Column: The remarkable range and reach of radio

One Sunday morning recently, I was getting ready for the day. My body was in Maine, but my mind was in Italy.

I had just discovered that travel guru Rick Steeves had a radio show that aired on Maine Public at 6 a.m. I was a little giddy that I had such a pleasant and informative backdrop to my mundane, early-morning activities.

As I brushed my teeth and listened to a discussion about pasta, I reflected on my relationship to radio. It goes way back. My parents grew up with the radio as their major source of information and entertainment. My father enjoyed talking about his favorite shows, like “The Shadow.” Dad would say in wonderment, “We sat there looking at the radio, even though there was nothing to see.”

I loved hearing these stories and developed an interest in old-time radio dramas. We had Dad’s family radio—an impressive piece of mahogany furniture that also included a 78-rpm record player—in our basement. Although the radio no longer worked, the record player did, and I had fun playing classics on it like “Red River Valley,” and imagining my father as a kid, sitting cross-legged in front of the set and listening to “The Lone Ranger.”

The cool device of my own girlhood was the transistor radio. What better symbol of the freewheeling 1960s than a tiny device we could carry anywhere? Then, when I was a teenager, my parents gave me a radio/cassette recorder. Oh, boy. I could tape songs off the radio. So what if I missed a few notes? First, I had the anticipation of waiting for my favorite songs to come on the radio.Then I taped them, for listening again later. It was a fine hobby and it kept me off the streets.

Once I got my license, I loved to play with the radio dial—switching to another station when an ad came on. I still enjoy this activity while driving alone. Luckily, I can now do it much more safely by pressing a button on the steering wheel.

I married a journalist who started his career in radio. He has a “radio voice.” We have always had radios in the kitchen, living room and bedroom. We also have a Crosley 1950s-era tabletop model that doesn’t work but looks good. That was inherited from a relative. Paul’s clock radio from the 1980s is still hanging around and probably also qualifies as an antique.

Though I often just switch on the radio in the morning, I am not stuck in the 20th century. I often stream my favorite shows—in fact, that’s what I was doing with Rick Steeves. I appreciate the convenience of streaming, and of being able to go back to the archives if I miss an episode of a favorite show. Given the way I listen to the radio—in the car, while cooking, etc.—I do miss chunks of programs. Another reason to be grateful for the archives.

Still, I do love all my radios, including the three elegant Bose models we have, which seems excessive as I write it. Oh, well. There it is. I know podcasts are all the rage right now, and I have listened to a few, but I haven’t put in the time to find ones that I would like.

Plus, who wants to be stuck in a silo all the time? That’s what happens if you pick and choose all your “content.” It’s good to let other voices in now and then. A creepy character in a novel I just finished only listened to true-crime podcasts. She may be fictional, but she’s part of a trend. I may turn off a radio program because I’m not interested in a topic, but I’m more likely to be either delighted or intrigued.

Besides, I keep busy listening to public radio. When I thought about it, I was surprised at how many shows I follow. I listen to the news in the morning and at dinner time every day. Maine Public Classical has jazz on Friday evenings, and the main Maine Public station has “In Tune,” hosted by Sara Willis, which is a mélange of folk, blues, world music and more. On Sundays, there’s “Hidden Brain,” a psychology program with Shankar Vedantam. I enjoy listening to “Maine Calling” on weekday mornings. Another favorite show is “Saturday Cinema,” with Lynn Warfel. This show features music soundtracks. It used to be on Maine Public Classical, but it has been canceled by Maine Public. (Paul complained.) Now we stream it from Minnesota Public Radio.

For years, we have kept Maine Public on as white noise for our dogs when we’re out of the house. But I’ll also keep the classical station on for background music for myself. The other day I was sitting in the living room and could hear the tinkling of a piano coming from the kitchen. I thought, “Now that is very nice.”

Not only am I easily amused, but I have been a multitasker since about age 12. I really like to have something else going on when I’m dusting or chopping onions.

Or doing my morning stretches. As I listened to Rick Steeves’ show that Sunday morning, I marveled at how I was nearly drooling for gelato, just because I was listening to people talk about it. That’s the magic of the radio, folks.