Self-Loathing Nighttime Conversations

"It is hard to laugh at the need for beauty and romance, no matter how tasteless, even horrible, the..."

Thu, 03 Jul 2008 17:17:00 -0400

“It is hard to laugh at the need for beauty and romance, no matter how tasteless, even horrible, the results of that need are. But it is easy to sigh. Few things are sadder than the truly monstrous.”

- Nathanael West, “The Day of the Locust”

One Reason

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:29:44 -0400

Her: How do people end up in relationships in this city?
Me: I don't know. I think it's because they need an excuse to quit their coke habits.

I'm In Like With You

Tue, 01 Jul 2008 11:14:00 -0400

[Kissing.]
Me: I like you.
Her: Okay.
Me: So what does that mean? In terms of weird NYC dating conventions?
Her: I don't know. I already follow you on Twitter.

The War

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 16:55:00 -0400

Me: The commenters are winning.
Him: To the victors go the spoils.
Me: That's grim.

Internet Heroes

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 16:14:22 -0400

Me: We get the heroes we deserve.
Her: Fuck you, I deserve better.

Catch Phrases

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 20:56:00 -0400

Her: You're describing "serial monogamy," right?
Me: No, I hate that phrase. It sounds banal, scientific. Not only is it completely without passion, but it's also lost its meaning.
Her: What?
Me: It's true. It was once the perfect description of something, but that something is now gone.
Her: So what is it now?
Me: "Microlove."
Her: Yeah, that will catch on.

Transparency

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 15:23:00 -0400

Me: I have a new Tumblr. It captures all my self-loathing.
Her: It looks more like it captures all your self-mythologizing.
Me: I hate you.

Feel It

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 15:01:00 -0400

[Sleep. Almost.]
Her: What is it you want?
Me: Like everyone else, to feel something.
Her: Really? I don't want to feel anything.

Mind the Age Gap

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 14:56:00 -0400

Her: She's 23. Isn't she supposed to be back-packing across Europe or something right now?
Me: No, she's too busy trying to take over the world, not experience it.
Her: These millennials -- they're different than us.

A Linguistic Cliche

Sat, 28 Jun 2008 03:20:00 -0400

Me: I made out with a cute 23-year-old girl with a Tumblr last night.
Him: Every part of speech of that sentence is redundant.

Mattering

Fri, 27 Jun 2008 15:46:33 -0400

Me: I secretly want someone to write the novel about this scene. I want someone to prove that all of this matters.
Him: The book on the scene is already out there -- it's written on all the blogs and illustrated by Flickr.

Originality

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 20:17:00 -0400

Me: The blogging scene is just a gigantic conspiracy to prove that "self-loathing" and "arrogant" are actually synonyms, not antonyms.
Her: You've already said that to me. Twice.
Me: My material is getting weak.

No Fun

Thu, 26 Jun 2008 16:33:32 -0400

Me: I made the mistake of showing you my Tumblr while drunk last night.
Her: I remember.
Me: I'm sorry.
Her: Why are you trying to go all Gould-Lodwick on me?

Reblogging

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 20:06:00 -0400

Me: I tried to compare reblogging and dating on Twitter today.
Her: How'd that go?
Me: Oh, you know Twitter -- deep conversations erupted.
Her: What's your theory?
Me: Both are about aggregating, affiliating, churning, repurposing.
Her: Do you count your reblogs?
Me: Now you're catching on.

LOL

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 19:39:00 -0400

[Not a chat session.]
Me: I hate the Facebook status thing.
Her: Yes, everyone does.
Me: But I think it's fascist.
Her: You don't think "It's complicated" fills in the blanks?
Me: It's all fucking complicated!
Her: LOL.

Your Other Number

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 18:59:46 -0400

[Couch]
Me: Remember when people used to ask each other how many people they've slept with?
Her: No.

Hookup Culture

Wed, 25 Jun 2008 15:39:27 -0400

[Drunk]
Me: I've finally figured it out.
Her: Oh, this should be good.
Me: It's called "Hookup Culture." That's what we're living in.
Her: You need a name for this?
Me: I do. But only because it's different.
Her: Is it?
Me: Yes! I think you're too young to realize that.
Her: My innocence is shattered.

Happiness

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 23:09:46 -0400

[Bed.]
Me: Are you happy?
Her: Would you please quit asking me that?

The Scene

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 22:47:00 -0400

[Drinks. A small group, giving advice.]
Her: You need to date outside the scene.
Me: Should I be taking notes?
Him: It's true. Date outside the scene.
Me: Is this a maxim?
Her: Always date outside the scene.
Me: I promise you that I will date outside the scene. And inside the scene.

Alleys

Tue, 24 Jun 2008 22:28:00 -0400

[Drinks.]
Me: Do people go on dates here?
Him: Sure.
Me: I don't believe you. I think people just make out in alleys.
Him: Now I know you're full of shit. New York doesn't have any alleys!
Me: Well, everything feels like an alley.