In my constant push to clean our stuff up and GET…RID…OF…ALL…THESE…BOXES (%#$@^&!), I had always planned to digitize our cassettes that are worth keeping.
I had slowly been making progress off and on for the past few years by plugging one end of a radio cable into a Walkman’s headphone port (I bought 3 for this very purpose!), and the other end into my 2011 MacBook Pro’s “Microphone” port. All that was left to do was push “Play” and let Audacity create a digital version of the cassette.
When I went to resume the project in earnest a few weeks ago, I hit a major roadblock. I learned that my new MacBook Pro has no “Line In” port. It’s not even listed as an option in the Sound Preferences!
I called Apple support…they didn’t have an answer.
I searched the Net for some sort of adapter…no luck.
Best Buy searched…and found nothing.
This is now officially A PROBLEM…
Well, last night, my wife said that her schedule was so packed (she’s a home health care nurse) that she actually asked if I would be willing to be her chauffeur. Keep in mind that this is a woman who made no bones about telling me the previous two times I tried to help her by driving her around, “IT DOESN’T HELP!!!”
Although I was not happy that she agreed to do so many appointments when she already had all the points she needed for the week, I, being the nice husband that I am, shook off her previous rejections and told her I would. I couldn’t quite make it to, “I’d be glad to!” (Honestly, I didn’t even try all that hard.…you know…low motivation.) Anyway…
After the first appointment, she called the doctor’s office. She had the volume all the way up on her phone while she went through the automated options. “If you need blah, blah, blah…press 1…If you need…press 2…, etc.”
I was so glad when she pressed the appropriate button. I thought it was over.
Wrong-oh!
“Now that we know which department you meant to call…we need to know who is calling. If you are you just a regular Joe…press 1. If you are…press 2…, etc.”
Internally, I was thinking, “Come on, hun. Just press a button! MAKE IT STOP! PLEASE!”
She pressed 3.
I held by breath…
After a brief pause, the voice announced that she was beginning a third level of this high tech torture.
“Please listen carefully as our menu options have changed…”
I thought, “OMG, you have GOT to be kidding! I do not want to listen to this all day!”
I asked, “Can’t you put some headphones on?”
“I can’t. The mice ate through the wires. But if you want to get me a new set for my birthday…”
Well, the third appointment wasn’t home. I’ll give you one guess how we used the newly found free time…
You got it…I made a beeline to Best Buy. We headed straight to the Apple section of the computer area.
They didn’t have her headphones….
The young man said that we should check in the Headphones area.
We went there…only to find no Apple products.
The salesman started apologizing.
I told him that it was not a problem.
He kept going…
While trying to assure him that it really wasn’t a problem, that we would just look somewhere else, while at the same time trying to head toward the door without being rude, I noticed they had a CD clock radio!
The CD player in my garage no longer works. But I had just bought a used one at Goodwill an hour earlier while Bunch was doing her nursing thing in appointment #2. So I made a mental note in case it doesn’t work.
As I was about to turn and head for the door, my wife laughed and said, “Look, a boom box!” She was pointing at a “BoomBox Deluxe” with a picture of a cassette player on the front of the box.
At first, we thought it was a joke. But when I turned the box around and read the features, we learned not only was it not a joke, but it would digitize cassettes???
Wha-a-a-a-t??? Are you kidding me? The solution to my problem?!?!? Is this real?
It turns out, it is. Absolutely amazing!
As we checked out, the cashier informed us that we were lucky because it was on sale today.
“How much is it normally?”
“$139. You saved $60.”
…keyboard drop!
On top of my digitizing problem being solved with much less of my time and my money disappearing, I got a new wife! My “IT DOESN’T HELP” wife has turned into my REALLY, REALLY grateful wife…at least for today.
Not a bad days work!
P.S. We bought her headphones at the next store…but she left her adapter at home! Also, I am returning the Goodwill radio.
