:

Taken with instagram

My Valentine’s Day started off with this here Batman Pez Dispenser and ended with The Omen, so I’m gonna go ahead and call that one a success.

Tagged: holidaysbatmanmotion picturesshut up about your boyfriend

Source: geoffreyisworking

6th February 2011

Photo with 4 notes

Here is a picture of Geoff and me at our most attractively downtrodden.
For those of you who wonder what it’s like being in a cross-continental long distance relationship, it’s some combination of this and this. But as of tomorrow morning, I will be jetting off to New York to visit that handsome fella in the glasses, and it will be a lot more like this.
So I probably won’t be posting too much over the coming week (not that I have been terribly prolific of late), since I will be occupied with makeouts and pizza (likely not at the same time, but who knows? choosing is for suckers).

Here is a picture of Geoff and me at our most attractively downtrodden.

For those of you who wonder what it’s like being in a cross-continental long distance relationship, it’s some combination of this and this. But as of tomorrow morning, I will be jetting off to New York to visit that handsome fella in the glasses, and it will be a lot more like this.

So I probably won’t be posting too much over the coming week (not that I have been terribly prolific of late), since I will be occupied with makeouts and pizza (likely not at the same time, but who knows? choosing is for suckers).

Tagged: shut up about your boyfriendtravelfeelings

4th January 2011

Quote with 2 notes

My look right now is, quite literally ‘sweatpants, hair tied, chillin’ with no makeup on.’ If Drake were here, I’d have to fight him off with a stick.
— Me, on the phone with Geoff. Between being in a long-distance relationship and having to look hip at my job, my leisure time fashions are getting mad sloppy.

Tagged: outfitsshut up about your boyfriend

16th November 2010

Chat with 4 notes

Phone call from the LA zoo

  • Me: I've decided what I want.
  • Geoff: What's that?
  • Me: A baby komodo dragon!
  • Geoff: I'm sorry, but I don't think I'm biologically equipped to do that for you.

Tagged: a little early in the relationshiop to be talking about komodo dragonsshut up about your boyfriend

14th November 2010

Quote

Maybe I’ll buy something cold. Maybe I’ll buy this pie. But pies are warm…
— Sometimes Geoff calls me while grocery shopping.

Tagged: shut up about your boyfriendpie

12th October 2010

Quote

Astronauts are fucking heroes for eating that shit.

Geoff, after tasting Space Ice Cream for the first time since grade school.

You guys, I guarantee you Space Food is not as good as you remember it being.

Tagged: spacefoodspace foodshut up about your boyfriend

29th September 2010

Quote with 1 note

If I were giving out awards, I’d give this an Emmy.
Geoff, on the subject of the Emmy-winning Batman: The Animated Series episode “Heart of Ice”

Tagged: batmangreat moments in self-evidenceshut up about your boyfriendtelevision