Gleaming with the inconsequential, my constant interest in the literature of the obscure grows. Meanwhile, we all shrink and decay into our modern selves, over-popularing each other’s realities with endless nonsense records of our existence. People seem to disappear into websites. The litany of modern life. The digital record: always forgotten but never gone. The Internet is a hyper-intensification of my impulse to explore the absurdly irrelevant, the abjectly marginal. Everything on the internet just sticks around like a bar friend, drunk at a house party. A funny costume from the 90s and there hyperlinks you won’t touch. Sweaty skin under the light in the living room in a bad photo from the time before good digital cameras. 2.1 megapixels. The web content is profoundly un-useful. It fades into this extreme distance from relevance, but yet never totally decays. This is the asymptote of doom literature, the heating-up of total irralvence, in a context of viral-seeking buzzworthiness. The 0 views, 0 comments culture that I seek, very nearly condences on one particular commerce site.

I enjoy web commerce because it offers the opportunity to access the obscure. It’s profoundly unsexy. “Post empire” becomes “mom’s eBay watch list from 2004.” There’s a chillness factor, an element of desire surfacing out of boredom. Here are some images to demonstrate, before I get into the language.

I think there is a story – a moment of literature – behind each one of these product-objects. It’s mostly untold. Mostly, because no one cares. Partly told, because the people who work at Goodwill have this vague passing interest in selling the items (they have a low-paying job that they are probably trying to keep). The photos are lazy. I appreciate that. There is something so annoying about over-producing an meaningless photo. Art Directing what doesn’t matter. That would be like, an Etsy thing. Not here. The product descriptions are another place to look for some of the narrative. The boldly obscure, inscrutable, totally uninteresting narrative. And of course, the constant watermark gives us a sense of publisher ethos, or perhaps authorship.

These are copied from the challenging (and I think rewarding) “Hot 50” list. I give it the highest recommendation.

Beautiful VictorianStyle Christmas Ornament x 24

ALIENWARE D9K Laptop Gaming System Computer, older model, cobalt body, UNTESTED, NO POWER CORD, marked: Windows XP Home Edition, LI-ion battery pack Model D900TBAT-12, Serial #KA5CA7D12008, has DVD port but no hard ddrive, no oher information available

Finely Crafted and Beautifully Detailed Vintage BlanPain Solid Bronze Bust Sculpture, Beautiful Detailing.

Primitive Wooden Carved Female Figure.  Measures 11″

Finely Crafted and Beautifully Designed Giorgio Armani 100% Grey Virgin Wool Long Coat. Top to Bottom = 55″ Chest = 24″ Arms = 26″ Very Good Condition. No Visible Wear or Damage.

(5) Apple I-PODs:3 are 32 GB , 2 are 8 GB These all need repair. When they are turned on displays a battery sign.Three are 32 GB and two are 8 GB.

Wood Chisel Set With Case

• Wooden Box That Measures Appr. 13″ x 12″ x 4″
• {13} Chisels {They Are Different Sizes}
• {1 }Thing That Looks Like A Meat Tenderizer Measures Appr. 8″ Tall
• {1} Bottle Of Liquid {Not Sure What It Is}
• Also Comes With Something That Looks Like A Triangle {Not Sure What It’s For, Almost Like A Ceramic Material}