Thrifty Thinking

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"One man's trash is another man's treasure".  This is the slogan of the concept behind theSalvation Army a store I happened to be in over the weekend.  I was trying to find a sweater or jacket for a mixer/party.  Something interesting, unique, something that would make me an individual.  Instead I ended up in the electronics section, seeing all of the discarded toys that used to be "hip and cool" electronics.  I saw things like:

• 8-track players
• gameboys
• portable TV's
• VHS players
• and anything else one could imagine

What is so interesting about this "pile of junk"?  I find it kind of sad that this stuff was our old "New Media".  Gameboys were the rage of the 1990s, VHS players revolutionized the way people watched movies and TV shows, and for about a few months even 8-tracks had some slight popularity.  This all made me question the basis for our society, "If we are in a society based off of consumption and advancement of technology, then what happens to last years versions?  A small percentage ends up in thrift stores, antique and novelty stores, and maybe even a museum, but a large majority ends up rusting in a dump.  What is the life span of New Media, is it as long as there is nothing better?  New Media is fresh, new and hip, but once it loses the title of New, it just becomes someones trash and any other type of media.