A Directory

The phone book. The school yearbook. The college course catalog. The glossy, colorful map of downtown with the buildings numbered. The map at the entrance to the mall.

All directories from an earlier time. Directories you hold in your hand or touch with your fingers.

Helping you know the who, what, and where. Orienting you. 

But finite in content and a snapshot in time. Today, yes, but all bets off for tomorrow. And also, these are the ones who paid the fee. And also, these are the ones we care about. 

Premium curation. 

Of course, the internet, phones, and AI have flipped the directory model on its head. Auto and self-curation are a matter of a few clicks.

The infinite scroll feels complete, like it has everything. But it’s curated too. Just less transparently.

Sometimes the value isn’t in having access to everything. It’s in seeing what someone thought was worth seeing.