Cassette tape culture

Cassette tapes were wonderful. They were eminently portable and could take certain kinds of beating, but they were also vulnerable. Unknown players might kill them with no warning or remedy--especially in-dash car players.

Making a mixed tape for a crush was an exercise in dj-ing and in precision. Dead space wasn't on; you had to fill the exact amount of time, 60 minutes or 90. Finding some of my old ones, given to me by friends and more, with their hand-drawn, carefully designed label and liner notes, was like finding letters from the past, carrying a heavy freight of memories... ahhh!

CDs degraded the experience by being more fragile and less portable (can't slip one in your pants pockets, for example). With the advent of the mp3 player, mixed tapes and cds died. I miss those things.

Remember the little holes at the bottom that were there to make a cassette "read only"? You could get around it by covering the holes with scotch tape or plugging them with bits of paper.

As a kid who grew up in the late 80's / early 90's, I'll always have fond memories of the miniature cassette tapes that had singles on them. Crappy quality? Yes. Awful colors? For sure. But it definitely appealed to the 5 year old me.