Wednesday, July 29, 2009

It is Canada's Fault . . .

We are either still in Canada or just returning from Canada.  When we are in Canada, we have learned to shut off the cell phones and leave the computer in its case.  Those foreign airwaves are apparently expensive.
Either way, this is a good excuse for a favorite post rerun.
I first ran this post in January and when I decided to rerun it, I went back through the list.  I still listen faithfully to those same podcasts.  I couldn't think of any new ones that would make the cut as favorites, so here is the original unedited post.
We should be back in the States late Wednesday night.  In fact, we may already be back, but I'm gonna preschedule this anyway!

When I drive, I have 11 to 12 hours to listen to the radio.  We have XM in the truck, but even the gazillion channels on it get stale after awhile.  My iPod provides a nice change.  We have a transmitter that sends it to the radio and it plays through the speakers.  
I listen to my own "Groove" Playlist.
(I'll share the goofiness of my playlist in another post)
 
I also listen to podcasts.  
They are one of the newest things to hit the web, and one of my favorites.
If you do any amount of driving, dishwashing, gardening, walking, waiting around, then podcasts could be for you.  You don't even need an iPod.  Any mp3 player will work.  I think there are some relatively inexpensive ones out now.  You could also download to your computer and burn discs.  I did that before we got our iPods. 
 iTunes is a great way to find out about podcasts.  All of mine come from the iTunes store, but there are lots of others out there too.  I just find so many on iTunes that I'll never listen my way through all of them!
So, here is a list of my favorite podcasts along with a brief description:
(Hang on a sec while I hunt down my iPod)
A Way With Words - this one is all about the usage, origin and pronunciation or words.  Very entertaining, actually.
The Splendid Table - mmmmmm, this one is about food.  Can you tell that I am a foodie?
The Story - This is done by American Public Media and is hosted by Dick Gordon.  This may be my favorite podcast.  I think he does one each day.  They are always timely and usually I learn a new way of looking at something.  Even if I don't think I'll be interested in an episode from the title, I have learned to just listen anyway.  I am almost always glad that I did.  If you don't try any of these other titles, try this one.
Travel With Rick Steves - This is probably my other favorite.  I don't do much travel outside of the United States, but Rick Steves takes me to the most wonderful far flung places.
Backstory - With the American History Guys - This is really a great podcast.  These guys take a current hot topic and spin it through the last 3 centuries of American History.  

I have a bunch of other podcasts, but these are my favorites.  These are the ones that I look forward to listening to.

What are some that you listen to?  
I am always looking for new ones.

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