Mike Shea's Beautiful Day Radio

23/05/2024

Since my voice is STILL giving me problems, I decided to share something here from my other special page on Facebook, "Evangelist Mike Shea's Column 118," because it talks about the start of my actual broadcasting career. By the way, I have not given up hope of getting back to producing shows here, I just need a stronger voice.

25/03/2024

It's been way too long since the last one, but finally, here is a new "It's a Beautiful Day for Living!" program. Most of you know of my injuries suffered in January since I wrote about it, but in this program I tell the story.

I hope you enjoy the show, and please don't be shy about sharing this and let more people be able to hear it.

20/03/2024

OKAY! Finally I am getting my voice somewhat restored and am close to producing a program these many weeks after my spill on the ice.

Interestingly, it was January 22, 2023 when I blew out my voice preaching and spent several months recovering. Almost exactly one year later, January 20, 2024, a Saturday, when I fell on the ice, busted my ribs, etc., it affected my voice. Why or how I do not know, but my voice has been a real problem long after the rest of me has pretty much healed up.

Now, on the evening of March 19, 2024 I realize my voice is strong enough...not really fully repaired, but strong enough to record a new "It's a Beautiful Day for Living" program. So I am starting to actually work on it, and hopefully by Monday, March 25th I will upload the next edition of "It's a Beautiful Day for Living!"

So many, many people have prayed for me, and I want you all to know those prayers were felt. My ribs healed in about six weeks and I got started on a strong exercise program. The injury to the area of my left eye was only around the eye itself, which was not touched in the fall and never threatened with any issues. God was so gracious to me, and I know He responded to a lot of prayers many of you offered. Thank you so much.

Have a good rest of this week. Hopefully I will see you on Monday with a new IBD broadcast.

22/01/2024

Good Monday Morning! Or at least it was morning when I began writing this. I am writing a message rather than sending it via an "It's a Beautiful Day for Living!" program because I am unable to speak very well right now. I had intended to have a program ready for this morning, but then Saturday happened.

I took a mean spill on the frozen ground around 1 o'clock in the afternoon. RESULT: A mean gash over my left eye (8 stitches); Five fractured ribs, though two may have occurred earlier; and a whole lot of trouble for my wife, my bosses at the Vigen Memorial Home, and a wonderful family who all were so kind to me as I held up their activities that day.

To say the least I am embarrassed and my left eye looks like Rocky Balboa's eye after Apollo Creed got done with him and my ribs cause me shortness of breath when I try to speak, so I can't verbally communicate very well at all. But I am making slow progress I do believe. As soon as I can speak well enough to do it I will produce another program and get back to being "The Old Guy," which I am rapidly proving to be, once again.

Several people have known about this since Saturday and have been praying for me. I have felt those prayers and cannot thank you enough. Please let me leave you with this reminder, which I am helping to prove: "It makes no difference what today holds: Today IS a gift. It is the ONLY day we will ever have to live today, and that by itself makes today truly a beautiful day for living. Go live it to its fullest, but be careful on the ice.

09/01/2024

I'm learning what it's like to be really self-employed with no income. I took a week's vacation, unplanned, but now I'm back. So here is our first IBD effort of 2024. I will clear up that little trivia question I asked a few programs back. Anthony will be hanging on every word.
Enjoy the show!

25/12/2023

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYBODY! We came so close to not making it with this promised program for Christmas Day, 2023. It's a bit of a story, and is included in the program itself.
I hope you enjoy this special Christmas edition of IBD!

19/12/2023

I finally got the IBD Roving Microphone rolling, and this program is the result of it. If you're looking for special singers for an event, look no further. I will be glad to book them for you.

Actually, Beautiful Day Radio went to an actual radio station and got the gang at Radio Keokuk, KOKX, to sing a Christmas greeting. I do believe you will enjoy this one.

15/12/2023

It's been a week; a tough week I might add, since our last IBD program was produced. I explain why on this one, and we have a little fun with trivia regarding the accompanying video. Find out how observant you are.

Enjoy our seventh new "It's a Beautiful Day for Living!" show airing for the first time on Friday, December 15, 2023.

08/12/2023

Hey Gang! It's time we get another "It's a Beautiful Day for Living" program up and running, and have some fun with those who have been around for a long time, me being one of them.

This program, being aired for the first time on Friday, December 8, 2023, features some neat thoughts for those of us in our 60's to 90's, and will lay the groundwork for some fun in future programs.

So I ask, do you know someone you would like to hear singing on our program? This show will tell you how to perhaps make that work.

If you want to e-mail me: [email protected]

Enjoy the show!

29/11/2023

I'm now really happy I didn't make too big of a commitment with this project, as last week got away from me before I could produce another program. I'm trying to present one or two per week.

But I got back to work now, even updating the accompanying video to winter, which arrived suddenly this past weekend. And after sharing last week's program on Linda's and my regular home page, and it producing some folks hearing the show, I now think I will do that regularly.

Here is Episode #5, a program about virtually not much. But I hope you enjoy it, and that you have a true Beautiful Day for Living!

17/11/2023

It's hard to believe we are less than one week from Thanksgiving. That fact startled me as I recorded this fourth program in our current IBD Series. I share some great childhood memories about the big day in this program. Mary Lou is gonna hear her name if she listens. I hope you enjoy this Beautiful Day broadcast.

13/11/2023

For those who were regular listeners to "It's a Beautiful Day for Living" on radio, one look at the date on the calendar should tell you why we waited until today to share the third program in our revived series of IBD programs. Any questions? Just listen to the beginning of this show.

08/11/2023

To this day I don't remember what I had been doing the evening before, but one morning, when my DJ program started at 9:30, I had overslept and was STILL sleeping when the hour came. Dick Partridge, ending his "Contact" program played my opening theme song like usual, and then...nothing! Total silence on the air. Finally someone looked in the studio at an empty chair. When a broadcaster messes up that badly the whole community knows it. I thought I would never hear the end of it.
Well, today I must admit I missed another scheduled airtime. But this time I'm covered, because I said I would have a new "It's a Beautiful Day for Living" program once or twice a week. But I planned this to be ready for broadcast on Tuesday and didn't make it. However, if I hadn't told you that you'd not know it. So just pretend I didn't tell you, and instead I just said: Here is the second program in our new "It's a Beautiful Day for Living" series, ready to roll this Wednesday, November 8, 2023. I hope you enjoy it and will invite others to tune in.

02/11/2023

Here it is, the first program in our new series "It's a Beautiful Day for Living for an Old Guy." It was brutal producing the broadcast, as I am way out of practice. I messed it up three times, and the fourth time, which is the one presented here, I really messed up the closer and had to do some nutty ad-libbing. I was so upset I fired myself. But that means I have a chance to be reinstated. I hope you enjoy listening anyway, and good luck on the trivia questions.

01/11/2023

If you've been following my posts here you know that back on January 22, 2023 I preached my voice silent. I suffered a total voice loss that day, and it is STILL not fully recovered. But it is definitely time to make the next step!

BEAUTIFUL DAY RADIO RETURNS TO BROADCASTING THIS THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 2, 2023!

To everyone who has expressed concern and prayed for me, thank you so much. The voice will not be quite the same, but the program idea will be similar, as I am calling the new show "It's a Beautiful Day for Living for an Old Guy!"

It will NOT be a daily program, but perhaps one or two per week, as my schedule permits. But we will have fun. And the first program to be heard on November 2nd is a significant date. Know why?

Well tune in. The program can be heard anytime, because you will click the PLAY button to hear it, and it will remain available for a long time. And on the first show I will be asking a few fun trivia questions.

Please spread the word and invite people to go to my "Mike Shea's Beautiful Day Radio" page on Facebook and tune in. And it all starts NOT on November 1st, but November 2nd.

There MUST be something about that date, don't you think?

28/03/2023

Just to update everyone: I had planned to start doing little programs here on this page, but in January this year I experienced a total voice loss. First time ever for me. I could speak only a squeak for a while, but the Lord gave me enough sound to preach my final sermon filling the pulpit at First Baptist Church in Plymouth, Illinois on January 22nd. After that my voice went away almost completely and has yet to fully come back.

While my dear wife, Linda is singing "Blessed Quietness" I have been a bit frustrated to not even be able to try to record something to present here. As of now I still hope to start doing little programs in the near future, but the voice has to get much stronger. I would appreciate your prayers for a complete recovery.

Meanwhile, please enjoy spring. I hoped to have some folks singing the Red Robin song again, but I have to be able to speak much better than I currently am able in order to produce those fun type things. I will do my best to keep you updated.

24/12/2022

Merry Christmas!

On this Christmas Eve day I just want to extend a special message to many folks who have listened to my broadcasts over the years. I doubt if anyone has even noticed, but this is the first Christmas since 1963 that my program, "The Music of Christmas" has not been on the air somewhere, somehow.

On Christmas Eve 1964, my first Christmas in radio, I had to work the evening shift at WRMI-FM in Morris, Illinois. My shift ran from 7 'til 10pm, and the first hour was a planned program. From 8 'til 10 I ad-libbed my first "Music of Christmas" program, using a two-record album by Percy Faith and reading the album notes as I played the music. People liked it.

By 1965 I added a third album, and special music from yet a fourth album, and put together a three-hour program. Interestingly, between that first and second Christmas performance I had departed WRMI-FM to work at WJOB in Hammond, Indiana. (That is where I first met Art Mann.) It's a long story, but by December '65 I was back at the Morris station, and "The Music of Christmas" was on its way to becoming an annual event for me.

In November 1968, urged ceaselessly by Art Mann, I accepted a job at KOKX in Keokuk, under Ron Westby. Mr. Westby, by the way, hired me over the phone based on Art's recommendation. And on Christmas Eve 1968 my Christmas Eve special appeared in Keokuk for the first time.

In November 1981 I was fired from KOKX by the new owners, Withers Broadcasting, but Dan Bryan who owned WCAZ in Carthage got me involved with his station...not as a full time employee because I knew I was entering the ministry...and that Christmas Eve "The Music of Christmas" was heard for the first time on WCAZ (FM). By the mid-80's I had expanded the program to four hours, eliminating any of the fantasy stuff and focusing strictly on the birth of the Lord Jesus Christ. That program ran on WCAZ (FM) until 1996. The FM station had been sold separately by Mr. Bryan and that station went out of business in late fall of that year.

Enter Robin Dunham who was now the owner of WCAZ AM-990. Less than a week before Christmas he called me and asked me to bring the program to AM-990, and he would run it in the afternoon on Christmas Eve. The audience took a big leap that year, and I was wondering if I should have been doing the program in the afternoon all along.

But time takes its toll, and WCAZ AM-990 went off the air at the end of 2017, with what I thought was going to be my final "Music of Christmas" that year.

However, to keep broadcasting sports at that time I started my on-line station on Mixlr, and continued running my Christmas special through last year, 2021.

But as my hair has turned white and the years have passed my audience thinned out. Younger people are not as drawn to real traditional Christmas music as the older folks are, and I finally had to make the hard decision to stop selling sponsorships because I didn't think it fair to the wonderful sponsors supporting me to give them shrinking audiences. I ran the program last year without commercials, reducing it to a three-hour program. The content of the program was the same, just no commercials.

And now I officially retired all of my holiday specials, which included "Amazing Grace" at Easter time; "In Memoriam" for Memorial Day; "The Birthday of Independence" for the Fourth of July; "A Labor of Love" on Labor Day and "Give Thanks!" for Thanksgiving in addition to the Christmas program.

I just want to thank anyone who may see this who supported my efforts over the years and who may have just enjoyed the music and the presentation of Gospel truth on "The Music of Christmas" all those years. It was a fabulous run of 58 consecutive Christmases for "The Music of Christmas." I had hoped to make it to 60, but it's time to stop.

If you have read all this to this point, thank you. And may I remind you as I did on that program, that Christmas is all about Jesus, not Santa Claus, not all the worldly junk that gets thrown at us at this time of year...but the Lord Jesus Christ. I continue praying that you all know Him as your Personal Saviour, and if you need help with that please know you can still contact me and I will do all I can to aid you in coming to the point that you know He is in your life and you will be in Heaven when this life is over.

One last time: Merry Christmas to you from "The Music of Christmas."

05/12/2022

I have developed the second IBD program for late 2022, with a Christmas theme, and a trip down Memory Lane. Judy Pike and Amy Pike entertain you with their wonderful singing and tremendous senses of humor. We are celebrating Amy's Birthday on Monday, December 5, 2022 when this program was recorded. Enjoy!

26/11/2022

If I was actually broadcasting on a radio station these days I might have a sports commentary program tonight. The script would go something like this...

Well, after a long day of watching futbol and football I have to say I prefer the American college game better than the international World Cup game. And by far I will take a good game of high school soccer over World Cup Futbol or Soccer, however you prefer to refer to it.

As the Hawkeyes made their comeback today against Nebraska I allowed myself to get really excited, hoping they'd pull it completely out of the fire. That was a good experience. Too bad for the injuries, and I am proud of the Iowa team for their effort under very trying circumstances.

I enjoyed checking on some other games, and found a few that went down to the wire. Enjoyable.

But I wasted the better part of an hour watching most of the second half of the U.S.A.-England Futbol Match from Qatar before turning to the American football games. In the final 35 minutes or so of the game, and then the stoppage time, I did not see one single shot at the goal by the American team. I have been saying for years that our international team acts like they don't know what those big white things at the ends of the field are for. And in more than 50 years of broadcasting play-by-play I have learned that a sure way to not score in any game is to never take a shot.

Thirty or so years ago I began broadcasting high school soccer. Scared to death, the late Randy Struck explained the game to me; Steve Cramblit, a Keokuk native who was broadcasting soccer on WGEM in Quincy assured me the sport was the easiest in the world to broadcast, so I started very shaky, but learned to love broadcasting the game. I would much rather watch a good high school match than what I see in the international game. For one thing, when an American high school kid gets knocked down in a soccer match he miraculously gets up! Apparently in the World Cup it is required that a player roll around in agony for 5 minutes trying to draw a yellow card on an opponent instead of just getting back in the game. AND the high school players actually shoot the ball AT THE GOAL! What a radical idea.

Oh, and it is obvious also that the commentators on FOX Sports are all on some sort of hallucinogenic dug, because following the game they were all saying what a great performance the U.S.A. had today, setting up for their showdown with Iran, which they are favored to win. Well they could be playing the team from Antarctica and if they never shoot the ball they ain't gonna score...period!

Tomorrow it's Ohio State-Michigan, Alabama-Auburn; and what is the opening date for the high school soccer season in Iowa?

18/11/2022

Okay! People have been asking what I am going to try to do with Beautiful Day Radio, and here's your answer.
This is a new format for an old radio show, "It's A Beautiful Day for Living!" This first show features an interview with Joe Shuman, who is the gentleman who oversees "The City of Christmas" in Keokuk. Please enjoy the interview, and if you can, respond to the need Joe has to help him get everything ready for Thanksgiving night.

18/10/2022

Having lived in Keokuk for nearly 54 years now I know there are multitudes of St. Louis Cardinals baseball fans all around, some of them great friends of mine. Folks my age can remember Harry Caray calling the Cardinals games on radio with Jack Buck as the color announcer. And you've been blessed with great radio play-by-play broadcasters for certain.
Most of you know I broadcast sports in Keokuk for several years. The man who shaped me as a broadcaster was Jack Quinlan, who was the play-by-play announcer for the Chicago Cubs until his untimely death in 1965 during spring training. To me and to all sorts of kids who grew up in the 50's and 60's in the Chicago area, Jack was the best ever. But sadly, because his career was cut short, he has been denied entrance into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Ron Gardner, who is one of those "kids" who grew up listening to Jack has been working tirelessly for years trying to get Jack into the Hall, a place where anyone who heard him broadcast, including other broadcasters, say without hesitation he belongs.
Ron recently posted an interview he did with another "kid" from that era, and it is really great. I think any baseball fan would enjoy it, and enjoy listening to highlights of Jack Quinlan's broadcasts. So, I invite you to do just that. Enjoy!

Here's my gift to the wonderful Quinlan family, all you fantastic Chicagoland Baby Boomers, and, indeed, all Cubs' fans who aren't familiar with the greatnes...

01/10/2022

October is upon us already! What happened to July? Man, time flies!

Anyway, the First of October being on a Saturday means I should have made my prediction on September 30th, but never got near the computer until almost Midnight. So here goes.

My prediction for the 10th Month of 2022 is...Friday the 13th will fall on an off day! I have to admit this is a nerve racking prediction, because I feel it will miss being on Friday by perhaps less than 24 hours, meaning any hiccup in the progression of the calendar could cause me to be wrong for the first time. But I am sticking with my prediction: Friday the 13th in October 2022 will NOT be on a Friday, but on an off day. We'll see when it gets here.

Meanwhile, remember: Every month has a Friday the 13th, they just rarely fall on Friday.

13/09/2022

Let's have a big celebration! Friday the 13th is arriving and it is NOT on a Friday, just as I predicted. Look it up.

Once again my prediction was correct. I have never missed one of these, but always worry this could be the first time. However, September 2022 was just another perfect call.

So Friday the 13th this month is on a Tuesday, and that calls for a great celebration. So look for black cats you can invite to walk across in front of you; break a mirror or two, walk under ladders and do not fear the number 13!

But most of all remember: Every month has a Friday the 13th; they just rarely fall on Friday!

01/09/2022

The Ninth Month of the year is upon us! Happy September everyone! But being September 1st means I must make my prediction regarding Friday the 13th for this month.

After careful thought and remembering how things usually work, I feel I can predict that Friday the 13th in September 2022 will fall on an off day and not on a Friday. Of course, we won't know until the date gets here, but that's my prediction and so far my record is spotless, 100% correct.

Have a great month!

13/08/2022

All right, all right, all right! Here it is Friday the 13th and it is NOT Friday!
Once again I have correctly predicted that Friday the 13th in August 2022 would fall on an off day, and here it is on a Saturday. I was worried about my prediction because it was going to be so close to Friday, and every once in a while a day can slip a slot, you know. But we made it. So enjoy the day, walking under ladders, letting black cats cross in front of you, etc., etc. And remember: Every month has a Friday the 13th, they just rarely fall on Fridays.
Watch for my September prediction in a couple of weeks, and also some special programs we will run on Beautiful Day Radio in the near future.

01/08/2022

And here it is, the first day of the eighth month in the two thousand, twenty-second year since the estimate of the birth of Jesus was first made, though now we believe He was actually born earlier than He was born, or something like that. In other words, it is August 1, 2022!

That means it is time for my monthly prediction (which I have failed to make a few times lately...I've been busy) concerning when Friday the 13th will show up in this new month. So here it is.

Friday the 13th in August of 2022 will fall on an off day; it will NOT be on a Friday! This is a frightening prediction because I feel it is very close to perhaps being a Friday, but I am predicting it will not fall on a Friday, but rather on an off day. We must wait until it gets here to be sure, because there is always a chance the days will get upset and turned around, so wait and see. I am hoping I can keep my perfect record of predicting this in tact.

Meanwhile, nobody has even taken a guess at what the difference was in Beautiful Day Radio's programming in recent weeks and months. I will ask one more time: Do you know what we did differently this year than many, many years of the recent past? Now go ahead and post your answer in the comments below.

And keep checking this page, as I am playing with some ideas, but I need to make sure I have both the time and energy to do what I am thinking about.

Have a great August, and remember: Every month has a Friday the 13th, they just rarely fall on Fridays.

15/07/2022

I'm still waiting for just one person to tell me what is different about our programming on Beautiful Day Radio this summer. But in the meantime, since Wednesday produced a lot of listeners, I am again running an unscheduled broadcast of "The Best Music of Your Life From Keokuk, Iowa." It is music ONLY, no announcing, but it will keep you company for a few hours on a Friday night. Enjoy.

Broadcasting live audio made simple

13/07/2022

To help celebrate Friday the 13th on an off day, Beautiful Day Radio is running an unscheduled program of "The Best Music of Your Life," on Mixlr On-Line Radio, right now! If you want some great music to accompany you this evening tune in, right here: https://mixlr.com/mike-sheas-beautiful-day-radio/