The New "Mix Tape"
I came lately to the Ipod party. I got one right before they evolved from the "clunky" 4 GB monochrome display to the sleeker, color monsters that hold 80 GB or more now, and that was a year or more after the initial overwhelming "gotta have one" furor. Even now, I'm not all that adept at using mine. I don't download podcasts. I only recently considered using it as a delivery device for "books on tape." Honestly, I only started using the Itunes store in February of this year. I'm just not that driven to exploit and become addicted to the next doodad or gadget.
Make no mistake, however. I'm quite fond of my Ipod. There are certain places I wear it constantly, the train being prime location number one. But I'm addicted to my little white friend for one primary reason -- PLAYLISTS. I was one of those supremely geeky high schoolers who made a mix tape for any reason whatsoever. A fight with a friend. A lousy teacher. In honor of a new boyfriend. I even retain possession of some of these time capsules of teenage angst and self-expression caught on spooled magnetic tape! Outrageously embarrassing, yes. But even more so is the slavish devotion to which I apply myself to creating a Playlist.
Sure, I have a few de rigeur, garden variety ones: Work Out. Mood Music. Meditation. But there are only two playlists I named after people. And these rare little gems are my curl-my-toes faves -- collections of music that transport me. They are works of art to me, that say as much about me, personally and intimately as the creator, as they do about the people for whom they are named. And perhaps surprisingly, neither person is an ex. You'll find no "Pine For the Past" here, at least not in that sense.
One of that tracks is named for a friend I lost to AIDS back in 2006. When I listen to this musical collage that I created in his name, from melodies that create him body and soul before me ... well, it's my own way of both grieving him and honoring him. The second track is named for yet another friend. It's an eclectic mix of music that mirrors both the person I know, and the person I suspect lurks within, wrapped in a melodic cloak that speaks of both what is and what might be.
I believe there are millions of ways to create, and for me that includes writing, cooking, gardening, making love, making music, knitting. And yes, making playlists.