Working on bottle caps for magnets and drink charms is a time-consuming task. Enjoyable? Yes. But definitely time consuming. There is the preparation of the caps, cutting out the images, adhering images, applying resin, etc, etc. I like to take a whole evening to devote to one task at a time. A batch of magnets or drink charms will take up to a week.
When working on these projects I don't like to have the TV on. It requires me to watch, and I have to have my eyes on my work. For reasons I can't explain, music also proves to be a distraction for me when working on the bottle caps. But I need something ~ something to occupy my mind while keeping busy with the repetition of the work. I found the perfect solution...old time radio.
My favorites are the horror and mystery stories. Inner Sanctum. Murder at Midnight. Suspense. The list goes on and on. I can listen and be entertained and at the same time concentrate on the work at hand. I hear great actors in their early days ~ Agnes Moorhead, Orson Wells, and Vincent Price. Such a talent it takes to project fear and horror by sound instead of using visual tricks. And with some shows there is the added bonus of old time commercials. "Four out of five doctors recommend smoking Camel," or "You're always right, with Auto Lite."
The best thing about these old time radio shows is they now come in an MP3 format. I download hundreds of these shows into my iPod and I'm good to go producing my bottle cap products for hours on end. Even if Husby is in the same room watching TV, I can be engrossed in the thrilling tales of radio. My source for buying these radio shows is OTRCAT.com. This site offers not only horror and mystery shows, but also the comedies, dramas, and even children's radio shows. Better still is the low price. I can get eighty hours of radio entertainment for as little as $5.
So when you're in the mood to hear a story and don't want to be distracted by visuals, wander back in time and listen to the shows your parents and grandparents did as they gathered around the radio. Soon you'll know the answer to the question, "Who knows what evil lurks in the heart of men?"
The Shadow knows...
1 comment:
Oh interesting Sara, though my work this week was fabric and sewing wool felt hair clips, the process is somewhat similar. That is fabric prep and cutting out, machine work to add texture to leaves, then matching up and hand sewing the "wild roses" then hand sewing the hair clip - still need to tag. Anyway, for me, the talk whether radio or TV is distracting; the music for me is classical -- whether records/CD/or MPR. Or no music, just the house and sounds that come in from outside. Focusing on the feel of the fabric, the process of making something 3 dimensional and highly tactile from flat fabric pieces. OOOhhh, thanks for getting me to think about this. Neat how we work similar, yet different. Jane
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