David Lynch's Advice · Nov 1, 06:48 PM

The new David Lynch documentary is pretty great. One thing he said was revelatory to me though. David Lynch says that we are our most creative when we are most positive. He doesn’t like to go to a dark bar when he could go to a bright café to write. There is no glory in misery. And, I never want to be down. I like the sun and smiles and places with positive people, so thanks for a push in the right direction, David.
I was sitting in a crummy Irish bar off of Wall Street when I thought of David’s advice. Fat dudes with Bass Pro t-shirts were playing Golden Tee, skinny old drunk guys were sipping vodka drinks and I was drinking a Guinness and writing an essay. I left right away, thinking of David Lynch, “Go where the light is.”

Later that night I failed again and went to the Pussycat. I didn’t have to be creative though, plus it was Halloween and I wanted to see what kinds of costumes the girls would be wearing. Lots of witches. I was just going in to say hi to Lynn. She was dressed up as a plant being pollinated. She had a little bee hat on that she made for her daughter’s 4th birthday party, which was 17 years ago. We started talking and she poured me a whiskey. Then she asked if I wanted to drive to Ohio with her to see her daughter in her college’s performance of A Streetcar Named Desire.) She told me that she figured how much it would cost to rent a car, support me on the trip and pay me for what I’d lose by taking the time off work. I would do it in a second because she told me about three people she thought I should interview in Indiana, but I don’t want to take the time off of work and my friend Nick is coming in from London next week. About six months ago she told me to interview this guy George Weiner who supplied all the mirrors in the club (there are a lot of them). This guy was so awesome. I met him in Williamsburg; we had dinner and he told me about his grandfather who used to walk around his tiny village in Poland with a backpack full of glass and knock on people’s doors who had broken windows. This grandfather came to NYC and started a glass company on Hudson Street. George’s dad took over, moved the store to Mott Street. George was studying at NYU and when he finished he took over the business and built it into the super power it is today. (I got a tour of the warehouse where I shot like 50 photos). After the interview George drives me around Williamsburg pointing out the new buildings that are being built that he’s supplying with windows, and the ones that someone else is supplying. He told all these great stories from his childhood, family vacations and everything. In the middle of transcribing the interview though my ipod (what I use to record interviews) broke. It just broke, that frowning face came up one day when I went to turn it on and when I brought it to the Genius bar they informed me that there is nothing they can do. I lost George’s story.
I’m not going to go to Ohio but we talked for a while longer and then three R. Kelly songs came on in a row, including the one he did with Nas in like 1999. I stayed for one more whiskey, talked to Julien who works the door. I’ve been shooting photos of him every day I see him and am going to interview him soon. Yesterday when I complimented his fur-lined leather jacket he told me about buying it in Fremont, California. He got it four years ago and that kid on the last episode of the Irv Gotti reality show was wearing something similar to it; Julien is styling hard.
Continuing on Halloween, I went up to my friend Whitney’s place. She cooked sweet potato fries, sting beans with sunflower seeds and tofu with some ginger sauce. We had a bottle of brut and talked and talked. Pretty awesome but she has no tunes at her new apt. on Delancey Street. She just moved here from D.C. I’m going to give her Lavender Diamond, Belle and Sebastian, “Push Barman to Open Old Wounds,” the When we Were Kings soundtrack, the Cult “Love,” and Zwan, “Mary Star of the Sea.” Those are all the c.d.‘s I have at work.
Then I walked to my cousin Whitney’s place and hung out and drank champagne with her and Todd. Todd had been to a sample sale on 57th and 6th earlier that day and he bought tons of great stuff, sweaters, and trench coats, and vests. He’s a business man and he gave me some sound advice for the things to come.
I stopped by the Gold Bar on Broome. Didn’t go in but wished Blake and the Polish girl whose name I can’t remember, who work the door a Happy Halloween. The Polish girl grew up in Des Plaines, IL not far from where I grew up. If you wanna get up in the hot club brush up on your Polish. (Hello is Dzien dobry. How do you do is Jak sie masz, but you know that one from Borat. I’m thirsty is Chce mi sie pic.) Then I walked the four blocks back to my house and instead of going home, had a glass of wine across the street from my apartment at one of those cheesy places on Mulberry that advertises the best cannoli in the world. I’d never been to one. I looked at all the photos on the wall then left and walked upstairs to my place. It was only 2 so I did a little writing, paced the apartment and finally gave up on the day.
I’m getting too excited though because my brother Chris is coming to town 20 hours from now. Can’t get too crazy though because he’s running the NYC marathon on Sunday.

— Young Philosopher

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