My Funny Valentine

Sharing a whole lotta love with you

Feb 13, 2025

I have a print of this photo of Charles and Ray Eames over my bedside table. I highly recommend watching Eames: The Architect and The Painter.

Two Hearts Are Better Than One

Valentine’s Day is tomorrow and it got me thinking of something Neil told me over a decade ago that stayed with me: “When you’re in a good relationship, the other person makes you a better person.” That bit of wisdom shared casually over pizza and beer would inadvertently change my life… but that’s a long story.

I was thinking about couples who made each other better—whether for a season or a lifetime—and I gathered photos of my favorite creatives who produced some of their best work thanks to their significant others. At least, that’s what I want to believe.

Stuart Sutcliffe and Astrid Kirchherr’s short but intense relationship was captured in Backbeat.

Diego Rivera and Frida Khalo were like a house on fire. On that note, you must visit The Blue House in Mexico City.

Billy Childish and Tracey Emin, before Emin created the infamous tent

Vita Sackville-West and Virginia Woolf’s relationship inspired Orlando, a book I wish I could get through.

1960s pop art aficionados will enjoy reading about Brooke Hayward and Dennis Hopper’s rollercoaster relationship in Everybody Thought We Were Crazy.

Beat couple Jane and Paul Bowles had a fluid relationship that may have inspired The Sheltering Sky.

Joan Baez and Bob Dylan wrote songs about each other, including Diamonds and Rust and Sad Eyed Lady of the Lowlands.

Henri Matisse and Amélie Noellie Parayre were the original power couple.

Bill Withers and his wife and manager Marcia Withers (right) talk to Frankie Beverly (left). Get inspired to live your best life by watching Still Bill.

We’d never have Je t’aime… mon non plus without Serge Gainsbourg and Jane Birkin.

A Haiku for You

“*Above all, a Haiku must be very simple and free of all poetic trickery and make a little picture and yet be as airy and graceful as a Vivaldi Pastorella*.” - Jack Kerouac

I want to write a haiku for anyone interested in receiving one. All you have to do is fill out this form by the end of the month. There is no cost to participate in this project. However, consider supporting my writing by becoming a paid subscriber! I just started experimenting with this model, and I want to thank the new subscribers who have already opted into this plan.

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Things to Love

Lester Johnson in front of one of his abstract expressionist paintings.

If you’ve been reading my Substack for a while, you know I love lists. Here are some other things I love. What do we share in common?

Easing into your day
A flow state
Spontaneity
Changing light
“Shower thoughts”
An unexpected high-five
Signature style
Robinhood
Discovering a stranger nerds out over the same thing as you
Sleeping while it’s raining
Letters from children
A new pair of shoes (which makes me think of this song by The Briefs)
Crate digging
Morning pages
Anthropic’s Claude
Creosote
The Red Hand Files
A wild laugh
Red
Art by Cy Twombly
Dog snores
Teutonic Wine Company
Peanut butter cookies

Wild at Heart: A Playlist Dedicated to David Lynch

RIP David Lynch. I don’t know about you but my social media feeds blew up when he passed away last month. His passing prompted Dustin and I to watch Mulholland Dr. and Lost Highway, which reminded me that the man loved topless women and great music. We started thinking about the kind of playlist Lynch would appreciate and we came up with this playlist. I just know he would’ve said, “Gosh, that Anita O’Day is great!”

You also get a bonus playlist since I came up with a cozy collection of romantic songs to fit the theme of this newsletter. Until next time!