“Time was, if you met someone cool and cute, someone you wanted to know better, you might make that person a mix tape. It was the perfect courtship calling card: a neat little package of songs carefully selected to say something about both you and your understanding of the recipient.
Today, such compilations are an anachronism. Most stereos don’t even have tape decks anymore.
Countless couples will probably trade mix CDs this Valentine’s Day, but the point-and-click process of CD burning is rather sterile; it’s possible to make someone a mix CD without having to listen to a single song. As an inveterate trader of cassettes, I’ve been in steady mourning for the mix tapes of my youth for some time now.
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