I don’t think I could have related to anything any harder, I feel truly SEEN (or should that be heard given the topic?!). I’ve also been listening to podcasts since the Gervais days (I remember feeling a bit irked when everyone started ‘discovering’ podcasts around the time of Serial) and also have someone chatting into my ears basically continuously. And I’ve already crossed the rubicon into listening when I’m with others- the Bluetooth speaker follows me around the house and even sits on the table blathering away while we’re eating. Actually this sounds kind of bad now I sat it…Truly the thought of going a whole MONTH without a podcast brings me out in a cold sweat. So thank god you did the experiment so now I don’t have to! Too many recommendations to know where to begin really but a good one I’ve got into recently is The Problematic Gaze. Their episodes on Blind Date and Bullseye were like catnip to me…
Well they’re not that tolerant really but I just plough on anyway. The best times are when I press pause and my son will say, hey I was listening to that! It’s not often but it does feel like vindication. Also I forgot to say - the airbuds/garlic clove mix up literally made me do a weird cackle sound I laughed so much. Luckily it was just me and the Bluetooth speaker in the kitchen so no one else heard😆
Haha! It's exciting when your child shows an interest in podcasts. My son has been listening to Smash, Boom, Best - an American debate show for kids and I'm so thrilled!
Oh brilliant - have downloaded both plus the ones on Mommie Dearest and Grease. Looks great, thank you.
I'm also impressed by the tolerance of your family! Tom wears headphones all day to listen to podcasts, but in some ways that's more annoying as he can never hear me!
Thanks for a really thought-provoking post! I've got a similarly obsessive relationship with some podcasts, and - as well as the reduction of 'quiet time' to reflect - I've found it's also affected my connection with music. Has anyone else encountered that problem? Podcasts provided a lot of solace about seven years when I went through a lengthy period of depression and couldn't listen to music for a while; suddenly it all sounded like noise. But as that receded, podcasts have remained my dominant listening material by far. Depending on the subject matter, I wonder if that's healthy in terms of general anxiety levels? At the very least, it's probably good to ease off the news/current affairs-based pods as the world becomes evermore fractured and terrifying...
I definitely listen to much less music now, which is sad. But I’ve also found podcasts a massive help in difficult times, in a way that nothing else has like the radio or music. It’s the very best distraction but is it good to be distracted all the time?!
I must confess that I never listen to news and current affairs podcasts and agree it would not be great to be constantly immersed in these!
I think my "taking out a single earbud when another dog walker says something to me and then half-smiling at them with widened and expectant eyes" manoeuvre might be the most passive-aggressive thing anyone has ever done in the history of human interaction.
I almost hate myself for it but having an hour to hear from whoever was on last night's Taskmaster, a minute-by-minute breakdown of the 1984 TV film Threads or discovering who's written in to something called a GLAP Clinic is pretty much sacrosanct and interlopers will be met with with the biggest possible "sigh...WHAT?" I can muster.
Thanks to the need to listen to things while I'm doing the gardening (mainly weeding) I'm running out of podcasts. So I'm having to add a few more to the play list
But once the Summer ends and weekends become something more than trying to end the invasion of "creeping charlie", I'll have too many hours of podcasts for available time and will have to chop some once again.
Some will just pile-up until my Podcast App just decides it's not going to download any more until I've listened to the 15 I haven't yet played
I listen to podcasts on my iPod (yes, I still have one), but not with earbuds. At home, the iPod is in my pocket or on a Bluetooth speaker, or else I listen in the car. I like to listen to them while doing stuff around the house. I can't have the TV on because I'll stop to watch instead of cook dinner, or whatever.
The Hometime show was my first podcast. I started listening to it after my friend Allyson had introduced me to Absolute Radio, but the 8 hour time difference made it hard to catch the show live. Then I learned about podications, so I was hooked.
Like you, I also suffer with the one headphone issue. I put this down to our dog jumping up and pulling on one of the wires when I'm putting his lead on. And that's another set of headphones ruined, and a sore ear too boot. And yes, I have the same dilemma when meeting people on a walk - do I take a headphone out and look interested? Do I just concentrate on what the dog is doing, or actually make eye contact and meaningfully interact? Even the easy things are hard!
Yes! I am the same with listening to podcasts all the time to the point that most of what I say to real people begin with “I heard on this podcast…” I have also worried that I’m using podcast listening as a crutch to avoid thinking and doing things I should. Maybe I should start with a ban on listening at work? (Working from home as a person who lives alone can be a bit much)
Anyway, I discovered and would recommend “Deep Cover,” an iHeart radio podcast with several seasons. I listened to season 6 “The Truth About Sarah” about a woman who pretended to be a veteran to get attention and money. Fascinating!
I don’t think I could have related to anything any harder, I feel truly SEEN (or should that be heard given the topic?!). I’ve also been listening to podcasts since the Gervais days (I remember feeling a bit irked when everyone started ‘discovering’ podcasts around the time of Serial) and also have someone chatting into my ears basically continuously. And I’ve already crossed the rubicon into listening when I’m with others- the Bluetooth speaker follows me around the house and even sits on the table blathering away while we’re eating. Actually this sounds kind of bad now I sat it…Truly the thought of going a whole MONTH without a podcast brings me out in a cold sweat. So thank god you did the experiment so now I don’t have to! Too many recommendations to know where to begin really but a good one I’ve got into recently is The Problematic Gaze. Their episodes on Blind Date and Bullseye were like catnip to me…
Well they’re not that tolerant really but I just plough on anyway. The best times are when I press pause and my son will say, hey I was listening to that! It’s not often but it does feel like vindication. Also I forgot to say - the airbuds/garlic clove mix up literally made me do a weird cackle sound I laughed so much. Luckily it was just me and the Bluetooth speaker in the kitchen so no one else heard😆
Haha! It's exciting when your child shows an interest in podcasts. My son has been listening to Smash, Boom, Best - an American debate show for kids and I'm so thrilled!
Oh brilliant - have downloaded both plus the ones on Mommie Dearest and Grease. Looks great, thank you.
I'm also impressed by the tolerance of your family! Tom wears headphones all day to listen to podcasts, but in some ways that's more annoying as he can never hear me!
Thanks for a really thought-provoking post! I've got a similarly obsessive relationship with some podcasts, and - as well as the reduction of 'quiet time' to reflect - I've found it's also affected my connection with music. Has anyone else encountered that problem? Podcasts provided a lot of solace about seven years when I went through a lengthy period of depression and couldn't listen to music for a while; suddenly it all sounded like noise. But as that receded, podcasts have remained my dominant listening material by far. Depending on the subject matter, I wonder if that's healthy in terms of general anxiety levels? At the very least, it's probably good to ease off the news/current affairs-based pods as the world becomes evermore fractured and terrifying...
I definitely listen to much less music now, which is sad. But I’ve also found podcasts a massive help in difficult times, in a way that nothing else has like the radio or music. It’s the very best distraction but is it good to be distracted all the time?!
I must confess that I never listen to news and current affairs podcasts and agree it would not be great to be constantly immersed in these!
I think my "taking out a single earbud when another dog walker says something to me and then half-smiling at them with widened and expectant eyes" manoeuvre might be the most passive-aggressive thing anyone has ever done in the history of human interaction.
I almost hate myself for it but having an hour to hear from whoever was on last night's Taskmaster, a minute-by-minute breakdown of the 1984 TV film Threads or discovering who's written in to something called a GLAP Clinic is pretty much sacrosanct and interlopers will be met with with the biggest possible "sigh...WHAT?" I can muster.
Just re-read this. It does not put me in a good light.
Haha!
I’ve been practicing this manoeuvre.
Thanks to the need to listen to things while I'm doing the gardening (mainly weeding) I'm running out of podcasts. So I'm having to add a few more to the play list
But once the Summer ends and weekends become something more than trying to end the invasion of "creeping charlie", I'll have too many hours of podcasts for available time and will have to chop some once again.
Some will just pile-up until my Podcast App just decides it's not going to download any more until I've listened to the 15 I haven't yet played
Yes, sometimes my podcast app takes care of things for me too!
I listen to podcasts on my iPod (yes, I still have one), but not with earbuds. At home, the iPod is in my pocket or on a Bluetooth speaker, or else I listen in the car. I like to listen to them while doing stuff around the house. I can't have the TV on because I'll stop to watch instead of cook dinner, or whatever.
The Hometime show was my first podcast. I started listening to it after my friend Allyson had introduced me to Absolute Radio, but the 8 hour time difference made it hard to catch the show live. Then I learned about podications, so I was hooked.
Retro! I’ve still got my iPod, I might try charging it to see if it still works.
Glad that we were your gateway drug!
Like you, I also suffer with the one headphone issue. I put this down to our dog jumping up and pulling on one of the wires when I'm putting his lead on. And that's another set of headphones ruined, and a sore ear too boot. And yes, I have the same dilemma when meeting people on a walk - do I take a headphone out and look interested? Do I just concentrate on what the dog is doing, or actually make eye contact and meaningfully interact? Even the easy things are hard!
I never know what to do. My current thing is to smile at the other dog like it’s adorable and hope it’s enough.
Yes! I am the same with listening to podcasts all the time to the point that most of what I say to real people begin with “I heard on this podcast…” I have also worried that I’m using podcast listening as a crutch to avoid thinking and doing things I should. Maybe I should start with a ban on listening at work? (Working from home as a person who lives alone can be a bit much)
Anyway, I discovered and would recommend “Deep Cover,” an iHeart radio podcast with several seasons. I listened to season 6 “The Truth About Sarah” about a woman who pretended to be a veteran to get attention and money. Fascinating!
Well, it depends on how much it interferes with your work! Maybe just think of the podcast voices as non-annoying and very interesting colleagues.
Deep Cover looks great. I love stuff like that. Thank you.
Good tip! Colleagues I can silence when I need to. 👍
Yes!