I met Michael Scalisi, writer and photographer, in SOHO on July 29, 2010.  First, we went to a Japanese supermarket to drink beers because I needed it.  After the refreshment, I asked him what his romance was.  He said, “All things that are worth anything in life are fleeting. They never remain within your reach for very long.  It can be a relationship, a friend, the scenery, a unique experience. You admire these things and think they are beautiful. But when you are young you take everything for granted. It’s not a character flaw as much as it is characteristic of youth.  As you get older you know to have your eyes open because these great moments are moving quickly.”  I asked him, “do you find your romance when you say ‘good bye’?”  He said, “parting ways with something you are drawn to, have affection for, can be tough. You’re left with a memory of it and you never tire of playing it out in your head, because it’s the only way of keeping it alive. In real life, it can’t be revived. Then there are other things in life, things that you know are going to be forever, like bills, you just get sick of it right away.  Ha ha ha…”
He continued.  “Also impossibility of circumstance in life is very romantic. The idea of a riddle with no solution, a question with no answer… these elements help create a romantic idea as a way of filling in the blanks. Because as far as the wonder of my past, the truth will most likely be less pleasant…. perhaps missing the chance to know who my family is and where I really came from. I guess it’s not sad as much as it is a fact of my life.  The ever present curiosity has fused with impossibility of ever knowing, to create a romantic person in me. It’s suspended childhood, a pause in the adult world for me, forever a kid.”