Talk Radio

I love good talk radio. It reminds me of when I was a kid and my mom and I would drive from Brandon to Winnipeg and listen to Peter Warren on CJOB. I remember his show would always be about one topic and people would call in. Usually a lot of idiots called in and if they annoyed Peter, he would blatantly cut them off or call them on it. It was awesome.

One episode in particular was about whether or not seatbelts worked. People called in with stories of how they had been saved in a car accident by seatbelts. Others called in and said, they had not been wearing their seatbelts, had been in an accident and thrown from their cars which consequently exploded into flames from the impact of the accident and therefore not wearing a seatbelt at all had SAVED them. Other people would be totally off and talk about how if you were sleeping in the passenger seat, your relaxed state would make it easier for you to avoid injuries during a car accident. It was all pretty interesting not to mention entertaining.

I also enjoy podcasts. One in particular that I really like is CBC's Quirks and Quarks. Its a great way to learn about the scientific world, what's going on in new research etc. but all in layman's terms so it's understandable. The host Bob MacDonald asks all the right questions and from the point of view of the average person who might not fully understand the science behind the topic.

So when a friend and coworker introduced me to This American Life podcasts, I was of course willing to check it out. And I love it! This is story telling at it's best. Each show is themed and hosted by Ira Glass who breaks the show down into parts or "acts". The stories can be non-fiction and fiction and they all relate back to the overall theme. One that my coworker pointed out to me was about "Fiascos". The first act is a story told by Jack Hitt about a production of Peter Pan gone terribly wrong. The way Jack Hitt tells the story is truly amazing as he builds up the events. He and the host can't help but laugh as the story just gets more and more crazy. It's great!

Another fascinating This American Life podcast is called Scenes From a Recession. This podcast again goes through several stories of how people are being affected by the economic downturn. The most interesting was Act 2 which is called "Unbreaking the Bank". It talks about what happens when an American bank goes under and the FDIC comes in an takes over. It's like something out of an action movie!

You can download the latest episode for free on itunes or stream live directly from their website. Last weeks episode entitled Fall Guy is about, well people who have been the fall guy. The first 'act' is by Mike Birbiglia and is the story of how in highschool he ended up being the 'Fall Guy' for the entire school. He makes hilarious references to after school specials and how in his case "running away from the problem" worked and no one ever told him that he would make it through but supported him when he decided to jump ship. Very entertaining.

I recommend checking it out if you've got some headphones at work or if you can bring your laptop top into the washroom and listen to it while you clean your bathtub. That's what I plan to do today while I listen to this episode which is also supposed to be hilarious.

Happy Canada Day!

(Ironic that I am showcasing an American radio show, but hey what can you do?)

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