wave

The struggle between autonomy and dependency

"If she had found people, if she'd been loved, she would have survived."

"She sees the future and all the beauty and the bloodshed"

"I was shy beyond social phobia, like crippling shyness. It was the only language I spoke at the time. Suddenly I had, you know, a personality, and it gave me a voice."

"Photography was always a way to walk through fear. Taking a picture is kind of protective."

"I was dancing to have money to buy film. Then I started in the whorehouse."

The Velvet Underground & Nico - All Tomorrow's Parties (Restored and Remastered 2021)

“…you learn a lot about someone when you share a meal together. If your date makes the experience uptight and restrictive, well, the sex is going to be horrible too. …I don’t have much patience for people who are self-conscious about the act of eating, and it irritates me when someone denies themselves the pleasure of a bloody hunk of steak or a pungent French cheese because of some outdated nonsense about what’s appropriate or attractive. Stop worrying about how your breath’s going to smell, whether there’s beurre blanc on your face, or whether ordering the braised pork belly will make you look fat. Eating with abandon couldn’t be more of a turn-on: it shows that you’re comfortable with yourself.

A perfect date is with a person who eats without fear, prejudice, or concerns about his or her appearance. I remember one of my first dates with my wife (Ottavia): She ordered a six-pound lobster. I sat there, enraptured, watching her suck every bit of meat from it—she got a standing ovation from the floor staff. She’s the kind of woman who will order filet mignon as an appetizer followed by a T-bone steak. Her fearless, open-minded approach to food is completely alluring. For a dinner date, I eat light all day to save room, then I go all in: I choose this meal and this order, and I choose you, the person across from me, to share it with. There’s a beautiful intimacy in a meal like that. It’s about exploration and taste. And kissing after dinner. And maybe there’s a little wine and curry on your breath…