We have seen steps taken further in recent years to engage us with the idea of outsourced memory with the introduction of cloud computing. Outsourced to major corporations, our personal data will now be protected by those most capable to do so. And if we choose to do so we can share as much of it as we like with our family, our friends, and even the public. Here then, we finally have the infallible archive that is an endless untapped resource for nostalgia.

These safe and secure off-site memory banks promise to hold indefinitely our precious photographs and music…

I am definitely not a cat person and in fact I am allergic to them but when I come upon a spätkauf that carries a selection of lighters tastelessly decorated with the image of cats I can’t help but reach for one. As I choose which cat I want to accompany me for a brief period of time I feel like I am making a companion out of this object. And in fact, this object becomes a part of my daily routine, a ritualized relationship. It is shared among friends and strangers. As it passes in and out of my…