Oliver Sacks has been hanging out on my iPod for a few months. I actually forgot he was there until this morning when I was looking through my podcasts and found his presentation at the Central Library. At one hour and one minute, that’s about the right length for a walk with my hound, Owen.
And let me tell you, those were 61 fascinating minutes spent as Sacks, a neurologist and author, talked about his research and writing for Musicophilia: Tales of Music and the Brain.
I have my computer set up so that the Library’s podcasts automatically download to my iTunes (and then sync with my iPod). A few times a month, I scroll to the podcast menu to see which authors I’d like to hear. Sometimes I make the decision based on length (my friend Sharon pointed out that Alice Hoffman’s 40-minute podcast made a nice dog walk in the morning before work); sometimes I listen to an event I had hoped to attend, such Chris Crutcher’s; and sometimes I re-live an event I particularly enjoyed, such as Ann Patchett’s last year when she talked about her no
vel Run. I went a little podcast-happy a few years ago and ended up subscribing to too many. I’ve narrowed it now to my favorites: Book Lust with Nancy Pearl on the Seattle Channel, Nancy Pearl‘s book reviews on NPR and KUOW, This American Life from Chicago Public Radio, and the Library’s podcasts. I don’t listen to all of them, but they’re there if I need them.
Can I just close by saying I love my iPod? (And my dog!)
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