Hi, today, Sept. 9th, my DH is 71. Last couple years were tough to get ideas for. DH had lost interest in many things, and with the season approaching change to rain and cold winds his passion for gardening was wains about then. I'd buy him new tools for making yard work easier, but they often went unused, put away and forgotten because of the many months before weather permitted him to get out and use anything. So, another baseball hat or shirt were "old stand by's" for lack of a better idea. Sometimes we'd buy him a CD, but the CD player is too complicated. And he'd forget he had new CD's.
Since AD, DH searches for answers to things that randomly pop in his mind. Much of his thoughts and questions pertain to the period just prior to us meeting. The 70's and early 80's. He went to many outdoor concerts in Santa Barbara, where we both lived for many years. But those concerts were when I was in my teen years, well before we ever met. Not long after our marriage we had a water line break in our house and next thing I know (coming home from work one day) I discover the floor space was lined wall to wall with 78 LP albums and jackets, all laid out to dry. The closet they were stored in was saturated, and this vast collection had become a casualty. We didn't have a phonograph to play these LP's on, but they were not going anywhere. A dozen years later we sold the house and moved, and those rescued albums moved with us, only to be stored again for the past 6 plus years. They were "unearthed" recently when we had to empty rooms and move furniture for new carpet to be installed. Teen daughter who has probably never listened to a vinyl record in her life has wanted to hear some of these classics, and even the Disney songs on one of the Albums DH had saved that's older than our daughter. He has Beatles White Album, other beatles, Chicago, Johnny Mathis, Elvis, Waylon and Willie and the Boys, Santana, Eagles, Fleetwood Mac, OMG. I'm a 70's teen.
Well, Wa La, we were presented with an answer to the age old question of "What to get Dad for his Birthday." We found a standard turn table to connect to his Kenwood amp and CD changer. Had to drive around alot to find a decent one, but we got it. So, imagine the rest of the day around here. Rocking back to the 60's and 70's with Dad.
Sid was in the electronics business for 40 years - we had every new gadget that came out - we even had the first BETA VCR - but when it was time to move out of the house we had occupied for 30 years, we threw out the old turntables. I tried to sell the albums to old record collectors, but no one would buy them, so out they went.
He bought all of the "oldies" CD's from the PBS fundraising shows, but neither one of us can figure out how to get the songs into his IPod (which was birthday present from me ). Even when he was still able to figure out electronic equipment, the IPod had him stumped. Somehow, and I have no idea how, we managed to get some songs into it about 4 years ago. He listens to those same songs everytime we travel on a plane.
Birthdays and Christmas is hard. Bill doesn't even know it's winter much less Christmas. He isn't sure when his birthday is now or how old he is. Buying presents seems like a waste of money because he doesn't remember what he just opened by the time he opens the next one.
About the only thing that gets his attention is candy so last birthday he got two boxes of Snickers (48 in a box) and a three pound box of chocolates.
I have a MP3 player. I use Windows Media Player, to Rip and transfer the music to MP3. I love mine. I have an older one, and little Sony powered speakers (about 20 dollars). I put the music on for my husband. He loves it and it plays for hours. My new one I listen to books from Audible. I will recomend a new book just out this year. "Dancing with Rose", by Lauren Kessler, it is about AD. Her mother had it and she decided to write about it. She goes to work at a nursing home to learn more about it. Very Good.
How is it going with the records? Does he still listen at all to them?
They have a player out that comes with the turn table, CD and cassette player - looks like an old fashioned radio. Someday I will get me one, take my records out of storage and listen to the Monkeys and Sadji Kahn. He played in the one season series Mya starring Jay North (original Dennis the Menace) and Sadji.