Alexander Payne writes:

A while back I was quoted in a Wired News article about iTunes library sharing. I had totally forgotten about that until this evening.

I parked myself in Murky VA, my lackluster de facto “third place,” and opened up iTunes. Before I hopped on Bassdrive or another streaming station I had a look at the sole shared iTunes music library in a sea of PowerBooks: maria’s music. I browsed. What a fucking music collection. Not in size, not that many albums really. But content-wise, things I’ve not seen outside of, well, my collection: multiple Muslimguaze albums, scads of shoegaze and post-rock, Angelo Badalamenti’s soundtrack to Twin Peaks, for fucksakes.

It had to belong to the girl with dark hair by the counter. I saw her when I got my coffee. Took note, lovely. Her. Her?

There is no music on my PowerBook. I offloaded my library to a drive that is to remain perpetually hooked up to my new Mac mini, serving away at home. Nonetheless, I shared my empty library out under the name maria i sweat your music collection <3.

I waited. I listened to selections from her library: Low, Manual. And then the sound skipped. I flipped to iTunes. Her library title had changed: try_the_new_dalek.

A conversation began, conducted solely by library title, and it continued for the next couple of hours. At one point I offered my AIM screenname, identified myself as the kid with the 3 on the back of his neck. She didn’t talk to me online. She didn’t leave her table to talk to me in the coffee shop. I didn’t dare approach her, personal space and all that. But we kept talking.

She noted, at one point, that I was thieving her music via ourTunes. She noted the application specifically, and by that URL; perhaps she had a clear view of my PowerBook’s display? We exchanged other music recommendations, commented on shows. i don’t know art but i know what i like. But of course.

And then: sorry gotta go. The girl in corner with dark hair packs up and bustles the hell out of there, probably afraid I’d just have to talk to her. Don’t call it social technology.

maria: I have 703.4MB of your music. Beautiful, sad music.

Shared taste means nothing, I tell myself.