For as long as I can remember, getting a mix tape from your significant other was a big deal. It means s/he took the time out to think of songs that made you come to mind. When I started dating my boyfriend, Julian, the first gifts we exchanged were mix cds. My effort was a two disc anthology of love songs which include tracks by Erasure, Garbage, Thelma Houston, Saint Etienne, Kylie Minogue and Pet Shop Boys. Julian's cd had tracks from R.E.M., Ryan Adams, The Shins, Bright Eyes, and Courtney Love. We both loved each other's cds. I was talking to my friend Melissa about it and she flat out told me that a mix cd is the way into her heart. I'm not surprised. There are so many songs out there that can convey our own feelings about love. Music says so many things to many people. No wonder people in love make mix cds.

Here's the tracklisting for the last cd I made for Julian:

• svefn-g-englar by sigur ros
  
• a hidden forest by bjork vs. the cure
  
• ladies and gentlemen we are floating into space (original elvis mix) by spiritualized
  
• the spanglemaker by cocteau twins
  
• babies by pulp
  
• undertow by lush
  
• black metallic by catherine wheel
  
• m by the cure
  
• the concept by teenage fanclub
  
• uncertan smile by the the
  
• walkabout by the sugarcubes
  
• tomorrow never dies by saint etienne
  
• a sorta fairytale by tori amos
  
• happy by ned's atomic dustbin
  
• cloudbusting by kate bush