Tuesday, December 29, 2009

I Love Podcasts

One item I brought back from the US was an Ipod my son bought for me. I had the idea that I would like to listen to music while gardening and other chores. And I read a little about podcasts and audio books. The surprise was that I just love the podcasts. And I am sometimes obsessed with finding the best ones. I download some and can decide whether to continue or not, and newbie that I am, I have found many that have become my favorites. And what a joy when I find an especially good one. I will list my favorites here and add to it as I go along. But I have a few worth mentioning right away.

The odd thing, I think, is that ipods and mp3 players are mostly geared to music listening. While that is pleasant, I really enjoy listening to the podcasts while doing daily chores, weeding or washing dishes, laundry etc.. I have a variety to listen to, depending on my mood. There is a lot on the internet about audio books but I especially enjoy podcasts of 30 minutes to 1 1/2 hours so far so I haven't tried the books but I really enjoy the audio short stories. There are classic short stories and new short stories and old Bela Lugosi style horror stories. I like to listen to the news and there is a variety to listen to-many sources have posted their own podcasts. I enjoy politics and there are many choices there as well. And comedy-this is more difficult to find but some of the more amusing ones are also surprising. New podcasts are discovered all the time, and some were started with the podcaster simply stopping. Podcasts are mostly free. All of the ones I listen to are free and I use itunes to keep organized, adding and dropping podcasts. Podcasts are simply a version of radio(especially public radio) and tv shows for the most part (although some are people making their own podcasts) but you can transfer them to your mp3 player to listen to whenever you like.

So, here are some that I enjoy, in no particular order.

The Moth Podcast. I just love this one. The first story I listened to, for some reason, was not memorable but I listened to another later and was so impressed that I listened to some more and now I can't wait for another. These are stories told live in front of an audience, and told by all sorts of people from all walks of life about all kinds of things.

Democracy Now. What can I say? I love Amy Goodman and her crew and can always look forward to interesting, mostly political news and discussion.

New Yorker Fiction. This is only monthly(darn it) and is writers reading other writer's short stories along with some discussion. Very nice.

"Horror stories". No link because I don't know the website-I use Itunes for all my downloads. These are old time Bela Lugosi style-you probably won't die of fright but I think it's fun to listen to.

Wait wait, don't Tell me A fun show. A new radio show as good as an old one.

PRI selected Shorts. Short stories

Wiretap. I can not explain why but this one really makes me laugh.

This American Life I also love and look forward to each new episode. Real stories about real life.

Bill Maher has a great podcast, also 60 Minutes and Frontline but I believe all are on break.

Fareed Zacharia has a great podcast, also in video. I think he is one of the smartest men on the planet.

Many more at itunes which is free to download and they will save what you want there so it's not necessary to keep everything on your mp3. It takes a little time but you can peruse the podcasts and decide what you like from day to day. There are reviews and suggestions but Isuggest picking a few and trying them. Then adjust them to suit you as time goes by.

And yes, I have music on there too!

2 comments:

John said...

I WILL BE IN SANTIAGO IN MARCH FOR A MONTH ANY SUGGESTIONS ??

Laura said...

There is much to do in Santiago and I would hardly know where to start. Check the internet, all sorts of info there. Remember in March we are going into fall here(opposite seasons.) Bring clothing in layers because there will be very nice weather as well as cool rainy weather. No heavy coat needed but jackets and sweatshirts are good. Check Wikipedia and Lonely Planet and Frommers and the many others. They all have many ideas and discussions. Be open and adventurous and PATIENT-this is Chile. Best of Luck