Pop Culture Happy Hour

Dear Blog,

Can we just talk for a second about how much I'm loving NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast lately? Because I have been absolutely feasting my ears for the past couple of weeks. Feasting. My. Ears. If you'll indulge me just a little bit further in the bizarre food analogy, I'd even go so far as to say that I've been gorging myself on it.

Podcasts are a dime a dozen, and the format of PCHH (media personalities engaging in a roundtable discussion about pop culture) is familiar enough. It's just that the people involved with this one are consistently so damn charming. The core group that you'll come to know and love consists of Linda Holmes, Stephen Thompson, Glen Weldon, and Trey Graham, and their chemistry is so good that you'll find yourself feeling like you're eavesdropping on a lively conversation between friends. Their unbridled enthusiasm makes for a notable distinction between PCHH and other podcasts of its ilk (and yes, I'm pointedly looking at you here, Slate's Culture Gabfest). I always come away from it feeling excited to go investigate something that they've recommended, and so far I've yet to be let down. Listening to PCHH has pointed me in the direction of some of my all-time favourite things, including Eleanor and Park, a novel by Rainbow Rowell, and the songs As Long As The Grass Shall Grow by Johnny Cash and Find Love by Clem Snide. You know when you read a book or hear a song, and you wonder how you ever managed to make it this far in life without ever knowing that story or hearing that song? Maybe it's just a matter of taste, but that's how great their recommendations are. Every single time. Without fail.

So, if you're wondering what I've been keeping sooooo very busy with lately, and why I haven't had the chance to write a single post in, oh, what's it been now? Six weeks? Eight? This is why. It's because I don't do anything anymore, besides go to work and listen to Pop Culture Happy Hour. Honestly. On the plus side (inasmuch as this blog is concerned, anyway), I always come away from an episode having had a lot of food for thought, so perhaps it will spark a few more consistent ideas re: what the hell to write about when your life is actually pretty boring.