Nothing new under the sun

Yesterday, while I was fixing dinner, I turned on the oldies station.

I don't usually listen to the oldies station. In the car, I'll turn on classical KMZT, or one of the many country stations, or maybe NPR. At home, I hardly ever listen to the radio at all. Somehow, songs that I'm not expecting, that I haven't chosen to hear, have no place in my home. When I'm out and about, I want to be exposed to new and unpredictable experiences. But in my own home, I don't want the entire atmosphere of our household to be at the whim of some unknown DJ. So I hardly ever listen to CDs in the car, and almost never listen to the radio at home.

Lately we've been listening to this in the evenings, over and over and over. I wasn't sick of it, by any stretch of the imagination, but I suppose I wanted to safeguard against that potential tragedy. Besides, our copy is a cassette, and I'd hate to wear it out all at once. Seriously, that album is a treasure, instantly creating the sort of atmosphere in which children are easy to love and well worth understanding. Not only do the wuggies love it, but it's the sort of music that makes me a better parent.

But last night, I thought we should listen to something different for a change, so I put on the oldies station.

Nathan became very excited.

"It's brand new music!!"