A Gen X Essay Collection · Now on Kindle
Before smartphones and algorithm feeds, we had streetlight curfews, rotary dials, and unscripted autonomy.
Xessentialism: Analog Lessons for a Digital World
Inside the Book
Four types of lessons from the analog years
I
Lessons in Commerce
The Infamous Store Errand — navigating grocery aisles with a crumpled paper list, a crisp Jackson, and zero digital safety nets.
II
Lessons in Acceptance
The Saturday Morning Lineup — forging tripartisanship among three siblings sharing seven channels and exactly one TV set.
III
Lessons in Patience
Waiting for the DJ to Shut Up — holding Record and Pause at the ready to capture music off the radio via cassette tape.
IV
Lessons in Autonomy
Adventures at the Library — what an institutional babysitter teaches when public stacks and card catalogs taught real independence.
About the Book
What can a $20 bill, a generic TV Guide, and a quarter graveyard teach you about surviving the information age?
In Xessentialism, Brent Simeon takes readers through the 1980s and 1990s streetscapes of Brooklyn, NY and Charleston, SC. Written with the conversational rhythm of an old friend telling a legendary story, this collection of personal essays explores the grit, resourcefulness, and unwritten rules of the last generation to grow up entirely offline.
The Premise
The grit, resourcefulness, and unwritten rules of the last generation to grow up entirely offline.
Xessentialism: Analog Lessons for a Digital World