Technoanimism

My iPod is depressed. There is no other reasonable explanation for spells of utter darkness in his shuffle mode. I got on the train yesterday minding my own business, feeling pleasantly neutral towards the world, when the iPod started playing Leonard Cohen's 'Anthem' followed by Tom Waits' 'Dead and Lovely' and 'Christmas card from a hooker in Minneapolis'. This was odd as normally some classical piece would interrupt any such assemblage of blue songs. Anthony and the Johnsons came on next with 'My Lady Story' and I was suddenly anxious to hear where this was going, when the iPod launched into a tearful homage to Diamanda Galas, starting with 'My world is empty without you' and 'Let my people go'.
Needless to say that when I got off the train in Ochanomizu thirty minutes later, I felt somewhat suicidal. So drained of energy in fact that I could not even face wresting control back form the evil shuffle mode. Be warned!