So I’m clearing out more crap from my little area in the basement. It’s amazing how much random shit two adults can accumulate over several decades.
I found a few dozen old cassette tapes–some of them albums I’d bought, most of them tapes where I’d recorded music I liked off the radio. Some of you may remember when that was a thing we did.
I mused for a while to Alpha Geek about saving my old cassettes, with my music that I liked and my old boom box for which I have fond associations. Finally I decided the practical thing would be to listen to them one last time, make a list of the songs I liked that I don’t already have as mp3s so I can re-acquire them, and toss the old tapes. I’ll just keep the collection of Beatles albums he made for me.
So I’ve been playing my old cassettes, checking our mp3s, noting the ones we don’t have. Shortly after I started this project, I texted Alpha Geek:
Me: Oh dear god the sound quality on cassette is awful
Me: How did we live with this
Him: Was probably better when the player & tapes were new
Him: By like 10%
Him: So still godawful
Me: It sounds like they’re playing in a bathroom down the hall
Once I was done with the tape I found I had no trouble at all tossing it in the trash.