Happy listening
Asexual in the city, small talk, plus sized fashion, baguettes, exploring Antarctica, Colorado River takeover
Today is my sister’s birthday, so I thought I’d dedicate this intro to her. She’s one of my favourite new podcast listeners to talk to about podcasts. I can usually anticipate which shows she might be interested in, but every once in a while she surprises me with an unexpected choice she’s into. And that’s what makes me enjoy hearing about her podcast listening so much! She’s still discovering just how much variety there is in the subject matter, format, and tone of podcasts, so it’s really cool learning what she thinks.
Finding podcasts that new listeners enjoy can be tricky, but when those people are open minded and curious, it’s so fun! I want to shout out Let’s Make a Rom-Com for being a new favourite comfort listen and the Oceanology episode of Ologies for leaving a VERY strong impression on her recently. Happy listening and happy birthday!
This week’s podstack
Free From Desire - What Is Wrong With Me?
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, personal documentary-style podcasts rock my world. They just hit different! It’s the combination of memoir-style narration, sound design that takes it beyond a monologue, and exceptional story structure that get me so hooked. And that’s exactly what Free From Desire has. Aline is telling the story of how they felt so different from the stereotypical person living in the ‘city of love’ their whole life, until they discovered asexuality and a world that made it all make sense. Everything they’d been feeling their whole life that didn’t fit into the norm we’re all told about love and life, finally had an explanation. This show follows their journey to understanding themselves better, our society’s perceptions of love, sex, and relationships, and ultimately finding the path that made the most sense of them - having a child via artificial insemination. It’s only the first episode, but I can’t help feeling so invested in learning how Aline grows to accept themselves and show others how they can too. And I gotta mention all the nostalgic references in the first episode! Expect lots of throwbacks to sex-fueled comedies and late night cable movies.
How to Talk to People - How to Make Small Talk
Does small talk bring out your most awkward self? For some, it comes naturally and they navigate the exchanges beyond small talk so easily. For others, they feel safest debating the weather. This episode is a great exploration of our expectations around conversations during casual encounters and with acquaintances. Part of what helps them illustrate the different ways these interactions can go is by talking to hair dressers about it. Getting your haircut is the perfect example of this kind of interaction and through their jobs, they engage in lots of types of small talk. Whether you learn how to relax into conversation or just be comfortable with simple exchanges, it’s nice to hear how other people navigate it. For those who are less practiced than hair dressers and get stuck in their heads, they spoke to a social scientist who writes about and studies why we get awkward. Very relatable, very helpful! (transcript)
Boob Sweat - Why is plus sized fashion failing?
What fails in marketing campaigns and in retail decisions when the team doesn’t have people in it from enough different experiences and perspectives? There’s this trend where companies are only giving a couple years for the addition of more sizes to bring in a lot of money, so they stop offering them. How can companies capture the market potential and do the right thing to include all consumers? Katie Sturino speaks with marketing and retail experts to understand why this keeps happening. Even when sales of extended sizes seem to do well online, things change when those items are brought into stores and there’s so many variables impacting the success. Something I really liked in this episode was the montage of listener voice messages when they asked “why do you think plus size fashion fails in stores?”. It’s so effective in demonstrating how many people are thinking about this and is a strong lead into their analysis of this problem. Plus, the music they paired with it is perfect!
Your Last Meal - Bill Nye: French Baguette
Bill Nye has me feeling inspired to have more baguettes in my life. His scientific mind has mastered the art of baking bread and he needs a baguette included in his last meal. What I didn’t expect was for him to have such specific and direct opinions about food! He doesn’t hold back when sharing his preferences or challenging Rachel’s thoughts. Not that I know Bill Nye that well, beyond childhood science lessons, but this felt like hearing another side of him. Plus, I love the way Rachel incorporates some history into every episode. Learning about the baguette lifestyle in France made me think about how vastly different the habits around food are in North America and now I might have to start baking some bread.
This is Our Time - Somewhere Around Antarctica
In 2016, 76 women scientists set out on the largest-ever all-female expedition to Antarctica, organized by Homeward Bound. This expedition featured women-identifying people from across STEM fields. Since then, several more of these expeditions have taken place. In 2016 Samantha Hodder followed the expedition virtually and in 2018 she found herself in the Antarctic, on the second ever expedition. This Is Our Time is her documentary re-telling of that experience. The first episode sets the scene so well with Samantha introducing the ‘audio vérité’ style she’d be using to tell us about what it meant to be going on this trip, how it was structured, and what it was like to spend a month on this adventure. There’s a moment when you hear the crew welcoming the group of women to the start of the expedition and something about the togetherness in that moment felt so powerful to me. It made me feel like I was in the room with them, about to embark on something meaningful that is just as much about exploring a unique part of the world, as it is about exploring ourselves. Samantha also has a great newsletter that celebrates excellence in narrative podcasting! (transcript)
When I realized two series about the Colorado River were released at basically the same time, I had to learn more. What was happening that made these both pop up now?! I found Thirst Gap first and listened to the first episode, which introduced me to just how important the river is to the water supply for so many Americans. Then, a couple weeks later, I heard about Parched and after listening to its first episode, I was so intrigued to hear more of both. They both excel at telling you more about the people impacted by water shortages already happening, the history of the river, and the solutions that are being implemented. The first episode of Parched gives you a sense of hope, as you hear from a woman working in Nevada’s water department and believes the work she’s doing is capable of giving her kids a good future. Parched is all about solutions-based journalism, which I really appreciated and didn’t realize was a specific thing! Each episode of Thirst Gap travels down the river and you learn about how a different group of people is being impacted by the changes to the water supply. You hear from people who can no longer enjoy as many marine activities as they could before and people struggling with new laws meant to conserve water. I think both the shows work well together and I plan to listen to both all the way through, but either one are a great way to learn about what’s happening with a river that supplies over 40 million people with water. (Parched transcript) (Thirst Gap transcript)
More sweet treats
What would you do if someone stopped you on the streets of New York and asked if you listen to podcasts?
Podcast bingo is genius!
Are there too many podcasts? Great answer.
Thank you for reading! If you listened to something this week that made your heart sing, your imagination wander, or your brain ponder, I’d love to hear about it!
Happy birthday! ✨🎈🎂