podcast, anyone?

I am alone at work almost all the time. I prefer it, but it does get lonely.

When KQED is repeating the morning news and I've had my fill of the dance station playing the latest Rihanna, Britney and Lady Gaga, I turn my iPod to literary (or would it be literature?) podcasts, because nothing is more soothing than being read to. Especially if I'm listening to This American Life. Ira Glass, you make me cry, you make me laugh, you make me feel a little less alone.

TAL, aside, I've discovered that I enjoy The New Yorker fiction podcast far more than I ever did any piece of fiction in The New Yorker (save three particular short stories, feel free to leave a guess in the comments). This podcast has esteemed authors choosing a selection from the fiction archives to be read aloud and discussed with fiction editor Deborah Treisman. While the podcast introduces me to new authors, it's also a great meditation on taste, the aesthetics and mechanics of the short story (the New Yorker short story, of course, being a particular kind of short story).

Another favorite--and one no longer found on Boston's WBUR, I believe--is PRI's Selected Shorts, another short story read-along. Selected Shorts tends to feature works by well-known authors--a hilarious reading of TC Boyle "Sorry Fugu," or a darkly entertaining rendition of David Schickler's "The Smoker."

While these three podcasts have kept me pretty busy until now, I've realized I need to expand my collection. That, or pony up for the Kindle 2 which will read to me itself.

So I've subscribed to The Moth and Writers Block.

Other podcast listeners out there, share your favorites!