Radio Shack

Can someone please explain to me how Radio Shack stays in business? This is some kind of marvel of the corporate world. I don't know anyone who shops at Radio Shack. Back when I was a kid, it was sort of a cool store. They had solar cells, 2001 electronics kits and, best of all, crystal radios. For anyone who doesn't remember, crystal radios were these little kits you could buy and you attached a couple of knobs to a little board with a couple transistors and some other gizmos. Then, and this was the cool part, you attached a copper wire from your crystal radio to a cold water pipe in your house. Plug in the earphone and viola, you could pick up a few static-filled stations.

The crystal radio wasn't very useful. It was a pain to sit there chained to a water pipe and listen to the radio. Plus, the earphone was unbelievable. It was made of white plastic, sort of shaped like a mushroom. There was a short, conical "stem" that fit in your ear. No foam or anything for comfort. Just a piece of plastic jammed in your ear. The fat part, like the top of the mushroom, rested outside your earhole. It was like one size fits nobody. They were the most uncomfortable fucking things ever. They always fell out of your ear and the sound was crappy since it all came out of one small hole in the end.

Still, at least then Radio Shack was relevant. No one I know builds crystal radios anymore. Kids don't do those electronic project sets. Then again, I don't know if anyone ever really did those. Not much fun to build a telegraph machine if there's no one on the other end to receive messages. No one brags about their new Tandy or Optimus home theater system. Not to mention the fact that everything Radio Shack sells that people might want, like cell phones and radio controlled cars, are more expensive at Radio Shack than anywhere else. To be honest, this store has been a punchline for years. Yet it is still in business.

I went into a Radio Shack last year for something. I'm not even sure what. I think my wife wanted to get a small clip-on radio for someone in her family. We ended up buying at at FYE for $15 less. Anyway, walking into the store was like being in some Old West ghost town tourist trap. There was no one in the place when I walked in and no one came in during my entire visit, and I even looked around at some solar cells. I have to admit that every time I go into a Radio Shack, I feel kinda bad for the employees. We all like to goof off once in a while at work but these poor fucks got nothing to do. I mean nothing.

I fully expect Radio Shack to go under one day. I can't believe they've stood up to the WalMart/Best Buy onslaught this long. Truth be told, despite what I say here, when they do go under, I'll feel a little sad. It'll be like one of the last relics of my youth fading away.