My Father, Me, and a transistor radio

Some great memories for me as a kid was listening to LSU football games on Saturday night. Now, this was back when there was no cable TV, so there was only 3 stations on the TV, and LSU wasn't on TV all that often. However, we had this transistor radio. Through the miracle of the internet, I was able to find an image of the exact radio we had! Amazing.

Each Saturday night we'd listen to LSU football games in our dining room. On these days, my dad's mood was usually good. It was great to be able to sit and listen to the games with him, this little transistor radio sending the signals from all over the southern United States. I have such vivid memories of that radio. Small with a big sound, the crowd noise arriving to our home across the Atchafalaya River Basin. I miracle I often thought. I would imagine being there with the crowd, getting sucked into that little radio into Tiger Stadium on a Saturday night. Over time, that radio had no back and the battery was held in by electrical tape. Hearing the lightning crackle over the airwaves during thunderstorms in south Louisiana echoes through my memory even now!

Occasionally, LSU would be on TV. Usually this game was against Bear Bryant's Alabama Crimson Tide. Back then, that usually spelled a loss! Ugh.

I don't remember all the names of players of the early 70s, but the oldest player I recall was Bert Jones!

It is cool to think that a simple transistor radio would be responsible for the most warming memories of times with my father. A common bond was formed as we sat at that table listening to the game, him telling me of his time at LSU in the early 40s, living in the stadium dorms and cleaning the stadium on Sunday mornings for extra money. No bad memories surface when I think of that radio. As I think of those times now, I really was in that radio. It shielded me from any chaos. During those few Saturday nights in football season, I knew I was getting the "good" dad. There was no guessing the mood, he wasn't away at the bars. He was safe and sound with me and our transistor radio.