Friday Favorites: Sue's Podcast Love

I am mildly obsessed with watching people do things that they can totally rock. That kind of unsuppressed creativity and flow just gets me energized. Luckily, I spend a fair amount of time around people who do things amazingly well, which makes for an inspirational way to live. Whether it's my coffee shop in the morning, my yoga classes full of adventurous spirits, the Sensei who runs the dojo where my kids do karate or my food cohort constantly coming up with inventive dishes, I'm pretty surrounded by people in their peak. I don't think this is something we stop to think about very often, but it's worth the pause.  

Also, it's worth pausing to look at this hilarious photo I found of a dog name Roscoe, who's apparently contemplating recording a podcast. Thanks, Creative Commons. 

Photo courtesy Flickr/Creative Commons

Similarly, I love talking to people about what they love, whether that's their job, an activity they participate in, or a hobby—or all of the above. So when Susan Amato, one of my yoga teachers, started talking about podcasts in her pre-class preamble the other day, my ears perked up. (People, there are stories EVERYWHERE). She likes listening to them in the car, while she's making dinner, or while she's doing her home practice. I'm instituting a feature here called Friday Favorites, in which I share my favorites and the favorites of friend and colleagues. You got something or someone you want to know more about? Send me a note: the contact button is at the bottom of the page in the footer. I'm open to suggestions as to what you want to see featured here. 

Susan Amato's Podcast Love

1. The Tim Ferriss Show. He's the author of The 4-Hour Chef, The 4-Hour Body and The 4-Hour Work Week, and as Sue describes it, "his gig is looking at methodology. He tends to interview people who are world-class at whatever they do. He picks their brains about their habits, how they develop skills all with the goal of answering the question of 'How can we be more productive and enjoy life more fully?'"
2. Julie Klausner, "How Was Your Week?" She is "relatable and accessible" and is of the celebrity world but is a smaller player. "She's like hanging out with a really interesting girlfriend. She can, however, be a little raunchy. Just a warning." 
3. Michael Fauerbach. This guy is local, in Nazareth. Maybe you have seen his T-shirts and hats; he's got a clothing brand called Never Again, which was borne out of skater culture. "He is just a wacky guy, a great conversationalist, and collaborates with other artists."
4. Sue says the gateway podcast is This American Life, hosted by Ira Glass. It's menschy, it's narrative and it's funny: classic non-fiction long form radio journalism. You can download the episodes of the syndicated program (produced by WBEZ-Chicago Public Media), which has 2 million listeners. 
5. What's the Tee with RuPaul and Michelle Visage. "Believe it or not, RuPaul is actually very spiritual and disciplined about it, but also presents material in a light and fun way. The two of them are able to see issues and ideas from all different sides." I asked her about what the name meant, and she says it's not clear exactly what is meant by "the Tee" but says the hosts often refer to it, saying things, "and that's the Tee." Maybe we have to just keep listening to figure it out. The one I'm listening to now is going on and on about food, gluten, Panera and so forth, and we're only five minutes into it. 

Runners-up: 

• TED Radio Hour
• Radiolab
• WTF with Mark Maron
• Ashtanga Dispatch

"I bet you thought it was all going to be 'Mudra Moments,' huh?" she says, laughing. 

We are all complex people, with varying interests. Podcasts are basically people talking about  stuff they wanna talk about, with varying degrees of production values and goals. If you're into something, chances are there's a podcast for you.