Podcasts? Any recommendations?

[Stacy]

I like to listen to podcasts while sewing. Videos occupy my eyes and keep me from getting anything done. Does anyone have recommendations for podcasts on simple living, minimalism, lowering debt, or similar topics? I'm interested in both the practical and the philosophical/spiritual.

[fidgiegirl]

So far I've only gotten into Education topics. Also looking forward to hearing any recommendations!

[fidgiegirl]

Ok, a recent blog post (http://www.byrdseed.com/podcasts-audio-inspriation/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ByrdseedGiftedLessons+%28Byrd seed+-+Gifted+Lessons%29&utm_content=Google+Reader)on this topic did have me intending to try out Stuff You Should Know. (http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/stuff-you-should-know/id278981407?mt=2)

[lhamo]

There are several finance oriented ones I like -- not necessarily the same vibe as here, but useful information (often delivered in a quirky style)

Planet Money
Freakonomics Radio
Marketplace Money (more mainstream financial news)
Dave Ramsey (we aren't in debt but the "We're debt free" segments are still inspirational)

I also really like the Splendid Table and NPR's Food podcast.

lhamo

[catherine]

My son swears by the NPR podcast
My daughter likes The Moth http://feeds.themoth.org/themothpodcast/ We listen to that podcast on car trips.

[JaneV2.0]

I like Jimmy Moore's interviews with proponents of low-carb and paleo foods:
http://thelivinlowcarbshow.com/
Today's interview is with Diane Sanfilippo, the author of Practical Paleo.

[Amaranth]

I would second The Splendid Table. She is very good at seasonal dishes with more of a scratch cooking, whole foods focus.

Prairie Home Companion isn't usually exactly on those topics, but it is a good example of radio theater.

Your library may have audio books of all sorts that you can checkout physically or checkout by downloading to your device. The downloaded ones disappear on their due date.

[fidgiegirl]

This thread has me investigating an FM transmitter for my iPhone so I can get in more podcast time. I have enjoyed books on CD in the past, but with all the choices on my phone, all I need is a way to play it in the car. I don't have an aux port so investigating other ways.

The Moth looks interesting. Another NPR show that I enjoy is The Story, and I bet they have a podcast. Yep! (http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/apm-the-story/id200104464) (Link will launch iTunes)

[bunnys]

This American Life
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/

[mira]

I'm not sure if these will work in North America, but the BBC does a good range of podcasts: http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts

[Florence]

This American Life
The Diane Rehm Show
Tom Ashbrook On Point
There is one on books but I can't remember the name of it right now.

[lhamo]

Nancy Pearl's regular appearances on KUOW (the Seattle NPR affiliate) are GREAT for book lovers. She is the much-loved former librarian of the Seattle Public Libraries and author of Booklust and its spinoffs. She's so good they even made an action figure of her (it goes "shhhhhhh" -- totally tongue in cheek because she is not the least bit stodgey...) I always get great new book ideas from her.

This American Life is great. Selected Shorts is also great.

For current events, since I cant watch PBS shows, I get the Frontline podcast versions which are usually very good.

lhamo

[Stacy]

This American Life
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/

How could I have forgotten this one? I stopped listening last year when I caught up with the episodes.

[Stacy]

Ok, a recent blog post (http://www.byrdseed.com/podcasts-audio-inspriation/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ByrdseedGiftedLessons+%28Byrd seed+-+Gifted+Lessons%29&utm_content=Google+Reader)on this topic did have me intending to try out Stuff You Should Know. (http://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/stuff-you-should-know/id278981407?mt=2)

I took a look and Stuff You Should Know is looking a little too random for my taste. I'll try it out, though.

[Stacy]

There are several finance oriented ones I like -- not necessarily the same vibe as here, but useful information (often delivered in a quirky style)

Planet Money
Freakonomics Radio
Marketplace Money (more mainstream financial news)
Dave Ramsey (we aren't in debt but the "We're debt free" segments are still inspirational)

I also really like the Splendid Table and NPR's Food podcast.

lhamo

Some good suggestions. I'm familiar with Planet Money, and that's often on the radio as I drive home from work, depending on what time I get done. I'll try out the other ones. I know that Dave Ramsey is popular with people I know.

[Stacy]

Thanks for all the suggestions! I will listen to a few of each one as I am able, just to see which ones I like best.

[fidgiegirl]

So funny that The Splendid Table came up here more than once - when Lynn R.C. is on weekends on our local radio, she's the only show that gets shut off! I'm sure she's a wonderful lady, she just drives us batty.

I bought an FM transmitter for my phone on eBay for $8.00. Here's lookin' at more podcast-y goodness. Thanks for the thread, Stacy. Keep us updated if you develop any new faves.

[Amator]

It might not be quite what you have in mind, but The Survival Podcast (http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com) actually has a big focus on killing debt and making life both more simple and more secure at the same time. The host is a pretty outspoken guy who may not appeal to everyone (he does most economic shows from a libertarian point-of-view) but if you like to garden and have any interest at all in self-sufficiency it might be more up your alley than you might originally think. The podcast's tagline is "Making your life better if things get tough or even if they don't" and I'm often surprised that a show on emergency preparedness can be as positive as it is.

[smellincoffee]

I'm not sure if these will work in North America, but the BBC does a good range of podcasts: http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts

They will! I go to the BBC often for podcasts on economics and food.

My favorite podcasts are...

StarTalk Radio with Neil deGrasse Tyson
Startalkradio.net
- this is about science, astronomy, and pop culture. Tyson is the modern Carl Sagan: more hip than sublime, but awesome in his own way. Morgan Freeman has appeared as a guest.

EconTalk
Econtalk.org
- while the hosts' politics and economic approach aren't mine, sometimes he finds the most interesting books in the WORLD to talk about, and spends well over an hour chatting with the authors. The conversations are of such quality that even if I disagree with his ideas, my own thinking is made clearer.

StrongTowns
Strongtowns.org
- this is a podcast about quality-of-life and economic issues relating to...town planning. :)

I used to listen to the KunstlerCast, about suburban sprawl and peak oil, but it's on hiatus now that the host has retired. The archives are still up, though:
Kunstlercast.com

Other podcasts include various BBC programs, The Secular Buddhist, The Humanist Bible, Point of Inquiry, The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe, AstronomyCast, ThisWeekinScience, Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, and This American Life. I don't listen to any of these every week, but I have listened to every episode of Humanist Bible and StarTalk as they come out.

[San Onofre Guy]

This American Life
Splendid Table
Dinner Party Download
The Story
Story Corps
The Tasting Room with Tom Leykis
Real Time with Bill Maher
Dirt Bag Diaries
Offramp

[RosieTR]

Thanks for all the suggestions! Even though I'm not the OP, I have a long commute and music sometimes gets pretty boring so podcasts are great! My fave is Marketplace Money though Radiolab is a close second. I'll be interested to check out some of the other suggestions I wasn't aware of, esp the Moth, which someone at work also suggested. I did think it was funny, Fidgiegirl, that you hate the Splendid Table. I actually like that one, but have met others who hate it. I personally cannot stand Diane Rehms Show because I can't get past her voice. I know she had surgery, etc but geez it's painful to listen to.

[AmeliaJane]

I really love the Pop Culture Happy Hour podcast from NPR. It's not just an "Entertainment Weekly" type of review of new stuff--they talk about pop culture more generally and often bring up older books/movies etc. For instance, recent topics have included "how long is too long" when it comes to different forms of pop culture; another was "dogs in popular culture." The hosts have an infectious manner and enthusiasm--I would love to have them over for dinner. I get a lot of ideas of things I would like to read/watch/listen to from the podcast.

My brother likes the America's Test Kitchen podcast.

[iris lily]

My first thought was This American Life, but RadioLab is a close second. I think that will be soon replacine This American Life as my favorite NPR show. BUt I do like Tom Ashbrook's interviews (he is on my local NPR station around 8 pm) but I don't know if his show is availabel as a podcast.

I will look for Pop Culture Happy hour, sounds interesting.

[fidgiegirl]

After trying this out for a few weeks, months, my current go-to is The Story. Love it.

[San Onofre Guy]

I forgot to add TED Talks

[Stacy]

It might not be quite what you have in mind, but The Survival Podcast (http://www.thesurvivalpodcast.com) actually has a big focus on killing debt and making life both more simple and more secure at the same time. The host is a pretty outspoken guy who may not appeal to everyone (he does most economic shows from a libertarian point-of-view) but if you like to garden and have any interest at all in self-sufficiency it might be more up your alley than you might originally think. The podcast's tagline is "Making your life better if things get tough or even if they don't" and I'm often surprised that a show on emergency preparedness can be as positive as it is.

I checked out this podcast today, and I was pleasantly surprised. I listened to one in which he was talking about the Edo period in Japan, how they lived, and what we can learn from it. It was fascinating. I did get rubbed the wrong way by some of the remarks he made, but I figure that you don't learn much if you're only willing to listen to people you agree with about everything. He reminds me of someone else whose podcasts I listen to on occasion: Paul Wheaton, who talks about permaculture on www.richsoil.com. He's also an outspoken guy with a strong personality, and he seems to know what he's talking about.

[Stacy]

So many suggestions. It will take months to check them all out. That's a very good problem to have. Thanks, everybody!

[smellincoffee]

Recently I found a podcast which is about living simply. It's relatively new, only a few months old, and hosted out of Portland. It's called "The Sprocket", because the hosts are wild for bicycles but their motto is "simplifying the good life" They turned me on to this fantastic book, The Plain Reader. They'll be especially interesting to those who are into mass transit. Oh, and their opening music is RIDICULOUSLY happy.

http://www.thepodcasthost.com/thesprocketpodcast/
They've quickly become my favorite hour of listening.

[rose]

This American Life
http://www.thisamericanlife.org/

Second this one. Almost always good stuff.

[pcooley]

I'd put Radiolab ahead of This American Life.

[iris lily]

Thanks for all the suggestions! Even though I'm not the OP, I have a long commute and music sometimes gets pretty boring so podcasts are great! My fave is Marketplace Money though Radiolab is a close second. I'll be interested to check out some of the other suggestions I wasn't aware of, esp the Moth, which someone at work also suggested. I did think it was funny, Fidgiegirl, that you hate the Splendid Table. I actually like that one, but have met others who hate it. I personally cannot stand Diane Rehms Show because I can't get past her voice. I know she had surgery, etc but geez it's painful to listen to.

Only NPR would employ a person with voice disability as a radio person. Sometimes I just shake my head at NPR.

I agree that I currently enjoy Radio lab more than This American Life. Ira needs to go off and do something else though he has dipped his toe in films and tv.

[smellincoffee]

Also of note: the Self-Sufficient Gardener.
http://theselfsufficientgardener.com/

[Gerald Iversen]

I don't like to exercise much. So, I use podcasts as a reward for my morning jog. My favorite is www.TheCommonGoodPodcast.com