Skip to main content

Hey! What's That Playing in Your Boombox?

Ahhh...mixed tapes.  I still haven't gotten over my joy of the mixed tape since I last talked about it way back in July.

In today's high-tech world, the mixed tape has been replaced by iPods, iMixes, or condensed down to loading a few songs onto a memory stick.  It takes just moments, and hardly any thought.  Just click, click, save and bam!...you've got your song list.  But I ask you, where is the fun in that?

Gone are the blissful hours, and I mean hours, of making a mixed tape for that special someone or occasion.  No longer do we know the joy of being surrounded by stacks of CD albums, our legs going numb from sitting crossed-legged, as we sift through countless music covers, reading every title as we look for the perfect song.  The clash of plastic against plastic as we tossed the CD's into specified piles was music in and of itself!

My favorite part of the mixed tape process was all in the actual transfer from CD to tape.  I loved that you had to actually listen to evey song as you recorded it onto the 60 minute cassette tape, making sure you pressed the pause button as soon as the song's last note faded.  Timing was everything.  If you paused too soon, the last note would have a faint screech to it.  If you paused too late, you might catch the first strain of the next song.  I liked to have the perfect three seconds between each song.  That was long enough to catch your breath in order to belt out the next tune, but not so long that your mind started to wander away from the musical goodness.

Those were good times.  Now and days, I don't make mixed tapes.  I don't even own a stereo system with a tape deck in it anymore.  I've completely converted to the iTunes system, load the tunes on and just push play.  I no longer carefully plan my play lists, or write out the song titles in my best handwriting, decorating the plastic cassette player for a little extra flair.  I've done away with all of that for ease and speed.  A shame?  Yes, but what's a busy girl to do?

Well, according to our friends over at The BatRanch, it is still possible to recapture some of my mixed tape youth while still using the technology I have grown accustomed to.  How much fun is that?  I thought it only fitting that the music travel back to the 1990's as well.  Enjoy, and send me your own mixed tape.

Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

Vivo en Guayaquil, Pero Mi Corazón Está en Quito

Oh Quito, how I love thee... Dave and I needed a break from the heat and honking of Guayaquil, so we hopped on a quick flight north.   We spent a wonderful four days in beautiful Quito, Ecuador.  Enjoying the many artisan markets, coffee shops, restaurants, mountains, and cool weather.  I wore jeans and long-sleeved shirts, slept with three blankets on the bed, and never left without my jacket, hat, and gloves for the first time in months.  It was pure heaven. Quito is a very tourist friendly destination, with people from all over the world walking through the streets.  It is not uncommon to hear whispers of French, Dutch, German, English, and, of course, Spanish as you travel down its cobblestone avenues.  The people are also so very friendly, pointing out points of interest that they have discovered to any other tourist they see.  People often can be seen giving tips on which restaurants to try or where the nearest bookstore can be found to complete strangers they bump into.  Many ar
Read more

Años Viejos, Pyromaniacs, and Fireworks...Oh My

I have to admit, it has been quite awhile since I have actually been awake to ring in the new year and say goodbye to the old.  Dave and I have always been a bit more concerned about the eight hours of sleep necessary to enjoy life rather than seeing the ball drop.  But this year...is different.   It is 12:58 and the neighbor's hired band just started, there are rapid fire explosives (aka fireworks) going off in three minute intervals, and the car alarms throughout our block seem to be answering the loving call of said fireworks.  There will be no eight hours to start off the year for the Richert's this time. Nothing about our experiences in Ecuador could be classified as typical, and New Year's Eve is proving to be no exception.  The evening started out quite and low key, dinner at home with a movie.  There were the occasional firework, but that isn't anything atypical.  I was even contemplating continuing the tradition of snuggling into bed by 10:30.   Before I called
Read more

Yes or No?

A couple weeks ago, slipped in the far reaches of my mailbox, I found a note that took me back to the good ol' days of elementary school.   You know what I'm talking about. Remember how you would just be sitting at your desk, one leg pumping back and forth, pencil eraser nudging your bottom lip, as you tried to puzzle out those mind-boggling multiplication tables?  And then, out of the corner of your eye, you would see Andy passing a note to Melissa, who would then pass it on to Mark, who would then palm it off to you right before Mrs. Nelson turned around from the blackboard.  Your name would be written all in cursive and curly-q's on the clumsily folded paper.  Carefully, stealthily, you unfold the paper to find: Well, InterAmerican sent me a 'check yes or no' note, and it raised the same sensation of anxiety that those old love notes of yesterday used to inspire.  Instead of the traditional, "do you like me?" question, it was the "will you continue
Read more