How to Go Broke 99 Cents at a Time

Music has always been a huge part of my life. It was instrumental (pardon the pun) in bringing me and Tara together and, to a lesser extent, in driving a wedge between me and the ex. I liked Nirvana, she was into Destiny's Child. In retrospect, we were doomed from the start. At least I … Continue reading How to Go Broke 99 Cents at a Time

I Won’t Tell No One Your Name

It’s December, which means the most wonderful time of the year. The holidays? Nope! Spotify Wrapped. Not everybody feels this way. A lot of people complain about being subjected to an endless social media bombardment of statistics they care nothing about. They say Spotify Wrapped is nothing more than a data aggregator or marketing tool. … Continue reading I Won’t Tell No One Your Name

Less Than Zero

If anybody still doubts I'm living in a COVID bubble out here, Saturday morning I worked a shift in our company booth at the Kids' Carnival in downtown Rapid City, along with Chris and Meghan. Just the fact that we even had a Kids' Carnival is kind of amazing. It was an elaborate affair with … Continue reading Less Than Zero

A Glitch in the System

I opened an email from Spotify this morning that looked harmless enough. Mark, 9 music suggestions for you, the subject line read. Awesome. I love music. I'm always down for suggestions. You listened to Waylon Jennings and Kenny Rogers, it screamed at me. You might like this song. "Did not!" I practically shouted, startling Tara. "Did not what?" she asked. "Umm...nothing." My … Continue reading A Glitch in the System

Are People Still Passionate About Music?

“Are people still passionate about music the way they used to be?” My boss posed this question during a marketing meeting on Tuesday. There were five of us sitting around a table, eating lunch and discussing sales and marketing strategies for the company. This followed a rather heated debate over the significance of traditional retail … Continue reading Are People Still Passionate About Music?