Thursday, February 18, 2010

It's a small and creepy world out there...

I've learned just how small of a world the Internet really is this week. Turns out, my recent post about all the cool, free music I got my hands on caused a minor stir at WTMD. What I didn't (and don't in general) consider is that people can set Google alerts on any subject imaginable so that when someone (like me, for example) writes anything about that particular subject, it will show up in their inboxes with a convenient little link to that tidbit of online literature. Or they could just, like, Google it.

As chance would have it, one of the artists whose name I included in this recent blog post of mine saw it and apparently was displeased to hear that WTMD had thrown their album in a "Box o' Crap," as I so eloquently put it, for anyone to take. I can't say I blame them. But hey, they should take it as a compliment that I found it aesthetically pleasing enough to grab and take a listen to!

So how did this get back to me? John was in the WTMD studios following up on a radio show he co-hosted that will be airing in the coming weeks, and one of the guys working there told him. How did HE know? The artist called the studio to see what was up with his/her CD getting thrown in a Box o' Crap! Now, I have no idea how this conversation went. I'm not putting words in anyone's mouth. But said artist told him about the blog, and I guess he looked it up and recognized me from my previous visits to the studio, so he told John who told me. As it turns out, the station simply had multiple copies of the CD and didn't need this particular extra.

What I'm curious about is what artist/band it actually was. That, I don't know. Was it you, Thomas Dybdhal? Or you, miss Caroline Herring? Let me just get this out of the way and list them all in hopes that whoever it was will receive this in their inbox and once again read my blog: Nurses, Crash Kings, Catherine MacLellan, War Tapes, Flea Market Poets, Girls, Black Blondie, Trevor Hall, Black Friday, Peter Bradley Adams. Can you hear me?

Well, whoever it was-- leave me a comment next time! This little blog gets lonesome sometimes, and it's nice to know when someone's reading.

This did get me thinking, though, about what other people might be reading without my ever knowing it. As far as I know, there aren't any creepy dudes stalking or e-stalking me, but there is a pretty big difference between regular stalking and e-stalking. Hell, Facebook epitomizes e-stalking, but at least we control who we're friends with and what they see. This blog is out there for anyone to read. I guess that's the point. But it makes me realize just how careful we all need to be when we write stuff on the Internet, because once it's out there, it's out there forever. Every keystroke we make is recorded somewhere deep and dark on our computers-- it's how police often solve murder cases.

It's also why in the few times I've had my computers repaired, I've been uncomfortably aware of the fact that the repairman could look at every single picture I have if he wanted. It's supposed to be a personal computer, but it's far from it.

So now I address all you potential anonymous readers: do comment should the mood strike. Sometimes I feel like I'm talkin' to myself. Though I guess that would be my fault for not exactly promoting my blog. And by "not promoting" I mean not telling anyone. It is a strange concept sometimes, writing for the uknown interweb public. 'Tis the beauty, I guess, that I can write without taking into great consideration who's reading, but rather what I'm writing. And that, my friends, is what it's all about.

As for you, anonymous musician-- don't lose heart. You never know what campus weirdo is diggin' yo music.

2 comments:

  1. I have a comment. A few, actually, and I am going to number them here. Let's begin.

    1. You are being e-stalked. I know exactly who it is, but since I'm friends with both you AND them, I'm not at liberty to release their name. I can, however, offer a vague description: tall, dark, and missingherbestfriend. :)

    2. Let's make a CD and throw it in WTMD's Box o' Crap. Hellooooh! This could be such fun ... it can be a single! We can write the laziest song (i.e. Bob Dylan, "I Shall Be Free" ... link at the end) record it, and burn copies. Litter your campus with it (without revealing our identity), throw some in the B.o.C., and we can be an anonymous hit!

    3. Don't you dare reject that idea.

    4. Hi, John.

    5. (__(*_)



    I love you more than a dissertation could express.

    http://www.lyricsbox.com/bob-dylan-lyrics-i-shall-be-free-f26wvwt.html

    ReplyDelete
  2. I think we should call our song "Dissertation of Love."

    ReplyDelete