Memorial Day also means outdoor projects. Projects that require something to listen to or you’ll go nuts. Anything. Music. Talk radio. Whatever. And that can mean only one thing: Workforce Jobsite Radio (WJR). Like the bag o’ wires that resides in Manville, no project would be complete without my POS old-school beater: The Panasonic RX-C38 Portable Stereo Component System–with XBS [Extra Bass System].Oh sure, you could find one on eBay for $9.99, but not like this one.
No, this monster has survived drops, kicks and paint spatter. Lots. Even outlasting the specially designed, Jeep-inspired, heavy duty plastic encased monster I bought built for the purpose of being, dropped, kicked and painted. Whether hanging out on blistering August roofs or framing an addition in January, WJR has stuck by me for 23+ years. Or 22. Something like that. Point is...
See that antenna? That’s right. There isn’t one. Lost in the Great Ladder Mishap of 1991. Snapped off like a toothpick. Know what? Doesn’t matter. Still gets easy-listening or classic rock stations, no matter where they broadcast from. All Layla, all the time.
Did someone say auto reverse cassette and several missing knobs? No problem. WJR has them in spades. Let’s talk about that XBS for a moment. Perfect for those summer days when Tom Sawyer just happens to be played about 20 times a day on local Mullet radio. XBS? Ahead warp factor one and engage. Oh sure the speakers come apart. But not on my watch. The sum of the parts being greater than the musical whole in this case. Or something like that...
What about those times you’re dead from heat stroke. The last of the deck paint just ran out–and you still have one section left to finish. Not a cold drink in site. WJR is right there next to you feeling your pain, because as adept at blasting out a Yankees game or local car dealer spot, it’s all black finish was meant to absorb the rays of hell too. It giveth and it taketh.
WJR, I salute you and your truly ahead of its time antenna nub. Here’s to another 23+.
3 comments:
Sweet Lord, I think we had that exact same thing at the first agency I ever worked for. Most memories of that place will have to be recovered via intense therapy but I clearly recall that big box.
Also today is a great radio nostalgia day for me. I was just thinking about how, when I was really little, my Dad would spend this Memorial Day out by the grill, listening to the Indy 500 on his transistor. In those days, the race wasn't aired live. Racing on the radio -- talk about theater of the mind.
Uh-oh. I've overshared, haven't I?
Yes! I had that same POS. I played VH's "Runnin' With The Devil" so many times from the tape deck that it developed intuitive intelligence and began playing it without the tape. I burned it before satan began sending me messages through its speakers.
Badway
Wow-- that's exceptionally ugly and possibly immortal. I'm tempted to break out the 1995 JVC and activate "hyperbass."
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