hoponmypod

[hoponmypod]

Podblast #5: Saudi Arabia, Singing Telegrams and Survivors

I’m still experimenting with the format of this. Let me know what you think~

1. If you want to be utterly charmed by your narrator

There's a really special episode of Radio Diaries that features a teenage girl, Madj, who lives in Saudi Arabia. She wants to become a great scientist, but society and her family is pushing her towards marriage. I hope you give it a listen and love it as much as I did. Madj -- I'm rooting for you!!  [episode link]

2. If you want to be utterly charmed by a whole family The Specialist had a wonderful episode featuring a family of singing telegrams. [episode link] 3. If you want to know why sometimes you just need one cup of coffee but other days you need five This is an older episode of Gastropod, a podcast that explores the science and history of food, but I just discovered it so it's new to me. :) They explore caffeine and I learned sooo damn much. Did you know that caffeine metabolism rates can be adjusted by different foods? Meats and broccoli can speed it up, while grapefruit can slow it down. [episode link] 4. If you want to know what really went down with English soccer team that was all over the news I don't really follow sports unless it's the World Cup (it's the Korean in me), but Freaknomic's dive into Leicester City's fantastic rise to the top of the English Premiere League was really interesting. I don't know if it just fascinating to me because I don't know a lot about football/soccer, but I'm betting that soccer fanatics would find it entertaining as well. Also, you learn that Stephen Dubner has a soccer podcast with his son. Adorable. [episode link] 5. If you're striving for "wokeness" NPR's Code Switch finally has their own podcast and they dedicated their first episode to a discussion on whiteness. I foresee many good things coming down this podcast feed. [episode link]

6. If you want to hear what it's really like for lightning strike survivors You hear about all sorts of amazing lightning strike survivors. There's the park ranger that's been struck a billion times and the guy who learned how to play the piano post-strike. But for a lot of survivors, life post-strike is really difficult. There aren't any doctors who focus on lightning strikes, so survivors are left figuring out their symptoms mostly on their own. In Outside Magazine's podcast, they talk to one survivor who's had a really difficult go of it. [episode link] 7. If you've ever pretended to be someone you're not I forgot to mention this in the last email! I really loved Death Sex and Money's episode on two men who went through one of those sham gay conversion therapy camps. They were incredibly open about the isolation they felt and how difficult it was for them to pretend to be something they weren't. Highly highly highly recommended. [episode link] 8. And finally, if you haven't heard that the most excellent people from Radiolab have a new spinoff series Go listen to More Perfect. It's all about the Supreme Court and you know it's going to be so good. The first episode is all about the death penalty. [episode link]

PUPPY CORNER A dog that won't let no cage stop him.

[hoponmypod]

Podblast #4: My New Serial, Adult Novels and Puppies

FAVORITES

You guys. Reply All is my new Serial season one. If you haven't been listening to the "On the Inside" series from producer Sruthi Pinnamaneni you are seriously missing out. She's been working on this tale for a year and boy oh boy does she have an epic tale to tell. It starts off as just a small story about a guy in prison with a blog, but it's turning into some serious true crime did-he-actually-do-it stuff. Listen and tell me what you think! I need someone to talk about this with. [On the Inside part one and two. Part three to come soon!] I mainlined six episodes of Call Your Girlfriend yesterday. My gateway episode was a Huma Abedin interview they did, but I quickly binged five more. I now officially love this podcast. It's obviously geared towards women as evidenced by an entire episode dedicated to periods, but I truly believe non-females could love it too!  The hosts are totally charming and you'll quickly feel like you're just another one of their besties. [Links to the Huma interview and the period episode.]

SUPER FAST RUNDOWN

Planet Money talks about a no interest bank. Not possible? Turns out, it is thanks to some tricky financial workarounds! [episode link] Only Human looks into a venture philanthropy success story, but finds that a lot of people don't agree with the way things went down. [episode link] If you're craving a good piece of audio fiction, listen to The Truth's latest episode on a mysterious man found in a barn. It's creepy and Twilight Zone-ish without being too scary for a scardey cat like me. [episode link] Flash Forward had a this-is-never-going-to-happen-but-let's-pretend-anyways episode this month that imagined a world where everyone knew the exact date they were going to die. Though this tech is probably never ever going to happen, it's incredibly fun to play along and imagine what would happen if it did. [episode link] Okay My Dad Wrote a Porno is one of the weirdest, most hilarious, and most uncomfortable podcasts that I've ever listened to in my life. The host, Jamie Morton, finds out that his dad wrote an erotic novel and decides to start a podcast where he reads one chapter each episode to his funny friends. The novel is atrocious (sorry Mr. Morton) and the commentary is hilarious. It all makes for an absolutely winning podcast and it's guaranteed to make you laugh. [show link]

PUPPY CORNER

Puppy with fish, an ultra derpy puppy, a puppy in a blanket burrito, a puppy trying to get into a tent but failing because of its big butt, a puppy being a jerk to its fellow puppy.

[hoponmypod]

Podblast #3: Babies, Mock Attackers and Terrible Movies

MY FAVORITES

For so long I've ignored Longest Shortest Time, a parenting podcast. I thought that having kids was mandatory to enjoy this podcast, but I was so very wrong. This podcast is for everyone!! Doesn't matter if you have kids, don't have kids, or don't ever want to have kids. Longest Shortest Time has some really beautiful storytelling and it deserves a listen. My favorite episodes so far are the Accidental Gay Parents series (episodes 60, 62, 80 and 81). I discover a lot of podcasts thanks to the Podcast Broadcast, a super awesome podcast recommendation newsletter. One of which was The Specialist, a podcast that talks to people who work in interesting fields. It's sort of like Slate's Working, but with more production behind it. This past week they talked to a sidewalk canvasser (episode 8), but one of the most interesting episodes is the one where they talked to a mock attacker. (episode 7) This guy works in a self-defense program and puts on different personas (drunk stupid idiot, drunk aggressive idiot, barely functioning sociopath) to drill specific verbal and physical responses within the women he's training.

SUPER FAST RUNDOWN

Call Your Girlfriend and Another Round did a special joint podcast and it was everything. I just want to be friends with all four ladies from these shows. Hyphen is a super new podcast about people living in two worlds. The name is inspired by the hyphen in the host's own identity, Indian-American. Reply All had a mini episode on email debt forgiveness day and featuring three listeners' unsent emails. The last one was so adorable and quirky and romantic and just so perfect. I can't say anymore because I don't want to ruin anything, but listen to it if you want to believe in true love. <3 How Did This Get Made, a bad movie podcast, reviews Solar Babies with the help of special guest John Mulaney. I love John Mulaney and you will too after you listen to this podcast. I’m late to this one, but the No Acquitting for Taste episode of Judge John Hodgman was most excellent. A guy brings a case against his girlfriend for her poor taste in furniture and asks Judge John Hodgman to allow him to be the one that dictates the style of their shared space. Hilarity ensues.

[hoponmypod]

Podblast #2: Skittles, Numbing Spray and Hamburger Helper

MY FAVORITES

With Special Guest Lauren Lapkus is a podcast in which improv queen Lauren Lapkus invites her improv friends to be the 'host' of a show they make up with Lauren as the guest. This week, Trey from Broad City came on as the host of a NPR Fresh Air type show with the wonderfully idiotic title "People, Places and Things." Lauren played a woman who had been held captive for the past 11 years and survived eating Skittles. It's weird and hilarious and so so specific. I loved it! I know everyone listens to and loves Radiolab, but I loved their recent episode on figure skating so much I just have to talk about it. The episode focuses on a figure skating legend, Surya Bonaly, one of the first black figure skaters to make it big. She was a powerful skater who didn't fit with the typical skater image at the time, and definitely didn't get the credit she was due. How Radiolab managed to tell the tale of an art that is so visual confounds me, but they told it beautifully. Warning: You are guaranteed to go down the endless rabbit hole of figure skating performances on YouTube.

SUPER FAST RUNDOWN

A recent 2 Dope Queens featured comedian Josh Gondelman who spoke about his experience with a penis numbing spray, but that was somehow not the craziest story told this episode. Reply All had an episode with Rukmini Callimachi, the NY Times' ISIS correspondent (that's definitely not her real title, but that's basically what she does). I love her so much. Any podcast that features Rukmini Callimachi is worth a listen. Only Human talked to the women who helped create the first tests to check the health of fetuses after her son was born with Down Syndrome. You're the Expert is the podcast that had me laughing the hardest with its episode on poisonous snails thanks to guest panelist, Tracy Clayton, from the excellent podcast, Another Round. I don't listen to a lot of WTF with Marc Maron, but the one with Louis C.K. is worth a listen. Louis talks about the logistical hurdles of Horace and Pete, but it's his explanation of the emotional journey he went on that really makes this a fantastic interview. And this isn't a podcast, but it's the best thing I've heard all week. Hamburger Helper made a mix tape and it's brilliant.

And finally, puppies!  

[hoponmypod]

Podblast #1: Sexbots, Gentrification and Stand Up

MY LOVES! 

I've been obsessed with Flash Forward by Rose Eveleth and binged all the past episodes. Each episode, Rose imagines some sort of bizarre situation in the future and talks to scientists and experts about the possibility of that future and what it'd mean. Highlights include the sex robot episode in which she talks about the need for storage solutions for your sexbots and the artificial intelligence episode in which your AI secretary needs a therapist because it's stressed out.

WNYC's podcast game has been super strong these days. There Goes the Neighborhood is about the gentrification that's happening in Brooklyn and my love of the show has reached Serial-season-one levels. If you live in any quickly gentrifying city (or even if you don't!) you'll find this show fascinating. 2 Dope Queens is the other new show from WNYC, and I think it's their first pure comedy show. It's utterly charming and if you just want to be happy for an hour or so, give it a listen! Oh and if you're a fan of Jessica Williams, you're in luck. She's one of the cohosts of this podcast and she's wonderful.

SUPER FAST RUNDOWN SECTION 

The latest Planet Money tackles guns! Specifically, why smart guns never took off in America. I don't listen to a lot of Fresh Air, but the one with Samantha Bee was excellent mostly because Sam Bee is just the best human. The latest Reply All was all about the struggle to get Fios in New York and it was too real. I wish I could listen to more Lore because it's so good, but this podcast about urban legends and horror stories gives me nightmares. And I can't wait for the next How Did This Get Made so I can hear more about Jean-Claude Van Damme's buns of steel. 

THROWBACK

If you never caught Limetown, please do yourself a favor and check it out now. It's an audio drama that feels a lot like a mix of The Truth and Black Mirror. It's six or so episodes long with a few mini episodes sprinkled throughout and it's so freaking creepy. Listen!!  

puppy gif: https://imgur.com/gallery/Zp0YZTA