I was looking for something in my attic yesterday and came across a virtual time capsule - a box of old mix tapes. Yes kids, before mp3s and CD burners, we had to do things the hard way. A mix that someone made just for you was better than gold.
In the box were a couple of tapes that an old girlfriend made for me. In retrospect, they probably mean even more to me now than they did then.
Although it certainly wasn't something I did consciously at the time, I took them (and her) for granted. Perhaps that's the kind of realization that can only come with the maturity that kids in their late teens and early twenties lack.
Other than blood relatives, who are required to by law, she's the only person who ever really loved me. Eric Clapton and Led Zeppelin and Billy Joel were her way of saying so.
