Music
The way we get our music has changed immensely over the years. When I was growing up in the 60's and 70's, listening to my parent's record (vinyl) collection, it mostly consisted of 12inch 78rpm records, with some 7inch 45 rpm. I bought 7inch 45's as well as 12inch albums at 33rpm. Then there were cassettes. These were easy to take around with you and play in the car or garden. My uncle had something called an 8 track stereo, which was a tape. I neve really understood these, he was the only person I knew who had one. These music methods seemed to work well, apart from getting the vinyl scratched, making it stick or jump and the tape would come out of the cassettes, requiring a handy tool (pencil) to wind it back in.
Along came CDs. Hard plastic that, apparently, would never break or scratch and you needed a special CD player on which to play them. Most music produced would be released on a CD. They did look like a small piece of vinyl, As opposed to the 12inch vinyls, CDs only were played on one side. You could listen to a full album without having to get up and turn it over. However they did get scratched and damaged. And the machines to play them on did stop playing them properly, meaning a new player had to be bought. Mini CD players became available meaning they could be carried out and about, and players were installed in cars. Smaller than vinyl albums, they didn't take up as much space, but the cases they came in where a lot wider so you didn't really gain that much space.
Then came apple and their ipod range. Different sizes for different occasions and with different sizes. I have one of the big ipods, it has over 160000 sings on. At the time all of my record, cassette and CD collection. Being able to convert vinyl to an ipod wasn't an easy process, and it was time consuming. I also have a smaller Nano which has almost 500 songs on. When my ipod was full I had to get an mP3 player as the ipods I liked were no longer available. Whenever I get any new music, Vinyl, cassette or CD, I immediately put it onto my mP3 player. The biggest advantage of these for me is that I can take my whole music collection with me wherever i go.
Now it seems as though streaming is the way. Vinyl is making a come back and CDs are still around. Most Streaming sites charge a fee, usually monthly, for unlimited downloads. However, any downloads only last while you are part of the streaming service, once you leave so does the music. It's a new way, and one that I use but aren't fully aware of. My teenage sons are, and use them for all of their music. As yet I'm not totally convinced, but that may be because I'm old, or so I'm told!!
Along with all these methods of listening to music, there has always been radio. Which was the best way to listen to and find new music.
Car wash
Washing cars in winter. Is it necessary? Why do it? Isn't it just a waste of time and water?
Cars get really filthy in the winter months. The wet roads, salt and grit everywhere. Spray thrown up by other vehicles. Not to mention the awful weather - wind, rain, snow, ice, frost.
This week I've seen a lot of my neighbours cleaning their cars. What's the point? In no time at all they will be just as filthy and in need of another clean.
However, cleaning the car is better than having to wash my hands every time I get in it or put something in the boot. The handles and locks are so mucky that the merest touch gets body parts and clothing very dirty. No matter how careful I try to be it is impossible to avoid the dirt.
When driving you can spot those owners who take the easy, quick way and only wipe parts of the car - number plates, boot lid and front and rear windows, but not all of the window. Sometimes a quick squirt of the windscreen washers will suffice but there does come a time when the edges are too dirty to see out of clearly.
It may be an onerous task, cleaning the car, especially in the cold of the winter, but I would rather clean it myself than take it somewhere. I have always felt that for any able bodied person, cleaning the car is something that they should do themselves.
Man on a bike. 