You Know You Are Old When

[MoKelly]

Transistor radio was good for AM radio to find talk radio especially Paul Harvey and the Red Sox games

For me, it was Harry Caray and Jack Buck calling STL Cardinal games. That sure brings back memories!

 

[BravoXray]

When the kids come over and install safety grab bars in the house and shop, then tell you to quit turning off your medical alert tag

After Mom passed and Dad was living alone at home, we got him a medial alert fob that hung on his neck. It had a base station that would call me and 911 if he pressed the button. It was put in the living room on an end table, a good central location in the house. It had a blue light on it to indicate it was operating, but Dad slept in his recliner most of the time and the blue light bothered him, so he would unplug it. I even moved the base station to the kitchen and he still would unplug it, which caused a few heated arguments when I would come over and find it unplugged.
Finally, one Monday morning my niece went over to check on him and do the cleaning found him dead in his recliner with the TV on and the telephone in his hand. The fob was one his neck, but the base station was unplugged again.
He was a stubborn old cuss, got it from his dad, but that's another story.

 

[masseyrider]

You know you are old if you remember transistor radios and TV broadcast went off the air at 10 pm leaving a test pattern on the screen.

"Do you know where your children are?"

 

[masseyrider]

You know you are old if you remember transistor radios and TV broadcast went off the air at 10 pm leaving a test pattern on the screen.

There's 14 years between me and my sister. my memories of her sort of begin when she went off to University. A big gift from the old folks was a transistor radio for her dorm room.

 

[ultrarunner]

My first car had tubes in the radio.

I worked in a garage and one of my assignments was to fix customer radios by replacing the blown tubes. I would take the tubes across the street to the drug store and use their free tube tester and then pick a new bulb from their rack.

I would drive my 59 Rambler on occasion to work and always with the radio on... perfect reception as soon as it warmed up

I would drive the same route in a Honda and the reception was always bad at one stretch of road... amazing how a 1959 tube radio could out perform 1980's Japanese radio.

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Saturday I fixed the AM radio in my '58 Nash Rambler. I have a Hickok tube tester. The vibrator was bad...(not THAT kind ). I took it apart and cleaned the points with ignition file. It works fine now.
I collect tube radios mostly 40s & 50s and transistor radios. Right now I'm working on an AM transmitter. Low power, it's one of those real estate sellers use "tune radio to 1510 to hear about this house". I want it set up to broadcast old music I can play on AM radios...hopefully 1/2 to 1 mile range or so.
I have my grandfather's radio he made from parts, he made the cabinet...before radios were sold. When he lived near Pittsburgh, Pa. in 1919, 1920. A "catwhisker"...no tubes.
His 1936 Packard had a radio and lots of people my Mother said had never heard of a radio in a car back then. She'll be 97 in March!

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

I know I'm old reminiscing!

 

[ultrarunner]

Saturday I fixed the AM radio in my '58 Nash Rambler. I have a Hickok tube tester. The vibrator was bad...(not THAT kind ). I took it apart and cleaned the points with ignition file. It works fine now.
I collect tube radios mostly 40s & 50s and transistor radios. Right now I'm working on an AM transmitter. Low power, it's one of those real estate sellers use "tune radio to 1510 to hear about this house". I want it set up to broadcast old music I can play on AM radios...hopefully 1/2 to 1 mile range or so.
I have my grandfather's radio he made from parts, he made the cabinet...before radios were sold. When he lived near Pittsburgh, Pa. in 1919, 1920. A "catwhisker"...no tubes.
His 1936 Packard had a radio and lots of people my Mother said had never heard of a radio in a car back then. She'll be 97 in March!

Yep... it was quite something to have a car radio in the early 30's

Some of those early radios installed with the modifications approached half the price of some of the less expensive cars of the day.

Motorola had a very popular model for $120+ in 1930.

Often required a high output generator as the 6-8 amp typical output couldn't keep up.

The dairy farm didn't get electricity until after the war but mom's aunt had the only radio for miles around.

It had a battery and was powered by a small turbine in the creek... some farms had wind generators for radios back then.

History of obsolete car audio, part 1: Early radio - Hagerty Media

Early, passionate pioneers.

www.hagerty.com

 

[Fuddyduddy1952]

Growing up our neighbor had 2500 acres, no electricity, tractor, truck or plumbing. A fire was going in his small log cabin year round.
He had a wind generator 6v and battery to power a radio so he could keep up with WWII. Mom said he wasn't affected by The Depression since he had a garden, draft horses, etc.

 

[D&D]

After Mom passed and Dad was living alone at home, we got him a medial alert fob that hung on his neck. It had a base station that would call me and 911 if he pressed the button. It was put in the living room on an end table, a good central location in the house. It had a blue light on it to indicate it was operating, but Dad slept in his recliner most of the time and the blue light bothered him, so he would unplug it. I even moved the base station to the kitchen and he still would unplug it, which caused a few heated arguments when I would come over and find it unplugged.
Finally, one Monday morning my niece went over to check on him and do the cleaning found him dead in his recliner with the TV on and the telephone in his hand. The fob was one his neck, but the base station was unplugged again.
He was a stubborn old cuss, got it from his dad, but that's another story.

The older people I know are more afraid of losing everything to healthcare than they are of dying. Sad state of affairs when the newcomers have more privileges than the elderly and homeless.