Introducing: Messy Ass Spaces

Not all workspaces can be perfect

Welcome to Both Are True, a 2wice a week newsletter that will fundamentally change how you see the world: Absurd, honest comedy delivered through the vulnerable personal essays of Alex Dobrenko: friend to all, father to one, and tv actor+writer to anyone hiring.

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There’s a trend online or at least in my little corner of the online where fancy important people share PERFECT photos of their IMMACULATE and SLEEK workspaces¹. Everything is shiny and new and quirky! And just so, so clean, like there’s so much empty space between everything?

Sometimes god forbid there are even these photos:

I have nothing against these spaces or the people who share them - I’m sure they are wonderful - I just have never seen one in my real actual life.

My desk and the desks of those I know are absolute shitstorms, explosions of the manic depressive, coffee cups akimbo, boulevards of broken usb cords, etc.

In short: I am a mess and so is my space.

And with that, I am beyond thrilled to share the first installment of Both Are True’s first series: Messy Ass Spaces!!!

I know what you’re thinking - there’s something weird and off about that title - ‘Messy Ass Spaces’ - and you are correct! Because even the title is messy! There are six instances of the letter S in there! I kept looking at it and trying to change it but then I was like wait, the medium is the massage, this is perfect.

So without further adele, I bring you the first of many Messy Ass Spaces - my own.

UPDATE: The response to Messy Ass Spaces has been insane - people love it and they want more of it. MAS will officially be a series so if you would like your space featured, simply email me at messyassspaces@gmail.com!

Alex Dobrenko’s Messy Ass Space

Here’s my desk. It’s a mess.

Classic shot from above, ft. me the artist and owner of the space.

Here’s a close up of the stuff on the desk including my page of doodles. I can’t draw so I just do little arrows. There also is a thing of twenty cards I bought from Paper Source because I have recently decided to become “a greeting card guy”.

In the back left you can see a tintype Lauren gave me a few years ago of her and Robert.

Here’s all my gear:

• bic lighter, incense (not pictured), and incense holder.

• 32 gb thumb drive for some reason

• tongue cleaner I bought on amazon once

• tiny moleskin notebook full of blah blah blah

• yellow case - toenail clippers

• bose headphone case

• purple book written by my friend the great poet Laura Brown Lavoiee - still need to read the book

• old airpod case that says “old” on it - doesn’t work anymore because I put them in the wash

• some old ass adapter that connects a sega genesis to my tv

• checkbook

• another photo of lauren and I - if you look closely you can see its cracked.

• some air freshener stuff I never use

• case of abreva for my cold sores

Here’s a close up look at my gross ass mousepad. And there is a tintype we took for Wilder’s first birthday. We haven’t found a good frame for it so it just sort of sits there.

This is a calculator thing that came with my keyboard. I don’t ever use it but hey its nice to know its there. Also again notice all the crumbs and dirt. Is that bread? I genuinely don’t know what I am eating at the desk that leaves these crumbs.

Here’s a wide shot so you can see that my office is, in fact, in the living room. There is baby Wilder looking at his books. He often walks over to my office to have a chat and see what I’m working on. Also he now will just walk over there when I’m not around and pull random cables, hide hard drives, etc. It’s a classic Jim and Dwight sort of relationship.

Also see that black hard back chair thing on the ground? I bought that for meditation and I think it was a scam because basically every floor + wall can do the same thing.

A look at my awful cable management. Also a box of ink cartridges for a printer we don’t have anymore. Also there’s a pair of Lauren’s birkinstocks down here. We have the same size foot so I can wear her shoes. Actually her foot is bigger but delete this part.

A letter Wilder wrote to me. Given that he’s 1 year old, this is incredible.

I got these little figurines in Austin from Uncommon Objects, a badass vintage shop with weird trinkets galore. They represent me and Lauren as an old Russian babushka and dedushka. They are meant to sit atop the monitor stand - I told Lauren that if the babushka falls, that’s a bad omen for her, and if the dedushka falls, that’s a bad omen for me. And if they both fall, that’s a bad omen for the relationship. They must have fallen weeks ago…Uh oh.

Share Your Messy Ass Space

Do you have a messy ass space that you’d like to share with the world? Now you can! Simply e-mail us at messyassspaces@gmail.com² with the details and/or photos and we’ll feature you in an upcoming newsletter (this is not a joke I am serious send your shit).

Want to support Both Are True? Now you can with a monthly subscription that costs less than whatever the fuck this is.

1. these workspaces feel like the inside of Steve Jobs’ asshole may he RIP. Originally I put this in the actual essay but its a bit ‘hardcore’ so thus I share it only with those crazy enough to brave the footnotes.

2. an actual email address I made this morning!