Object Diaries - 90s Edition

Hello and Happy Friday from Lisa at the Object Diaries Project: Stories About Human Connection Told One Secret Object at a Time.

We're going back in time!

Last week, the Object Diaries Project traveled back to the 1990s, digging up Blockbuster Video membership cards, mixtapes, and other phat paraphernalia hidden in storage spaces and our parents' basements (OMG - still? As If!). We held a super-fun networking session, and everyone brought a 90s relic.

What objects do you remember from the '90s?

Corded Telephones

Do you remember holding a corded telephone to your ear? There's nothing quite like receiving a pleasantly unexpected phone call on the home phone. You could push real buttons to make a call and press the receiver to your head without worrying about radiation. If you dislike the look and feel of AirPods as much as I do, you might long for the bygone era of corded phones.

Floppy Disks

Oh, what brilliant stories and ideas we all have locked up in our old floppy disks. If only I could access my 7th-grade papers. I'm sure I'd be horrified.

Tamagotchi

I never had one, but the keychain-sized digital pet was a 90s sensation. These pixelated pets lived for your attention, beeping repeatedly when hungry, tired, or needing a potty break. The goal was to provide such loving care that the pet grew and thrived. It also helped prepare us for the dopamine hits we'd later come to expect from incessantly checking our phones. My daughter received a Tamagotchi as a gift a few weeks ago, and it's already dead.

VHS Tapes

Do you remember recording your favorite movies and TV shows onto VHS tapes? Sometimes that led to the dreaded accidental overdub. Just looking at a VHS tape floods me with memories. What shows did you record and watch on your old VHS tapes?

It's interesting thinking about the 90s objects that defined our lives.

What part of you still resonates with what you valued in the 90s? Which objects bring good memories flooding back? Which objects and associations are you happy to leave in the past?

📩 Email me and tell me what objects from the 90s you're thinking about!

Peace Out. I'm Audi 5000 —