Kipworld

On Friday, Kuwie, El and I headed out to the Apple Store in Woodfield to snag new iPods (well, Kuwie and I. El was the most patient girlfriend ever.) The store wasn’t completely packed, but there was a DJ spinning on one side using two iPods instead of turntables. We took a minute to compare the size of the 30 GB to the 15 GB model and firmly decided on the 15 for its svelte form factor.

Purchasing it, I was a little flustered. I asked for a “15 inch” instead of a “15 GB,” which prompted a little ribbing from the pimply salesclerk (”That’d be a big iPod, hyuk, hyuk”) which caused me to dislike him, not for taking the piss (which I deserved) but because I saw a snidge of me in him and I saw how close I’d come to working retail at the Mich. Ave. Apple Store. Plus he was slow, compared to the no nonsense dude who was processing Kuwie’s purchase. But soon the box was in my hands and a beatific sense of love and wellwishing towards the world suffused through my body as we brought our receipts to the rear of the store to get our “free” T shirts (10$ if unaccompanied by an iPod purchase).

We refrained from opening the packages while we had dinner (Joe’s Crab Shack, mmm, Dungeness crab) and drove back to the apartment. Then the wrapping came off, right there in the living room. I slit the cellophane with a fingernail, and slid the sleeve of the box off. Inside, the box’s top half flipped over. On the left, boring stuff. On the right, the iPod, sheathed in ever more plastic to prevent premature scratching.

Jenny turned the darn thing French. Had to remember the word for Settings to get it back.

More exploration… the dock connector is the same connection, so you can just carry the cable, or the cable and dock pretty easily. Really, there’s no room for a FireWire port on this thing, it’s so slim. So I can forgive the omission (maybe some sort of door that opens? hmmm).

I will admit that the touchscreen buttons take some getting used to. The top 4 are fine (better than I thought they’d be) but the center select button hates me. I’m getting better (really I’ve been touching it instead of really pressing it) but playing solitaire with it is sort of frustrating.

I have 7 GB’s of music (1509 songs) on it so far. It has consolidated songs from all three of my computers into one tiny gorgeous package. I’m still reeling over how nicely everything works. iTunes 4 is a champ, especially when getting files from the Music Store but even at getting music from my PC (I mount the music folder onto the Mac and then change my library temporarily).

Todd ordered one on Friday, so he played with mine today in preparation for his own. Made some disparaging remarks about my headphones, but to him, quality of music is pretty serious. For me, it’s more about being ubiquitous than pristine. I listen to music for the lyrics, or for the way the melodies make me feel. And bridge verses. And for remembering my life. Who introduced me to which bands? Who was the girl I pined for to the tune of “Troubled Times?” Etc etc. With my new iPod (unimaginatively named “Kip’s iPod” for now), I can have all that. All the time.