Most of the people I talk to about Material Materials are my peers or they’re in an older generation, so I realize that the heart of this newsletter is something that speaks to certain ones of us on a profound, inner-child level. We were fortunate enough to have grown up with only physical media and very little to zero internet (and everyone I speak to does consider it a fortune). When I talk to my friends about CDs, it is not just the physical items I’m talking about. I usually get one of two responses when I talk about listening to CDs in 2026: either a person says they still have all their CDs (e.g., their “CD binder”) or they regret having set it free in favor of iTunes and Napster. I have not spoken to a single person who, at this time, is happy they got rid of their CD collection. There is always discussion of that one mix CD or that one indie band album that the miss. I can also say something like, “I remember when 12 CDs cost a penny,” referring to the Columbia House CD Club where you would get to choose 12 CDs for one cent. Of course, the company would then start sending you items you did not request, along with a bill. Joke was on them, though, because my mother had only a passing relationship with honesty but a lifelong love affair with petit larceny. All of this to say that physical media is a cornucopia of nostalgia for many of us.
Nostalgia is very powerful and more complex than some people realize. I think a lot of current fervent embracing of nostalgia has been activated and maintained by intense dissatisfaction of the present. At the same time, nostalgia is particular to time, place, culture, age, and sometimes even gender and sexuality. My nostalgia for the 80s of my childhood lies in the Strawberry Shortcake toys that smelled like “strawberry” and off-gassing plastics. But to my older friends who are cis gay men, the 80s were devastating. My nostalgia may not be your nostalgia and vice versa.
Then again, I also hope our nostalgia may overlap in some wonderful and joyful ways. It is that joy that I am reclaiming as I integrate more tangible and material items into my life.
Recently, my smartwatch battery has stopped holding a charge for a full day. I decided to free myself of that particular WIFI-enabled leash and surveillance device and get a watch that only keeps the time and tells me the date. I used this opportunity to get the Swatch that the 9-year-old inside of me would want with all her heart. What I didn’t expect is how many people around my age would go absolutely bananas over it. I just got my hair done and my hair stylist said, “That looks like a Swatch, remember those?” I was like, “GIRLLLL, this IS a Swatch!” and it immediately sent us down a nostalgia rabbit hole.
It’s not the newest iPhone. It’s not the pervert smart glasses. It doesn’t have Bluetooth and it doesn’t alert me to anything. It’s just a watch and it has absolutely delighted me, my friends, and the guy who sells pasta at the farmer’s market.
