When I lived in DC, my commute on the bus was about an hour each way. To go just over 3 miles. When I lived in Charlotte, I had to drive to the other side of town and with traffic it took about 45minutes. Now that I live in Denver my commute is about 20 minutes. So while I shouldn’t complain, I still do. Stop yelling at me about it. I love music but absolutely hate the drive time DJ. So I turned to podcasts to help me pass the time. Here’s a few of my favorites. The ones that get me excited to drive to work and sometimes make me late into the office because I want to hear just a little bit more.
- You Must Remember This – Hollywood in the “golden years”. This podcast looks at the history of Hollywood and discusses various topics. From the rise and fall of MGM studios, to histories of particular actors/actresses love lives, to stars during war times, and my particular favorite the Charles Manson’s Hollywood, Karina Longworth does a fantastic job of bringing these stories to life. While I’m not particularly loving the history of the Blacklist in Hollywood (about the search for Communists in Hollywood) it’s still worth a listen to.
- Dear Hank & John – A self described “comedy podcast about death” that is very funny but not deadly. At leas not yet. I don’t know what their plans are. Writer/YouTube brothers John and Hank Green “answer listener questions, give dubious advice, and all the latest news from both Mars and AFC Wimbledon”. And I love it all. There’s a realness to this podcast. Many a time they have passed a question on to the other because they don’t know how to answer it properly. Or just say that maybe there isn’t a correct answer to a question and sometimes you just have to figure out what seems to work out best for you and go with it. Also, I now know more about Mars and AFC Wimbledon than I ever expected to know so we can call that growth.
- Mystery Show – Ugh. When is this show going to come back!?!?! I need more burning questions like how tall exactly is Jake Gyllenhaal or how do you return a lost custom made belt buckle to it’s owner 30 years later. These podcasts make me happy and remind me of the shimmer that rain drops add to leaves. Plus Starlee Kline is one of the most charming people on the radio.
- The Liturgists Podcast – This podcast stretches me. It sometimes makes me feel really smart and sometimes makes me feel really clueless. Science Mike and Michael Gungor talk about life, art, science, and faith in a way that is rare in the Church. But in a way that is so needed. Most of my friends talk about faith in a similar way that they do, although the hosts seem to be at a higher level – as though they’re at a doctorate level and we are at undergrad levels. But in a really good way. I like to be challenged to think about things that are hard or to have hard things discussed around me in a safe space where I can learn something.
- Pop Culture Happy Hour – Every Friday, this is my go to podcast. It’s NPR which makes it an automatic love. Each week, Linda Holmes has two sometimes overlapping sometimes not themes that they discuss. They are things happening in the world in the form of TV, Movies, Books, Comics, and Music. It’s NPR’s take on Pop Culture and it is fantastic. Plus every week there is a segment called “What’s Making Me Happy This Week”. And that’s where I find out about great new things I want to add to my life.
- 99% Invisible – “A weekly exploration of the process and power of design and architecture”. And it’s so fascinating where they see design. From the “Best By” stamp on food to the missing kids on the milk carton, to fire escapes it’s such a fantastic job of bringing the things that are often overlooked or ignored into focus. There’s no high tech talk about design or architecture but just a bunch of people who see the world differently than I do. And I want to be friends with all of them.
I also have another selection of podcasts that I listen to as I’m falling asleep. Because sometimes I need to stop my mind from churning. Why is it what when I’m trying to fall asleep my mind decides to think about everything at once!!! These include:
– Stuff You Should Know
– Stuff You Missed in History Class (although sometimes this makes it to drive podcast listening)
– The Documentary from BBC
Honorable Mention (because it’s illegal to have a podcast post with out these):
This American Life, Serial, Reply All, Radiolab
Carley High 