the COVID-19 playlist

(Note: This is NOT a Manion-endorsed playlist. This is a story, plain and simple. I do however suggest you make it interactive to get the full fiction experience. Links have been provided at great time and personal expense.)

—An e-mail from a boy to a girl during the COVID-19 pandemic.—

Hello!

It has been so long since we’ve seen each other so I thought I’d send over a playlist for you to kill some time. Obviously this is not something to share as it has been lovingly tailored to our unique situation. I hope you enjoy it.

Doot Doot by Freur – an odd start I realize (they get better, I promise), and one you might not enjoy initially, but you can skip right to 3:40 in, that’s the music I want to be playing in my headphones when we next see each other. I want us to meet somewhere where I get to see you standing far away and you have to walk towards me. I imagine it being a lot like those cheesy romantic comedies we always watched together.

Red Earth & Pouring Rain by Bear’s Den – I include this one because when I hear the lyrics “Stranded in the darkness, Begging please don’t pin all of your dreams on me, Baby, you can count on me, You can count on me, To fuck up everything” it’s one of the first times in a song where I imagine someone singing them to me. You, to be more precise. I know we’ve had our ups and downs and my expectations were usually at the root of our problems. I thought you might enjoy my acknowledging it.

You’re My Best Friend by Queen – No explanation necessary (I hope).

Long Flight by Future Islands – This isn’t the first time we’ve spent time apart. I still remember when you pointed out that the video starts with men and women together, looking very bored and ordinary, and its only when the men were freed up from their partners did they let loose and find their true dance. I’ve tried to remember this in the long weeks that have passed.

Meet Me In The Woods by Lord Huron – But sometimes it’s not easy. “I have seen what the darkness does (Say goodbye to who I was) I ain’t never been away so long (Don’t look back, them days are gone)”

Fire by Waxahatchee – The singer reminds me of you.

Crash Into Me by Dave Matthews Band – This reminds me of how you make me feel.

Your Graduation by Modern Baseball – This reminds me of how you’ve made me feel. I hope you’re not mad that I acknowledge it. You have to learn to take the crunchy with the smooth I suppose (I can never resist slipping in a Billy Bragg lyric).

Mistaken For Strangers by The National – You might not like this one much but it acknowledges the alienation we’ve all felt during this time cooped up. “Another un-innocent, elegant fall into the un-magnificent lives of adults.” Maybe even a little of the isolation we felt before the virus.

The Box by Eastern Conference Champions – Speaking of going crazy… I hope you watch this video sometime. I find the inmates dancing at the end to be inspiring in its own weird way. I just think you’d appreciate it. It’s like an animated version of how I picture the two of us dealing with the world when we’re together.

Alluria by Dear Boy – Just a song that I bet you’ve never heard but I think you’ll like.

All Kinds Of Time by Fountains of Wayne – An obscure one for sure, but the singer recently died from coronavirus so it’s the least I can do to include it. I guess we all think we have all kinds of time.

I Melt With You by Sugarcult – I realize that this list might be getting a bit long and includes a lot of songs you might not totally be into so I ended with a solid pick. Can’t go wrong with a Modern English cover I always say. I think we actually talked about it.

This odd situation can’t go on forever. We will see each other again. Take care of yourself and think of me often… and I will continue to think of you more.

Yours,

The Future’s Open Wide.