I just found out that my audio recorder is, alas, dead (and will cost most of the price of a replacement to fix). Unfortunately, as with seemingly everything electronic, this means that I’ll not have it repaired but get something new.
Oh, HHB MDP-500 Portadisc recorder,
You travelled with me around the world and back.
So many hours of interviews and lectures
You dutifully recorded.
You took in various dodgy electrical voltages
And ran without complaint in heat or ice.
You rode in the back seat on washed out roads
And were with me that time in the Cessna
In the DRC
When the pilot told us about the pistol
In the compartment
In case the plane went down.
Those were the days; I knew you had no fear.
Remember when that careless customs official
Broke your original leatherette carrier?
I bought you a sturdy Porta-Brace case
Made in Vermont
So you would be safe.
You used a funky storage format that is now
Nearly forgotten
And you’ve been surpassed by your solid state brethren.
You did so much good in your short life,
Recording all that material for various Not-for-Profit organisations.
I hope,
In whatever existence you have in the Beyond,
You are justly rewarded.
I shall remember you fondly.
Yet still I must ask…
How my equipment built thirty years ago still plugs along
And everything from the past ten
Is a bit iffy?
But, of course, the field recorder from thirty years ago
Weighs as much as a small motorcycle
And cannot also play my .mp3 files.
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