Rambling Through The Digital Ephemeral, A Memoir
"We do not record flowers," said the geographer.
"Why is that? The flower is the most beautiful thing on my planet."
"We do not record them," said the geographer. "Because they are ephemeral."
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
Introduction
It came up in a conversation with my friend Nick. Such conversations have been happening about every three months at random spurts and inexplicable moments. Late nights talking online or hours before the sun sets on a concert about to give new life to the night. Certain thoughts kick around in my head until I lose them. I get really inspired about a certain element of music, art or culture, or all three at once really. Something about it all has always struck me and stuck with me. And today, after an aimless walk around my neighborhood wearing headphones, I decided to sit down and do something about it. Write about it. My usual.
Nick and I were discussing how unfortunate it is when we hear rapping done terribly over exquisitely composed beats. Normal conversation topic for us. Not quite that in depth of a conversation either, but I couldn't help but start thinking about how songs with that subjective circumstance will eventually get lost. The rapper and producer rise together and fall together. The same relationship is true with a song and a listener. As simple as that. You lose a listener, the music is lost on them. You gain a listener, the music lives within them. Life.
I then asked him if I was too young to write a memoir. He didn't respond. I couldn't help but continue on with the idea. My age has never once been a deterrent before in my writing career, so why should it now? I have stories to tell.
Exactly a decade ago this year, I created my first blog. The domain, the layout, the content. It was the first thing online that was a digital space entirely of my own. 10 years later, I will look you in the face and tell you with conviction that I am a writer. Whatever that means.
This is what I've come up with so far.