“They don’t make’m like they used to.” Such a TRUE phrase! For example, two alarm clocks I bought for my children have died already. BUT… I  have an alarm clock my parents bought for me 30+ years ago!!! Here’s to great manufacturing back-in-the-day, right? Sadly, the radio (analog, of course) is having a tough time and must make way for a digitally-tuned model. Thus, my poem of tribute:

“Ode to My Clock Radio” by Sara Marie Allen

Ode to my clock radio,
I’m sad to see you go.
I’ve had you more than thirty years,
And watched your numbers glow.

My parents gave you to me,
When I was barely four.
They taught me how to read you,
So they could sleep some more.

Then as I got older,
Your alarm was ever faithful.
The music that you played for me
Became my morning staple.

You went with me to college,
And then as a newlywed,
You woke me for my first real job,
And got me out of bed.

You marked the times my babies cried,
Waking in the night.
And when they grew to toddlers,
They learned numbers by your light.

When CD playing, Ipod dock
Alarm clocks were invented,
I didn’t fancy them because
You left me so contented.

For years I have been dreading
The parting of our ways.
‘Cause your radio’s been going,
Getting fuzzier each day.

My precious Lloyd’s-brand radio,
It’s time that you retired.
I need something more dependable
So I do not get fired.