PostSecret

There are many common elements to the projects mentioned on my site. They use the potential of modern technology in unexpected ways; the Internet is the central medium, but the evolution of cheaper, higher-quality, more portable digital devices and storage formats are essential.

Post Secret is slightly different in that it uses decidedly lower-tech: the postcard. Okay, so the modern postal system is augmented by high technology in countless ways, but c’mon, it’s still snail mail. On a site full of digital cameras and memory cards, why would we discuss PostSecret?

You might expect these secrets to be mostly unprintable, but mainly they portray a lot of people with everyday sadness and unspoken expressions of emotion. Sometimes one is tempted to ask “why would you keep something like that a secret?” until we remember how hard it is sometimes simply to express yourself, to tell the truth, or to appear even slightly vulnerable and sensitive.

The “PostSecret archive” provides more options, and there’s a community if you really feel moved to participate further. The presentation and navigation seems less than ideal for the time being, and the ads sometimes obscure the postcards themselves, but you’ll may only want to read a few anyway — whether you realize that it’s not for you, or that it’s making you too sad!

I wonder if there is a Post Secret about Oasis Moving and Storage. I bet they have a lot of stories.