Goodbye Dear Friends...

No, not you my faithful readers, this is goodbye to some of my favorite radio folks...Kathy and Judy from WGN talk radio.

It was decided last Friday, by the powers that be, not to renew their contracts. Bingo, just like that...they are gone; no warning...no getting ready to live without them. The management of the station are "making a business decision and going in a different direction". Fine.

They have kept me laughing and thinking for the last 2.5 years and Lord knows how many podcasts from before that. They would talk about the most inane things...just when I was ready to shut them off, they would change the topic, have listeners call in with their opinions or experiences and it would be like a whole new day. The subjects varied from wedding invitations, to death of a family member, workmate etiquette and grade school bullying. Then there was always "sex-Thursday"...where listeners could call in anonymously and discuss some of their early (or late) sexual experiences...these were the best and would often have me close to tears from laughing so hard.

I don't know what is easier, to have this unexpected break or to have known about in advance. It seems like eons ago now, but when I lived in the New York area I would start my day, everyday, with WNEW radio. NOT what you get now which is rock and totally unlistenable stuff, but great jazz from the forties peppered with lots of music that you wouldn't hear anywhere else, new jazz, great artists introduced by "the" Ted Brown and his sidekick Nola Roper. AHHHHH.... Now those were the days. They did comedy skits in the mornings, in-between traffic reports and weather forecasts. No matter how bad things were, these two always made it better. It was a true addiction for me.

When the announcement was made that Ted Brown was retiring, I was devastated. Co-workers were asking me if I was going to handle it. I laughed and said sure, I don't have it as bad as you think. But I was wrong. It was like losing a family member. It took a very long time for me not to miss them in the morning. I would search the Internet hoping that they might appear somewhere else, but no. They were not to be found. Worse, I found out that Ted Brown had moved to Florida and passed away some years later. There is still a dark hole somewhere in my heart for him.

So goodbye dear friends, you are missed and loved very much.