A Return to Apple’s Orchard

I admittedly had gone astray from the Apple of my youth. While I grew up on all things Apple, and came from a household where my father heralded Apple over all else, I was forced into a PC way of life after leaving college, nearly a decade ago. Like a good worker bee, I simply worked with whatever machines my various employers placed before me. Occasionally, I was able to sneak some time with an Apple of some variety or other: there was the short radio production stint (Apple, Pro Tools and a massive sound system), and then helping out the Web guy at the nightclub and collaborating with the graphic designer on marketing materials. Beyond that, I sat in front of a slew of Windows and grew accustom to their left click, right click methodology.

But just a few short weeks ago, my big brother reluctantly handed over his iPod to me as he left for a year-long trip. Yeah, ok, so I am a little behind the times. Nearly everyone knows about and has an iPod. What can I say?  I had a baby. I was a little busy. But as one who had yet to experience it, I just saw a glorified Walkman. Silly me. With 2,200+ songs already loaded in, I was able to intimately rediscover songs that I forgot I loved.

But, as a 9 to 5 commuter (ok 8 to 5, even worse) I have a confession to make. I feel a little silly with my iPod on the train. I pride myself on being my own person. Who doesn’t, right?  But what I mean is, I hate to be like everyone else. I would rather be contrary, just to be contrary. Ask my mother. So being another one of those iPod-ers on the train just irks me a little bit. (Though I must admit solitaire saved me and my sanity just a wee bit yesterday, giving me much needed patience and distraction from the commuter crush after a train broke down and made commuting just downright evil.)

But that’s the shift in the Apple world these days. It’s like the 80s resurgence. Apple by no means ever went away. Graphic designers, web designers, recording artists (like my husband) and crafty folks of all kinds have been hunched over their Apples for years now salivating at the advances and ease Apple offers them in their world that a PC could never touch. Apple was almost a subculture, or certainly its own niche for so long, and now Apple-hounds have to learn to share again. It’s nice to share a great find with friends, but when strangers and the whole world gets a hold of it, selfishly, it can take all the caché out of it.

For instance, did you ever “discover” a great CD no one you knew ever heard of and there was one track on it that felt like it was all yours? Then, the world caught on and radio got a hold of it and played it ump-teen times a day and every fiend in the world was singing it? The song didn’t feel so special anymore, huh?  Well, that’s kind of like what is happening with Apple. It is great to see the old orchard fruit gaining momentum and building up the old empire again. But even for me, a bandwagon jumper, it’s kind of sad to have to share it with the whole world. At the same time, it has re-opened a whole world for me and a vast array of possibilities. In fact, next time I’ll tell you about my trip to the Korova Milk Bar-esque Apple Store portal at the mall.