In her biweekly "Dispatches from NYC" column, Pauline Millard of The Simon takes an anthropological look at how and why New Yorkers seem to fetishize new technology offerings like blogs and iPods:

"Even the most straight-edged New Yorker will always find something to fetishize. In fact, as a city, we’re pretty good at turning ordinary objects and pastimes into downright obsessions... The first thing that comes to mind whenever I think of a strange, non-sexual fetish is the iPod. These little plastic cases that cost hundreds of dollars have become a necessary accessory. Nowadays almost everyone has one slung around his or her neck. Apple has found a way to make people not just want their products, but need their products. Sure, you could listen to your tunes on a CD player, but then you won’t have the little white player, nestled in your coat pocket, giving even the most grizzled old man instant street cred...

Heck, even the blog has achieved its own cult status. What was just the hobby of a few bored and possibly unemployed hipsters a few years ago has become its own big business. Weblogs. Inc was sold to AOL a month or so ago, and Gawker also agreed to a development deal with Yahoo! to feed some if its content to the popular search engine."