Dear Ariana,

When you say "gargoyles," I think of a cartoon show that was always on when I got home from school. I didn't like it or watch it. But it's taking up a lil' portion of my brain anyways, and I will probably remember it long after I have forgotten the names of my elementary school teachers.

When you say "I have to write a song for a wedding," I think of the movie Rachel Getting Married, and the part where Tunde Adebimpe sings Neil Young's "Unknown Legend." I first saw that movie at the Moreland Theater in Sellwood, and I always wondered if I loved the movie so much partially because the cute girl who gave me my ticket flirted with me. She said she liked my shirt, and I said thank you, and then she said she liked my jeans too and then I was flustered and said, "Thanks, I got them both off ebay," and she laughed and said, "Oh, I've never bought anything from there before," and I forget what I said after that, but I was in such a good mood I probably could have seen Transformers 2 and it would have been my favorite movie of the year (or maybe Transformers 2 would be so bad it made me retroactively hate the cute ticket girl). Anyways, I remember planning to ask the girl for her number if I saw her on the way out, but I didn't see her. Just the older guy who might have been her dad (I heard it was a family-owned theater). When I walked home, I remember passing a couple middle-aged ladies eating at a table outside of a café and imagining what would happen if I stopped and licked one of them across the face. I wrote a poem about it. I think her forehead tasted like an orange peel.

What other personal memory resurfaced while reading your letter? Well, I have read some Baudelaire, but only so I could reference him in a poem I wrote last year! Here's the first stanza of said poem because because because:

Dear God,

I tried reading Baudelaire

on the recumbent bike in the gym:

Something about the soft

footfalls of the night and how it

trails off to the east like a long and winding sheet—

but the girl jogging in front of me wore black spandex,

and I lost my place

listening to the repetitive motion of her feet.

I just chose Baudelaire because his name sounded very erudite and academic, but I did end up enjoying some of his poetry. It was rather hit-or-miss though, I agree.

High schoolers should watch David Lynch. Do I need to explain that statement? I don't want to.

It grows late! 2:24am. Alas, And I haven't even said anything about improv or my gargoyles or L.A. I think you will write a good song though.

My senior quote was the name of a Books song: "Enjoy your worries, you may never have them again." I still like it.

Oh I ate In N' Out tonight and I shouldn't have because I wasn't that hungry.

Approaching homeostasis! Avoiding homeostasis?

~BRAD~