One alternative to streaming music I don’t think I’ve ever seen discussed: radio! You probably have an oldies (or similar) station in your area with a local connection.
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Music: So, yeah, maybe it isn’t your favorite and maybe you have stronger feelings about music discovery than I do. But oldies are basically another canon of standards at this point. It ain’t bad!
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Local ads: This is America; you don’t get to escape advertising. At least this way you may hear about local businesses and events.
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Local news: Local papers are dead but local radio news does still survive around here, in a much diminished way.
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Live broadcasts of local events: Goofy, for sure. But surely that’s not so bad, here at the end of all things?
The voluntary self-limitation of local radio—tune in and drop out, in a different sense—seems like a good option. This is one of the main ways our parents and grandparents connected to their community when I was young. I remember my blind grandpa sitting by the radio listening to Hoosier basketball. I remember waiting so impatiently to hear whether a snow day would be called—and the thrill when the broadcaster said he had a list of delays and closings to read.
This is a lot of nostalgia, to be sure, and I’m getting a bit off track. Anyway, count me in, WQRK.