what does a student at a canadian boarding school in the late 19th and early 20th century have in common with a baltimore balloon artist in the mid-’90s and the guitarist of a forgotten mid-2000s indie rock band?
that’s easy: i've spent far too long searching for them all on the internet.
i would, in general, describe myself as a “people person.” but for me, that extends beyond the enjoyment of meeting other human beings, making friends, and being social. i’ve always been endlessly curious, in almost an anthropological sense, about people i’ve had connections with that are tenuous at best — or sometimes, have never even met at all.
i’ve been this way as far back as i can remember, even prior to the dawn of the world wide web, but its advent has only exacerbated my burning desire to know absolutely everything about everyone (and has obviously made it much easier to do just that).
some musings and stories with this common thread:
at an antique shop in concord, massachusetts a few weeks ago (cleverly named thoreauly antiques), i came across an “autograph book” — the kind which i used to bring with me to disney world to get signatures from my fave, baloo, and goofy, belle, etc. but as i flipped through this one , i noticed some of these signatures dated back to the 1800s(!) and early 1900s and that many of them seemed to be from students at a canadian boarding school called ridley college. it was almost like a yearbook without photos; some wrote quotes, others put their addresses. obviously, i googled every single person who signed this book. among them: the son of this man, who SURVIVED THE SINKING OF THE TITANIC (and was mercilessly criticized for his conduct afterward), a renewable energy pioneer, and a member of a wealthy family who basically owned niagara falls back in the day. but like, how insane and cool is it that i, a random 37-year-old woman, is now peripherally connected to these people through this book? whoa.
my dad dragged my mom and i along on a business trip to baltimore one summer when i was eight or nine years old, and we were staying at a hotel in the inner harbor, which was full of buskers and entertainers. i immediately bonded with one of them, a balloon *artiste* who twisted up dogs and bunnies and all sorts of fun stuff. he showed such kindness and joy to me that made such an impression, and i visited him every day we were there. but on the last day, i couldn’t find him. all i knew was that his name was tony. i remember looking through the phone book in the hotel room to see if he had some sort of balloon business so i could contact him and say goodbye! in the nearly two decades since, i’ve googled to no avail, wrote my college essay on him, and thought about him fondly and often. so wherever you are, tony balloons, i hope you’re doing well.
my friends joke that i can find anyone on the internet. and i have — aside from tony balloons and my brooding middle school crush, eric o’sullivan — including both of my birthparents (separately!), without knowing their names or much information about either of them at all. it’s such a rush when you find what you’re looking for and know that you’ve found it, and that was never more true for me than in these instances. i’ll write an essay about it…someday.
the concept of the fleeting nature of celebrity fascinates me to no end. when i can’t sleep, i love to throw my “favorites from the early/mid 2000s” spotify playlist on shuffle and see where the members of any given band are now. did you know that jason stollsteimer of garage rock revivalists the von bondies is a real estate agent? and that dustin hook of emo band my american heart is a real estate agent? so many of them are real estate agents! so many. others have remained in music as producers or as part of other bands. sometimes, it’s a bit disheartening, sad, and/or strange when you go down this rabbit hole — like, the idea of a band being SO BIG for such a small moment in time, playing huge venues and festivals for thousands of screaming fans…and then 20 years later, they’re like, washing cars or making lattes and no one would recognize them on the street. same goes for actors, i suppose — someone like shawn andrews (pickford from dazed and confused) comes to mind. like, where is he? what’s he up to? i won’t disclose my sources or go too far into it, but he might live in massachusetts now?? just existing as a normal human. wild. but i care. i’m interested! hit me up, shawn. let’s chat.
I love that you googled the people in the book! And, yes, please write that essay! The former rockstars-turned-real estate agents made me think of the Portlandia episode where Aimee Mann is a cleaning lady. : )