I have this one cabinet where, for whatever reason, I have stashed tons of video tapes. Mostly, it is stuffed with video tapes from various versions of Don and my movies, plus a few of those old-school movies that few people even know about and mean nothing to anyone but me. …Just in case I ever want to rewatch them in their original form.
 
Every now and then, I ‘m one of those people who goes into Spring Cleaning mode. I just don’t like energy to become stagnate, or anything like that, so I clear things out that are not being used. Like, you may remember, a few months ago I donated like two-thousand LPs and like a thousand CDs.
 
Anyway, I decide to take a look and see what was inside that cabinet yesterday…
 
 The actual Video Tapes were all keepers. I’d gotten rid of the never-to-be-watched-again stuff long ago. But, what I found I had was a whole lot of blank tapes.
 
These blank tapes go back to the fact that I doubt that you can even imagine how many requests I get for copies of my Zen Films on video tape. But, for the most part, I gave all of the full Screener Copies away long ago.
 
My mind, once-upon-a-time, was of the mindset that whenever someone asked for one, I would just go over to the good old DVD/VHS machine and dupe them one. So and thus, I bought a bunch of tapes.
 
I did a few of those dupes. But, even though it is pretty easy, it just takes too much time, re: the duping, the labeling, the mailing, the… Then, I thought to charge money for it, but like I discussed with this friend of mine yesterday, it wouldn’t be worth my time unless I charged like three hundred dollars. And, except for a few die-hards out there I doubt that anyone would be willing to pay that.
 
Just a PS here… Back in the day, there used to be factories where we would get our tapes duped. You could get them for a couple of dollars each if you ordered a few hundred copies. They would do them up with full labeling and art boxes.  Gone or those days and gone are those businesses.

Plus, I also found a fax machine under there. Faxes, remember those? I don't even have a landline anymore.
 
I know VHS look is really a thing now. Kinda funny, really… Back in the early days of video filmmaking, which I am told I was one of the pioneers, we really tried to get away from that look—we really wanted everything to look like film. Now, some of my young filmmaking friends actually do all they can to get that look. Times change.
 
Anyway, now I have this major stack of sealed VHS tapes sitting on my kitchen counter. I’m going to go donate them today. You know, keep the energy flowing and all, as I’m not going to use them.
 
It’s kind of funny, really… You know, how times change. Do you have a VHS player? Probably not. Most people let them go years and years ago. But, there are a few of us that hold onto to the art-form and the way it was created from a time gone past. Those of us who wish to sometimes live that what once was. Some even desire to reinvigorate the art of another moment. Good for them. Good for everybody. Good for the art. And, good for the VHS. Gone, but not forgotten.