elonwoman Maybe we thought we were over it, or should be, as though time has the right to make rules for our hearts. Nope. Our love still burns for the love that burned us, which seems unhealthy when you see it written down, but makes pure and perfect sense when you hear James Ingram and Michael McDonald—backed by Ambrosia—sing “Just  Can’t Let Go.“ 

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Oh, what’s the matter baby? Is the truth too hard to hear?
Well, I think you know I’m not the one who lied
And now it’s all behind us and we both play out our lives
But the years don’t change the way I feel inside

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There’s no denying the source of our sizzle, proof of which was provided again today by our intense reaction when someone mentioned his  queerly erotic name … Elon Musk … and to descriptions of his dreamy car … Tesla … and mostly to the implications about us contained in today’s big news about him … fuck-YOU … which came through loud and clear—swear-to-God we heard it—during the radio report that Governor Jerry Brown is in town and giving a speech at the world premiere of Elon Musk’s Tesla Model X.

In the moment of reflection after that bulletin came through, well, we knew we shouldn’t, but we just couldn’t help but dwell on the news report we might have heard if things had turned out, you know … differently, if they had turned out like we were oh-so-close to promised.

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I gave to you my heart and soul
Now I just need to let you know
You’re part of me that I just can’t let go.

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If only Elon Musk’s just-this-side-of-disturbingly elfin head had not been turned on that fateful May 20 of 2010, just as he seemed ready to propose—although Elon had seemed ready since Nov. 23, 2009, when Downey Mayor Mario Guerra told me a deal with Tesla was imminent—then Gov. Brown would be giving tonight’s speech in a town named “Downey” or “Long Beach.” Instead, it’s “Hawthorne.”

Yeah, Hawthorne! No? Oh yeah, that’s right, my bad—Hawthorne is where Tesla has its Los Angeles Design Studio … oooh, looky: on Rocket Road! Pretty sure that means they wouldn’t have thrown tonight’s big premiere party in Downey or Long Beach. But we can still thank God they’re not having it in Fremont, the where-the-hell-is that seduced Elon even as he finalized plans to pledge his troth, and then pushed him to make the announcement before telling Downey and Long Beach about the change of plans.

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Well, tell me something baby,
Is there still something inside
To remind you of the way it used to be?
And how the years they go by
Still there’s something I must say
No one ever could have loved you more than me.

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Oh, Elon! Sweet fool! He apologized, remember? Did it in an e-mail with the subject line: DOWNEY IS AWESOME. Remember what he wrote? Sure you do: “I had planned to call Downey before the press conference, but unfortunately Tesla Ad 03 the news was accidentally leaked and the first [Downey] heard about it was from the press. For that, I am very sorry.”

It seems Elon still believed he could still manipulate us—and with such a transparent ploy! Ha! Yet … can we know that for sure? Because he clearly had to be digging deep into his heart when he added this: “I loved the Downey plant and the people of Downey from the moment I first visited. They could not have been more welcoming and spared no effort to make Downey work as a home for Tesla.” In fact, it seems as though Elon was already missing us, hoping that the future might provide us with a way to rekindle the fire of talking about kindling a fire: “If [Downey] is still available down the road, when SpaceX needs to expand or I start the electric jet venture, I will go there myself.”

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So I’m passin’ time now
Wishin’ you were mine now are you missin’ me?
Well you know it’s not too late
Oh, how long must I wait

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After reading how Elon spilled his guts like that, it seems rather small for Downey or Long Beach to bemoan the chance to attend a party for the Model X cars it would have built for him.

teslamodelxteaser Yeah, Model X! No? Oh yeah,  right, my bad—the car that Downey and Long Beach were competing (and Fremont conniving) to build was the Model S all-electric sedan. Tonight’s big premiere is for the Model X. No doubt that  means there’s no way the Jerry Brown-accessorized coming out party would have been in Downey or Long Beach. But wanna  bet Long Beach Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal and Downey jabberwocky Mario Guerra would have found a way to get past security?

They wouldn’t have to get past his wife, anymore. Last month, Elon announced via Twitter—not like that tacky e-mail he sent to Downey—that he and British actress Talulah Riley are divorcing after four years of marriage. That makes two unsuccessful trips to the altar for Elon, but it’s not like he hasn’t learned something from them—at least according to what he told Hannah Elliott of Forbes:

“I think the foundation of love is virtue,” Musk said, noting such qualities as hard work, sacrifice and excellence. “To the degree that someone has the sort of things that you intrinsically feel are virtuous then your love will increase. It’s the idea that what you as an individual truly perceive as virtue–not what others want you to perceive or what you think society wants you to perceive but what you really perceive as virtue–is the essential part of the person. What lies within their heart.”

See? That’s … something.

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Everywhere I go there’s a memory
If you can’t decide on me
Well, you gotta make up your mind
‘Cause some day you’re gonna find
You just might need me

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Anyway, the point is that a lot of people in Downey and Long Beach are hurting today—consumed by memories of hope and betrayal and heartbreak as confounding as the day their promising love affair with Elon Musk and Tesla was revealed to be a sham—even though they thought they were over it and time says they ought to be … and even though, in this case, there’s no logical reason they should hurt at all.

It’s as though this February has an extra Valentine’s Day.