Stories About Your Mother/Father

[blindman]

deleted

Edited April 29, 2015 by blindman

[JL Sargent]

My two brothers and I would pour over the giant Sears and JC Penny catalogs as kids dreaming of what we might get for Christmas each year. I remember listening to Wolfman Jack at night on a little tube mono radio while studying the stereo listings in those catalogs. I finally settled on a reasonably priced MCS (Modular Component Systems) stereo system and proceded to work my parents for the confirmation that it might happen. One day in mid December we got home from school and a big batch of new wrapped presents were under the tree! I couldn't stand it!

 

After bedtime I would sneak into the family room where the Christmas tree stood and carefully unwrapped that whole stereo system. I would then listen at a very low volume into the wee hours of the morning. Was certainly a brazen little twit as I couldn't have been more than 11 or 12 years old at the time. Then after a listening session, I carefully wrapped the system back up in that same paper and placed it just as before under the tree. My parents never caught on. My sweet mother, God rest her soul, always made Christmas an awesome experience for us. So many great memories for my brothers and me. Oh, what a grand time it was.

[Paducah Home Theater]

I just showed the article to my dad, he's in tears. Thanks Alex.

http://www.klipsch.com/blog/dads-that-rock-memories-of-music/

[dtel's wife]

Congratulations!!!! Awesome story!

Edited June 19, 2015 by dtel's wife

[MookieStl]

Although my dad and I shared many similarities and interests, music / audio was not one of them. He would put a stack of scratchy albums onto his cheap turntable and they would drop one at a time and continue with the scratching process. in 1981/82ish  I was going through a speaker building phase and had just completed a pair of Speakerlab Super 7's and all he could do was complain about the sawdust in the basement and that they were too big and too loud. Then one day I put on the sound track to Chariot's of Fire by Vangellis and he came downstairs and asked me to play it again and even had me turn it up! I didn't convert him but I think he didn't think I was as crazy as he feared. Tomorrow is Father's Day and I will miss him even more than I usually do every day.

[DizRotus]

Tomorrow is Fathers' Day. I'll be remembering my father who died in 1988 at the too young age of 64.

In 1943, at 19, he was yanked from engineering classes at Johns Hopkins University and made an instant 2nd Lt. In the Army Corps of Engineers, serving in France and the Philippines. After returning to JHU to complete his degree in mechanical engineering and play lacrosse, he married a young war widow with an infant daughter. At 24 he had a wife, a child and a job. At 24 I was an irresponsible punk. I didn't marry until I was 32. There is NO WAY I could have been a parent at ages 24, 25, 26 . . . . you get the idea.

He got me started early with Knight kits from Allied Radio and Heathkits. He built two Heathkit color TVs and several amps and speakers. He was never into Klipsch, but he helped me modify 4 Speakerlab SKhorns used in a mobile DJ business while in grad school. He enjoyed listening to Oscar Peterson and George Shearing.

He was far from perfect, but he made me who I am today. I miss him. More important, I'm sorry that my two fine sons never knew their grandfather.

Happy Fathers' Day!

Edited June 22, 2015 by DizRotus

[WMcD]

The parents were not too much into music but maybe noticed that I was.

 

When very young they gave me an old used 78 rpm unit and a few records. 

 

Then they gave me a suit case type unit which played the new 33 rpm records, for Christmas. The record with it was "How to Conduct Your Own Orchestra."  A collection of catchy classical tunes, which I played to death.  It came with a baton!

 

Sometime later, my mom was going to take me to a movie.  It was "South Pacific."  She said that I'd like it, because it is a "war movie about soldiers."  It was lost on me, but then they bought us the Broadway sound track.  My sister and I would act along with sock puppets.  Again having no understanding of the depth of the work. 

 

Someplace in there my dad took me to an appliance store to by a GE "stereo" console.  The salesman played a disk of "Sleeping Beauty" by Tchaikovsky.  He asked me what I thought.  I said that Walt Disney must have been very smart to compose music like that and make movies.  Of course I was thinking about the Disney cartoon movie, and had no idea.  Dad laughed.  I didn't understand.

 

The GE console served well over the decades.  In later years I listened to a lot of FM, which was fairly new at the time.  There was easy listening, and classical, and then the album oriented rock which displaced Top-40.  My sister and I bought Chet Atkins Picks on the Beatles and played it.  We knew, just knew, the parents would not allow real Beatles. 

 

So, the parental units were very sly.  They created to good circumstances for music without really doing anything overt.

 

WMcD

[MORE KLIPSCH PLEASE]

My mom and dad were never really into music like I am and all of you guys..We never really had alot of money. We came to America in 1968 and my dad had $135 in his pocket, he got a job in VA. to work on a horse farm (dad wanted to be a jockey)..We moved from VA to MD. in 1972...Well we would always go back to VA to see our friends....It was about a four hour ride and on the way we would always listen to music...yea dad put a system in car......a 8-track player oh yea....we would all be singing those songs...it was great...

Then in the mid 70's or so mom and dad went out to buy a new car....well they didn't get a new car but a new TV- Stereo console ...man it was the chitt....it had a turn table, radio, and a 8-track player...I remember around the disco years dad would crank that thing up... then they would dance in the living room.....I would watch them...they had all the moves lol lol....Good times for sure..

 

MKP :-)

[Alex L]

I just showed the article to my dad, he's in tears. Thanks Alex.

http://www.klipsch.com/blog/dads-that-rock-memories-of-music/

 

This is why we do what we do.

[jacksonbart]

My parents got together the 5th timer after being disappointed in their last 4 attempts and made a living a perfect being while vacationing on the planet Pluto.  I become aware immediately and decided to stay here,  Cheers.  FYI, they enjoy music too, so I enjoy R&B from the late 50s, 60s and 70s.  Who Don't?  (never been to school)..  

[Paducah Home Theater]

Feels like just last week we were messing with this article. Since this went out, my dad has developed a fast growing cancerous tumor in his brain. At this point it's the size of a fist, and pressing on his brain stem. They're doing surgery on Thursday but he'll probably never be the same. He's already got extreme shakes in his right side way worse than any Parkinsons side effect I've ever seen. He's actually got Parkinsons which is why they only caught it on Friday, they thought it was complications from Parkinsons. They're having to wait so that some steroids can decrease the inflammation and swelling.

He's pretty confused, like yesterday he's telling me about taking his truck sailing and a fantastic story about building thousands of 550 mph stealth helicopters. They're already saying they can't take all of it due to the size and what it's hitting. Even if he makes it through I imagine his right side is shot, will have to learn how to be a lefty.

Anyway, point is, life is short, or something. Still trying to wrap my head around it all.

[MORE KLIPSCH PLEASE]

^^^^prayers for your dad and your family^^^^^

Mark......

[dtel's wife]

Metroplolis, praying for you. Alex, still checking the mail.

[BigStewMan]

sorry for that new metropolis...i hope somehow they’re able to get all of the tumor and the next news is all good. praying for you all.

Edited November 16, 2015 by BigStewMan

[T2K]

Feels like just last week we were messing with this article. Since this went out, my dad has developed a fast growing cancerous tumor in his brain. At this point it's the size of a fist, and pressing on his brain stem. They're doing surgery on Thursday but he'll probably never be the same. He's already got extreme shakes in his right side way worse than any Parkinsons side effect I've ever seen. He's actually got Parkinsons which is why they only caught it on Friday, they thought it was complications from Parkinsons. They're having to wait so that some steroids can decrease the inflammation and swelling.

He's pretty confused, like yesterday he's telling me about taking his truck sailing and a fantastic story about building thousands of 550 mph stealth helicopters. They're already saying they can't take all of it due to the size and what it's hitting. Even if he makes it through I imagine his right side is shot, will have to learn how to be a lefty.

Anyway, point is, life is short, or something. Still trying to wrap my head around it all.

 

Good friend of mine had brain cancer and recovered. You would not believe what can be done these days. Never give up. Good luck to your Dad.

 

Keith

[DizRotus]

Thoughts are with you. Love him and be strong.

Edited November 16, 2015 by DizRotus

[kapsnb01]

Thoughts and prayers for a good outcome.

[Mighty Favog]

My oldest uncle (RIP) (on Mom's side (RIP)) was in WWII as a radio/radar operator on a B17. After the war he was already interested in electronics and opened his own company, Trout Sound Products, Inc. They mainly installed PA systems in churches and large halls. That uncle, my mother and my aunt were/are all musically talented so that gave some PAF (parent approval factor).

So I took an interest in sound systems but for the home instead of live performances.

Later on, a friend of our family was in the Army and mentioned possibly buying Klipsch speakers at the PX. Saying that he'll probably get the LaScalas as he couldn't afford the K-horns. We looked at the sales brochure and from the picture could not understand how any bass could come from them (not knowing about the folded bass horn). Never saw that family friend much after that as he got re-deployed.

Years later the brand name stuck in my head, even after I worked for a department store that had a rather wide array of upper mid-fi equipment. After doing some investigating and seeing the Heritage line was still out of my price range, I pulled the trigger 12-years later on a pair of KLF-20's from Uncle's Stereo in NYC. After that, it's been Pro Media 2.1, RB-61's, SB-120, KHO-7's and finally a pair of Cornwalls (1.5's).

Edited November 18, 2015 by Mighty Favog

[Paducah Home Theater]

Forgot to follow up until somebody asked elsewhere. Dad seems to be doing a lot better. He was talking instantly out of surgery. Considering he went in thinking he would never talk again period that was a huge thing. Had to cut a 3" circle in his skull and removed about a fist sized tumor. They left some cancerous matter that his in the area that controls his speech and he will have to go through chemo to get rid of that, too dangerous to cut out. The swelling is down big time so several things have improved due to that. He's still got a long way to go but considering the massive amount of matter they took out and the improvements afterwards, it probably couldn't have gone any better. He may have to go through therapy, I'm not sure yet. He's supposed to go home tomorrow.

[DizRotus]

Very good news.  Another reason to be thankful this Thanksgiving.