This post is for all of those who are like me and still buy CD's.  Yes, I still buy CDs and every time I make that statement people look at me like I'm insanely stupid.  A common response I get, "You know you can download music online for free, right?" A common response I give, "You can really download music for free online?"

Being an avid music listener, yes, I'm aware of this phenomena that allows you to download music online free of charge.  Now, I know at times I have some hipster tendencies but I do buy CDs for a number of reasons; and none of them are to be a non-conformist.

The primary reason I buy CDs is to support my favorite artists.  I do it out of respect.  I know that they get obscenely rich from purchases and probably will never recognize that I personally bought their work; but it's respect from one music lover to another.  At the end of the day, it's art that they've put their soul into for the world to hear.  If it is someone who I enjoy and admire, I'm not going to mind purchasing their work.

The second reason I hold on to the archaic act of buying these artifacts people call compact discs is just because I like having the physical copy of an album.  It's very subtle but you feel like you have more of a connection with an artist's work when you have the actual physical copy in your hands.  The underlying theme of technology is to make everything more convenient.  Sometimes, and I think in the case of CDs vs. mp3's, you sacrifice connection for convenience.  You can have the file streamed to your phone, computer, tablet, (watches soon), but it's just not the same as having it on a CD.  I will agree that CDs are useless at parties anymore...although it could prevent that one person (everybody knows that person at parties) from plugging their phone into the speakers and playing some obscure mediocre song that no one knows. 

[most of my friends will feel me on this one] Buying CDs brings me nostalgia.  I remember in 7th grade when Get Rich or Die Tryin' came out.   I walked up to Harmony House and bought the copy.  When I got home I sat at the kitchen table with my Walkman and let it play from beginning to end.  Any of you who listened to that album remember the two quarters that drop on track 1?  CDs just allow you to understand the album as a whole vs. each song individually, and allow you to respect the work more.  

Just like records are to our parents, CDs will be the link to our generation of music. I'd say iPods are too but I think CDs will have a much more personal/human element to our past than a digital library.  Call me a hipster but I think it'll be cool when I'm like 45 and my kids are like, "What is this?" then they pop in Yeezus and are in awe that their dad listened to that type of music.  

This post is related to the video below. If you haven't checked it out yet, peep it before reading this. 

I'm a shoe person.  I love shoes.  I grew up in a culture where shoes were a daily topic of conversation (one brand of shoe in particular).  Having the newest shoes around gave you some sort of status: if you had the new Jordan's you were considered cool or in style, if you didn't well you were just like everyone else, and if you had some Shaq's you were poor.  When the new Jordan's would be released, shoe retailers across the country would be met with mayhem:  people rushing to front doors, camping out, fighting, bringing weapons. All for a pair of overpriced shoes. On one side It's very materialistic and shallow and at times very sad to see how far people will go get their hands on a product. That's the consumerism side.

On the other hand, shoes are a way for people to express themselves, to show their pride, to find their identity.  The person rocking their Kobe's instead of buying the Lebron's to show love for the Mamba.  The girl customizing her shoes to match her blue and orange school colors. The kid who writes "RIP" on the tongues of his Nikes in memory of his late best friend.  These are all ways that people can express their story, who they are, what they stand for. 

For this, I believe that every shoe has a story.  Each Nike shoe made in a sweatshop tells the story of a child shedding blood and sweat at work trying to support their family.  Every pair of Tom's that goes to children in underdeveloped countries gives a story to the kid who never had one. The sweaty hiking boots you brought with you orate the trip when you climbed the Swiss Alps.  Every pair of shoes in existence trace back to a memory in some way.  If you found a pair of your shoes right now I bet you could relate them back to a specific time in your life.  Here's a story of mine:

About two years ago I bought this pair of shoes from Macy's for $20.  They were called 'American Rag.' I didn't even need them.  I just decided to buy them on a whim because I 'needed' a pair of walking shoes, you know, shoes that you really don't care if you scuff or get dirty.  I never thought I would wear them as much as I did.  Those shoes went with me everywhere.

They've traveled with me: they got lost with me in the Frankfurt Airport, they walked with me on the beaches of France, they've stepped foot on the stone floors of a castle built in the 1500s. They've been spilled on so many times, been stepped on by multitudes of people, slipped on bacteria ridden college house basements.  They've walked a lot of miles. They have been my "Ride or Die" kicks; they've been through everything and they're still living. I'm not gonna lie I'm a little attached to them but who doesn't have a pair of their go-to shoes. They're a little worn down, a little seasoned, but they have plenty more to go before the good man takes their sole...(hah get it). They hold a lot of memories.

Yeah, it may sound stupid that I'm blogging about shoes and I might be wasting my time but just think to yourself for one moment about how much of a role those things composed of rubber, canvas, heart, and soul play in our everyday lives.  For the ugly-feet people, our shoes bless us every day! It's a small thing, it's never really thought about, but it's one of those little nuggets of life that helps us to remind ourselves how blessed we are and how wonderful this world really is. Embrace it. 

much love

4.17.