It was only a matter of time

iPod Wars

While I've neither initiated nor engaged in any such showdowns, I'd be lying if I said that something like this hadn't been lingering in the back of my mind since I first bought a Walkman. "I better have a cool tape in here in case someone in school asks me what I'm listening to: Hmm, how about the Moody Blues..."

It never really stopped. When I'm meeting a friend for dinner, I will self-consciously tailor my CD player selection...just in case: "Oh this? It's an advance of the new American Music Club album."

I have a friend who displays albums just in case Peter Buck should wander into his apartment and appraise his record collection, which numbers in excess of 5,000 CDs. Sure enough, while while he's several steps down food chain, Ken Stringfellow is a regular visitor to his home. And on his last visit, my friend left Ken alone in his apartment while he ran some errands. When my friend returned, Stringfellow had queried my friend on a Big Star bootleg in his collection. "I never saw this before," Stringfellow said. And he plays in the band!

I have often imagined the conversation that would take place if I were ever killed in a car crash.

Officer: Mrs. Caney? We have some bad news. Your husband was in an accident. He's dead.
My wife: Oh my God...
Officer: There's something else, Mrs. Caney.
My wife: (sob)
Officer: On his iPod? "Mull Of Kintyre."
My wife: Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!