(Not Quite) Ten New Things I Liked In 2021

This is the time of the year for lists.  Lists of resolutions.  Lists of top ten things liked.  Or disliked.  I’m a list writer, but I don’t write lists of resolutions or things I liked.  My lists are about things I need to do.  Tasks that need performing.  Maybe a list of vinyl LPs that I keep in my wallet if I find myself flipping through a bin of albums.  That’s actually something I’ve found myself doing a lot this year.  I never seem to cross anything off that list, but, flipping through bins of albums, I always seem to find something not on the list that is very list worthy. 

I suppose one of the things I liked in 2021 was the opening of a record store in Pt. Reyes Station.  Loose Joints Records opened in the spring and I’ve already dropped some coin because of such gems as Grace Jones’ “Warm Leatherette,” The Selecter’s “Too Much Pressure,” Elvis Costello’s “Blood and Chocolate.”  None of which were on my want list of albums, but they all could have been. Should have been.

I suppose that want list of albums isn’t really a definitive list.  It’s more like a wish list.  Everyone has a wish list.  You wish for world peace, but, honestly, that ain’t gonna happen.    You wish for it, but really you will accept something close.  Something where forces aren’t lining up across some border or made up line.  Yeah, I’ll take that. 

Hold on.  Let me check that list.  Looks like I can cross off two albums.  Recent finds include Joe Jackson’s “Beat Crazy” and Roxy Music’s “Avalon.”  Now, I’ll wait to see when Top Jimmy & The Rhythm Pigs “Pigus-Drunkus-Maximus” or Nina Simone’s “I Put A Spell On You” show up in the bins.  Before I find one of those two, I’ll probably find something I like by Madness, Neil Young, or Bikini Kill. 

So, ten new things I liked in 2021?  That’s an impossible list for me since everything I like is considered pretty much old or obsolete.  Old bikes. Even the computer I type this on is now 10 years old. If something still works to my questionable expectations, then it’ll keep on serving me.  The bike I rode the most in 2021 was 40 years old in December ’21 .  Used vinyl records.  There’s something about the quality of vinyl that is appealing to me including the subtle imperfections, the cracks and pops, of vinyl.  There’s also something about riding a 40 year old bike that requires more attention from you that is pleasing.  Dropping a needle on a record.  Reaching down to operate a shift lever listening for the quiet that tells you the state of the gear you’re in.    “Siri:  play Opal “Happy Nightmare Baby.”  Yeah, that’s not going to happen.

I suppose I do have a list of intangibles I maintain.

I’ve never owned or worn tie-dye.
I’ve never bought a Red Bull.
I’ve never asked Siri a question.

And so I’ll roll into another year comfortable on the path I’ve laid out for myself.  Free of the distractions of technology that has crept into everyone else’s life.  Happy New Year.

As a side note when I originally wrote this, I typed “2020” everywhere it now shows “2021” and did not notice the error through several revisions and right up to just before I posted, it still showed “2020.” What year is it?

2 responses to “(Not Quite) Ten New Things I Liked In 2021”

1. Dodge Whipple says:

   January 6, 2022 at 5:45 pm

   I get it.

   Reply
2. osbk67 says:

   January 7, 2022 at 1:39 am

   I think world peace is more likely than that people stop wishing for newer bicycles and parts and stuff. Keep up the good work Mike.

   Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.