Late Night Radio: 99 Bottles of Years on the Wall

Howdy, folks, and welcome back to the show! October is for nostalgia. New things stir in spring: ferns, a look to the future, the hope of summer. The dog days bring a boiling, crushing Now-ness: a humid afternoon or night alive with katydids. Winter's gray sky goes on, forever present. But autumn is for the past, both recent and distant. Echoes of summer linger around the pond today: the blooming goldenrod, and a few birds ready to head south. It's my grandmother's birthday in a few days, and she's the queen of Remember When.

“Don't turn 90” she told me once, only half joking. She's disobeying her own advice, and I'm celebrating. She turns next week.

With my musical background and knack for being unhelpful, I thought of bringing 99 red balloons, a nod to the 1983 Nena song. But, nobody would get the joke, and it seems poor taste to explain: “well, in the story of this Cold War-era song, people let off red balloons for fun, but it scared the generals, causing nuclear holocaust. You're 99, so here's that many balloons. Get it? Happy birthday!” And no way they'd fit in my car.

There’s more to this in the current issue of the Times Virginian newspaper. Support local journalism by purchasing the issue at a local newsstand or subscribing at www.timesvirginian.com/subscriber_services to receive the print edition or view the full article in the e-edition version.