Christmas is on the way!

Enjoyed the Thanksgiving holidays with family part 1 on Thursday and family part 2 on Sunday. Lots of good food (ate way to much!!!!) and enjoyed the time visiting with family. But Thanksgiving is behind us and Christmas is on the way! Got most of my shopping done, but still have a few things to buy. Trying to get it all done and wrapped so I can spend time with the kids and out of town family. Will probably bake cookies, make candy and watch all of those sappy Christmas movies - Miracle on 34th (my favorite Christmas movie), White Christmas and whatever else I can find to watch on Netflix or Hulu. We usually shut down a few days before Christmas, when the kids are out of school (high school & college) and reopen after the 1st. Nice break but always lots to do when we reopen!!!! One of our traditions is to watch all of the old Christmas favorites like Frosty The Snow Man, Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, Little Drummer Boy, etc. the week before Christmas. Another tradition is on Christmas Eve. We go get something to eat, drive around and looks at lights. When we get home, we have a birthday cake for Jesus and read the story of his birth from a huge old family bible. Then we watch "Christmas Story". Then it's off to bed for the kids (our oldest, (and middle daughter this year) will come spend the night so they're here for Christmas morning. When they wake up, the chant "We want up!" With the advent of cell phones, they now call us too with their chant" On Christmas morning, after the chanting, Dan will get up and get a shower. Then he has to go see if Santa has come and get the camera turned on to record the carnage that ensues. After that, we eat some breakfast and get ready for Christmas part 2. For as many years as we've been married (27 coming up + plus the Christmas before we got married), we have gone over to Dan's moms house for Christmas part 2. The last couple of years though, we have gone over to one of his brothers, who has MS, and do Christmas there. It makes it easier for him not to have to drive 45 minutes to their moms house. Christmas part 3, with my family could be anytime after Christmas. Sometimes it's the middle of January, when my nephew comes home for a visit from Japan (he teaches at one of their universities and is a perpetual student - has his doctorate, but not totally sure in what - linguistics, I think.) What are some of your traditions for the holidays? Happy Holidays to all!

New Updated List 11-13-13

Just put up a new list today so check it out here. Will try to post some interesting 8-tracks facts as we find them. If you have anything that you think is interesting and 8-track related, please let us know.

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Why is an 8 track is called an 8 track? 8 tracks use 1/4" magnetic tape and are a continuous loop. There are 8 tracks parralell to each other on the tape. There are four programs on the tape (varying number of songs per track) and two tracks per program - one for the right speaker and one for the left, thus making it a stereo tape cart. It doesn't mean that there are only 8 songs, which some people may think. A small metallic trip or splice allows the tape to switch between programs. Here's another interesting fact about 8 tracks. You may have seen what appeared to be an 8-track but it had a whole in the left back corner (or right, depending on how you're looking at it - see second pic.). These are 4-track tapes. They are similar to an 8-track except they have 2 programs instead of 4. The other difference is in a 4 track system, the pinch roller is part of the player and in an 8 track, the pinch roller is part of the tape. If you want to play a 4-track tape in an 8-track player, you need a converter. Most of these were metal and slipped into the hole on the back of the 4-track, which allowed it to be played in a regular 8-track player. A lot of people call them a "gidgit" (see 3rd pic.). They're not easily found. If you're lucky, you might find one in the back of a 4-track when you purchase the tapes. Otherwise, you may pay some big bucks for one. Most 4-tracks are the size of an 8-track, but there are two larger 4-track carts.

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Hope everyone has a great Thanksgiving!!!!

Adding a few new things to the blog

It's been awhile since any posts have been made! Pretty busy around here this year!!! Take a look and see if you can spot the new changes. If you're from another country, please feel free to use the "translate" feature at the top of the blog. We've also added a "poll". We'll try to change it weekly. If you have any good suggestions for a poll, please let us know. There are a few other things, so check it out! Thanks! Kathy/Dan

Happy New Year 2013

Happy New Year in 2013! Hard to believe another year has passed, but it has. We've been so busy around here, that we just haven't had a chance to blog :( We'll try and to better in the new year! Hope everyone had a safe and happy holidays! We ate to much, spent to much, but had a good holidays with family and friends!!!!

This year marks Kate's Track Shack's 15th year in business. It's hard to believe we've been selling, buying & repairing 8-tracks for 15 years!!!! We've met some really cool people and got to do some amazing things because of these 8-tracks - Were invited to be VIP guests on The Wheel of Fortune - meeting Vanna White and getting to stand behind the "wheel" during one of the breaks. Meeting some of the guys in the band of Telsla and Cheap Trick. Producing 8-tracks for these guys and other bands. Being on TV and radio (in front of the camera) and behind the mic.

We have met some of the greatest customers around the world. I want to make up a map that shows every state and country that we have sold 8-tracks to. It's a lot!

Be sure to check out the website for a list of new tapes and and updated list.

Happy New Year to you all and best wishes for a great 2013!!!

Kathy/Dan