Podcasts

So, I was able to come home early from work today (hey, wait a minute! Amy doesn’t go to work. Who is this?) and I’m watching the kids while Amy (yes, this still isn’t her) is taking Hannah to a doctor’s appointment. Before she left, Amy (have you figured out who this is yet?) told me that I finally need to write a post of my own on the blog. I think she’s gotten kind of sick of me telling her, “you should post about this” or “why don’t you write about that.” Anyway, I thought I’d post a list of my current favorite podcasts. For those not in the know (you know who you are… or maybe you don’t and that’s the problem), podcasts are mp3 audio shows. They can be from big multimedia companies or from some guy in his basement. You can subscribe to the shows using iTunes or some other program and it will download each episode as it is posted for you to listen to on your computer or mp3 player.

I got hooked on podcasts back at Duke when I was issued an iPod by the school. I stopped telling people that Duke gave me a free iPod when I started having to repay my student loans. At first, most podcasts were of the “guy in his basement discussing his latest government conspiracy theories and/or Star Trek fantasies” variety. As time has gone on, bigger companies have gotten in on it and there are some pretty good ones out there now. It really came in handy when we were up in LA and I would have to deal with some pretty long commutes. Now, though, I’m totally hooked on them and they’re all I’ll listen to in the car no matter how short the commute is.

So, without further ado, here’s a list of some of my current favorites. You can find any of these by doing a search for them in the iTunes store. They have their own podcasting section and they’re all free to subscribe to:

Slate Explainer Podcasts – these are cool, 5 minute articles from slate.com that come out just about every day. They explain something that is usually tied to some recent news event. Recent episodes have been: “Why do Iranian bombs have English labels?”, “Why does the camera add 10 pounds?”, “Was Britney’s Hair Full of Drugs?”, “Can you smell without a nose?” and my personal favorite, “Do Mormon athletes wear the temple garment under their uniforms?”

NPR: Wait Wait… Don’t Tell Me! – This is a great show that comes out once a week. It’s a quiz show about stories in the news from the previous week. It’s a bit of a mix of The Daily Show with Who’s Line Is It Anyway. They have three panelists for each show (Mo Rocca, Paula Poundstone and P.J. O’Rourke are repeat guests) and they quiz them on stuff from the news. The actual quiz isn’t that important; it’s mainly just a vehicle for them to point out stuff they think is funny. They also have a celebrity guest on each week and quiz them on random stuff. They just had Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer on and they quizzed him on what he knew about Ozzy Osbourne (not much, as it turns out).

The Ethicist – This is a podcast of a weekly article in the New York Times where people write in asking about ethical dilemmas. It’s short and interesting and the author can be pretty funny sometimes.

NPR: Sunday Puzzle – A weekly podcast hosted by Will Shortz, the editor of the NYT crossword puzzle (if you haven’t seen the documentary, Wordplay, about crosswords and the annual tournament hosted by Will Shortz, you should. It’s good). This is a nice, little brainteaser.

Mike Birbiglia’s Secret Public Journal – This is a series of stories written by stand-up comedian, Mike Birbiglia. He doesn’t seem to be putting out any new ones, but the ones that he did put out are really funny.

Grammer Girl’s Quick and Dirty Tips for Better Writing – Pretty much what it sounds like. Surprisingly interesting and I’ve learned a few things already (when to use further vs. farther). There are a whole series of “Quick and Dirty” podcasts on other subjects you can subscribe to at qdnow.com. I also like Mr. Manners and Legal Lad.

Chronicle Podcasts: Correct Me If I’m Wrong… – These are hilarious. The San Francisco Chronicle newspaper posts some of their more interesting voicemails left by readers. They’re usually cranky weirdos with way too much time on their hands. One of their posts from a guy complaining about how the term “pilotless drones” is redundant has gotten popular from a bunch of people sampling it in songs.

Discovery Channel Features – These can be either 5-minute teasers for upcoming shows or, sometimes, the entire show. Pretty cool.

This American Life – This is another show from NPR. It’s a weekly, 1-hour show that picks a theme and tells 3 or 4 stories about it. I’m actually a bit surprised that I like this since the host of the show has a highly mockable presentation style. The stories can be really interesting, though. Last week, their theme was “The Allure of the Mean Friend”.

I have a bunch of other podcasts that I subscribe to, including some cool ones in Italian, but this is a pretty good sample of the ones I find most interesting. Does anyone else listen to podcasts. Any suggestions on other good ones?

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The Digital Photography Book

Yes, it is a simple title, and it is a simple book written by Scott Kelby. That’s why I like it so much! This book is great if you have a digital camera that you can set manually, but especially an SLR since he mentions a lot about filters and different lens options. Each page gives you a simple explanation for how to take a certain kind of shot. He’s got things like flower close-ups, bridal photos, landscapes, and sports. One thing that I didn’t give enough credit to that he kept bringing up was using a tri-pod to keep the camera steady. He even suggests using the auto timer on extreme close ups so that there is not vibration from your finger pushing the button.

I haven’t used a whole lot of what I’ve read yet because most of my pictures are snapshots of the kids lately. But I have also signed up for a community class on lighting, and hope to get some more practice soon. The two keys to photography seem to be a sharp focus, and great lighting. Well, and I guess composition too. If you like photography, want some pointers, but don’t want to mess with a lot of info about apertures and f-stops, this is the book for you.

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The Bicycle Thief

Rob and I actually got all of the kids into bed at a decent hour and watched the movie, The Bicycle Thief. It is an Italian movie with subtitles, so Rob was especially excited to see it. He said that there was a pretty thick dialect so he was relying a lot on the subtitles too. We both really liked this movie!

It’s hard to say that I love it, because it is a bit depressing. It takes place in an impoverished community post World War II and follows one man and his son as they search for a bicycle the father needs to keep a new job. There are no special effects, and the plot is simple, but the emotions of desperation and hope keep you locked into the story. The performances by the Father, Antonio, and his son, Bruno, are amazing. They really make you feel their pain. In fact, every character comes with a history and depth that you wouldn’t expect from such a simple story. I don’t want to say too much about it because it helps to go into the movie without a synopsis of its events. It helps add to that feeling of – what are they going to do next?- The movie makes you think and feel and sympathize. All things that don’t seem to be the motivation of movie makers now. If you’ve seen it, tell me what you think; If you haven’t, go out and rent it!

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Career Tests

Ok, so Rob got me this book to help me find the career I’m best suited for… Other than my current one that is. I have always had this feeling that there is something out there I should be doing in addition to mothering, and haven’t had the time to find it, or maybe just not the courage; I’m not sure which. It’s funny how you can be afraid to try something new, just because of the fear of failure. Anyway, we were discussing this recently and Rob got this book to help me figure out what my strengths are and where I should focus my energy. It took a while to complete the tests inside the book, but they are all pretty short, so I would just do a couple when I had time and eventually got through it. I was surprised at how accurately they seemed to get my personality, strengths and weaknesses. I would recommend the book for any of you that aren’t sure what to do with your life, or are curious about what it thinks you would like. So, now it’s time for you to guess what it came up with for me. Following are a list of occupations. Five of these are careers that were recommended for me, guess which five:

Make-up Artist, Editor, Criminologist, Clinical Psychologist, Florist, Chef, Film Reviewer, Cabinet Maker, Script Writer, English Language Teacher, Forensic Scientist.

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