Dear Reader,

In this issue, we’re obsessed with obsession. When does a healthy interest cross the line? How do we find ourselves spiraling down into obsession, and what makes being swallowed up by our own captivation so strangely tantalizing? Obsession is more than just an interest gone too far: it consumes, it snowballs, and sometimes, it confronts us with a side of ourselves we never knew we had. It’s playing with fire.

And then there’s the little obsessions that we choose for ourselves. A movie we’ve seen a hundred times, a sport, a carefully curated sweater collection, or a certain song we just can’t get enough of. The pieces of the world that we can immerse ourselves in are limitless, and our passions are a source of joy in our lives and integral to who we are. Sometimes, letting ourselves go down the rabbit hole is just what we need.

As CC students, the block plan encourages us to throw ourselves into a subject for three and a half weeks at a time. Many of us have spent all day in the library working on a single project, so absorbed we hardly realize the time passing. Sometimes it’s overwhelming and a pain in the ass, other times engrossing, and sometimes a mix of both.

Obsession can mean so many things at the same time. So, what is it to you?

We wanted to give writers a chance to talk about their own obsessions, topics we were sure they’d have lots to tell us about, and take us along for the ride. We weren't disappointed by the wide array of obsessions and experiences that they brought to the table: from music to relationships, from the past to future. It’s all the big things and all the little things. In many ways, our obsession can feel bigger than ourselves, taking on a life of its own. We were fascinated with the unique voice that each writer used to paint a picture of themselves, and each piece came together into a collection of the wonderful, the dangerous, and the unpredictable. As we dive into the many faces of this theme, we hope you, like us, will be engrossed with the mysterious and powerful world of obsession itself.

Thanks for reading!

Alex and the Cipher Staff