Hellobee

I’m a relative podcast newbie. I didn’t really understand them before, and I didn’t know how to download or listen to them. But Mr. Cereal was and is a huge podcast fan, so he introduced me to them about a year ago. Since then, I’ve found a few that I listen to pretty religiously, and a few that I have picked up relatively recently. I get kind of tired of music sometimes, and having a podcast to listen to on the way to and from work has been really nice.

Mom and Dad Are Fighting –  This is Slate’s parenting podcast. It is usually a weekly podcast and they cover a ton of different parenting subjects. The hosts are mostly relatable and pretty easy to listen to. I like this one because they cover things that I am dealing with or will deal with and the two hosts sometimes have differing opinions, so listeners can usually relate to one of their answers. I almost always find myself enjoying these episodes and I look forward to the next one as soon as I finish the current one. The second host, Dan Kois, just left the podcast to live for a year abroad with his family. In the transition until they find another host, the main host, Alison, is having guest hosts join her.

The Longest Shortest Time – I love this one sooo much. This truly is a parenting focused podcast and the host, Hilary Frank, is an absolutely amazing woman who explores every aspect of being a parent, and more specifically, of being a mother. I am not really a crier, but I find myself crying frequently when listening to this podcast. I started listening to this about a year ago, and I burned through the first 89 episodes in about a month. I found myself nodding my head in agreement to a ton of the stories and I felt connected to the mothers and parents that were featured in the episodes. There is one episode in particular about a stillborn child that has stayed with me and continues to be something I think about often.

Witch, Please – I am a huge Harry Potter fan. I’ve read all the books, seen all the movies. I actually coordinated a Harry Potter event for three years in a row at my old job. I am a Harry Potter nerd. Imagine my delight when I found a podcast that was entirely about Harry Potter! This podcast is pretty easy to listen to and is interesting. At times it is a little heavy handed and leans towards overly critical, but for a podcast to listen to while doing another task, it fits the bill. The hosts discuss each book and then the matching movie and pick apart various aspects of each.

This American Life – I would probably call this my favorite podcast right now. This features real life stories about people and there are usually three stories per episode. The stories range from a US soldier’s account of coming home to a story about two babies switched at birth and the ensuing confusion and heartbreak when this was discovered. I can really immerse myself in these stories and I look forward to Wednesday mornings, which is my designated This American Life morning.

Modern Love – This one is relatively new to me, but I really enjoy it so far. It is a mixture of stories about love and relationships. The format changes — sometimes it is a first person account, sometimes it is an essay read by someone, sometimes it is a third person account of another person’s story. The episodes are relatively short, and I use this one as a filler when my other podcasts are either too heavy or too long. It definitely makes me think afterward and I really like that.

Death, Sex, and Money – This is another relatively new one to me. I actually started listening to it because the host, Anna Sale, was on The Longest Shortest Time. There is a huge range of topics, which is a nice break sometimes from the mostly parenting podcasts I listen to. It isn’t my favorite podcast, but it, like Modern Love, provides a nice break from the other podcasts I listen to.

I have a few others that I listen to occasionally, but these are the main ones I listen to on a regular basis. I’m always looking for more, so if any of you have suggestions, I’d love to hear them!