Stuff I Like: Podcasts
I love my iPod. I held out for the longest time in getting one. I used to be an "early adopter" with new technology, but that sort of fell by the wayside as I moved into my late 20s. This also coincides with the time that iPods started taking off. When they came out, I thought they were kind of cool but greatly overpriced. "Look!", I used to say. "You can get this cheap-ass CD player that also plays MP3s on a CD-R for a quarter of the cost!" Plus, the iPod was a Mac product and I was staunchly a Windows person. And then there's the whole DRM thing. I should be able to do what I want with my music, dammitt!
Anyways, I bought my wife a Shuffle about two Christmas's ago (even though I tried to convince her that the cheap-ass Sanyo was just as good). I then played around with it for a while and instantly changed my tune. I still thought that much of their appeal was a result of clever marketing, but there's no doubt that a slick interface and the easy integration with iTunes was top notch. So I took the plunge and put one on my wishlist. By the time my next birthday rolled around, I was the proud owner of a 80GB Video iPod. And it's awesome.
No, it doesn't have the slick interface of the iPhone (which was released around the same time), but the storage on that thing is a stellar. I have every CD I own on there, full seasons of TV shows, dozens of podcasts, and its not even half-full. I can't imagine getting rid of it now, as its become a part of my daily routine.
And what is my daily routine, exactly? Podcasts. I can't get enough of them. I used to stream them sometimes from various web sites, but I didn't start subscribing to feeds until I got the device. Now I'm obsessed with them and there's some that I never miss. So with that mind, here are some of my favorites:
Sports - Surprise, surprise, I listen to sports podcasts. ESPN, the sports monopoly, has got dozens of podcasts, and I'm a daily listener of several. My favorites are two of the local ones on ESPN AM 1000, Mac, Jurko & Harry and Waddle & Silvy, but I also regularly listen to Mike & Mike, PTI, and Football Today with Jeremy Green. I also frequent some of the Steve Stone podcasts on The Score. Even though I don't particularly care much for Mike North, Stone's analysis and smarmy wit gets me every time.
Music - I listen to iTunes New Music Tuesday and Rolling Stone New Music Report (video). I like finding new music; it helps me pretend that I'm still young. The music in these two podcasts isn't really cutting edge indie, but they both present a nice summary (with samples) of the big new releases in record stores each week. (Proof that I'm old - I just said "record store", even though I probably haven't set foot in one in three years.) I also catch some music on NPR every now and then.
News - I always thought that The New Yorker was a little too high society for me, but after I started dipping my toe in the pool with some Malcolm Gladwell books, I started checking out the magazine online. Good stuff. Good weekly commentary podcast. The commentary topics are wide ranging, but lately they've been mostly related to the upcoming election and the candidates' misfires.(though admittedly mostly for music.) Slate and This American Life cross my path sometimes, too.
Entertainment - I like The BS Report with Bill Simmons, which is technically sports but more often its not. Always entertaining, though. I never thought his material would translate, and I'm happy to say I was wrong. I also listen to some LOST podcasts (on the TV show) that let me know what I missed in last week's episode, and The Onion and bestofyoutube (video). Perfect to kill time on the train.
There's not enough time in the day to listen to all of these podcasts, but I'm going to go down trying. Till next time...