Thank you.
I wanted to take a moment here to thank you for listening to the Sounds of Christmas.
In 1987, when I was working at my first commercial radio station, I worked on Christmas Day. In fact, I worked eighteen hours on that Christmas Day. I had a twelve hour shift, a six hour break (where I slept on the couch at the station) and then another six hours.
That might sound pretty awful to many of you. But it wasn’t.
I heard from lots of callers, and felt like I got to spend Christmas with a lot of people. Some were happy, enjoying listening to the Christmas music with their family and friends. And some weren’t so happy, but seemed grateful to be able to have some company.
And I was grateful to have theirs.
I remember a few years later when I was at a different radio station, and a friend of mine called. She was on her way to a family get-together and only had a few minutes, but she heard me on the radio and wanted to say hi. I played the Carpenters’ “Merry Christmas Darling” for her, and while we weren’t still on the phone when the song was over, I felt like I was a small part of her Christmas.
I’ve worked a lot of Christmases since then. And I always get that same, grateful feeling, whether I get a ton of calls or none. There’s just something that’s kind of magic about sharing this music, especially on Christmas Day.
I don’t get calls on the Sounds of Christmas, though I do get Tweets, Facebook posts and emails. And I can go into the admin area at Live 365 and see that there are people listening. I can’t tell who they are, or where they are, in that instant. But I can see that they are listening.
Right now, as I type this I’m listening to Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Paper”. And I can see that there are other people listening to that with me right now, too. A moment ago, we were listening to Larry Carlton together. And in a few more minutes, we’ll be listening to the Temptations together. And then Anne Murray. And then U2.
Some might be decorating their tree. Some may be wrapping presents. Some may just be relaxing and listening to the music.
And while we all have busy lives and millions of things to do, for a few moments, we’re spending part of the holiday together.
And I am so very fortunate that I get so many of these moments.
I have mentioned before about having listeners in every state, and doing a kind of count-up as listeners from different countries tuned in.
This isn’t about how many listeners the Sounds of Christmas has.
This is just about being so very appreciative that some are listening right now. They could be in Ottumwa, Iowa or in New York City. Or in Winnipeg. Or in Norway. Or Japan.
But I know they’re there.
And for at least a little while, we’re getting to spend part of our Christmases together.
Thank you.
Ken
I wanted to take a moment here to thank you for listening to the Sounds of Christmas.
In 1987, when I was working at my first commercial radio station, I worked on Christmas Day. In fact, I worked eighteen hours on that Christmas Day. I had a twelve hour shift, a six hour break (where I slept on the couch at the station) and then another six hours.
That might sound pretty awful to many of you. But it wasn’t.
I heard from lots of callers, and felt like I got to spend Christmas with a lot of people. Some were happy, enjoying listening to the Christmas music with their family and friends. And some weren’t so happy, but seemed grateful to be able to have some company.
And I was grateful to have theirs.
I remember a few years later when I was at a different radio station, and a friend of mine called. She was on her way to a family get-together and only had a few minutes, but she heard me on the radio and wanted to say hi. I played the Carpenters’ “Merry Christmas Darling” for her, and while we weren’t still on the phone when the song was over, I felt like I was a small part of her Christmas.
I’ve worked a lot of Christmases since then. And I always get that same, grateful feeling, whether I get a ton of calls or none. There’s just something that’s kind of magic about sharing this music, especially on Christmas Day.
I don’t get calls on the Sounds of Christmas, though I do get Tweets, Facebook posts and emails. And I can go into the admin area at Live 365 and see that there are people listening. I can’t tell who they are, or where they are, in that instant. But I can see that they are listening.
Right now, as I type this I’m listening to Roy Orbison’s “Pretty Paper”. And I can see that there are other people listening to that with me right now, too. A moment ago, we were listening to Larry Carlton together. And in a few more minutes, we’ll be listening to the Temptations together. And then Anne Murray. And then U2.
Some might be decorating their tree. Some may be wrapping presents. Some may just be relaxing and listening to the music.
And while we all have busy lives and millions of things to do, for a few moments, we’re spending part of the holiday together.
And I am so very fortunate that I get so many of these moments.
I have mentioned before about having listeners in every state, and doing a kind of count-up as listeners from different countries tuned in.
This isn’t about how many listeners the Sounds of Christmas has.
This is just about being so very appreciative that some are listening right now. They could be in Ottumwa, Iowa or in New York City. Or in Winnipeg. Or in Norway. Or Japan.
But I know they’re there.
And for at least a little while, we’re getting to spend part of our Christmases together.
Thank you.
Ken
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