"Seven Must-Listen This American Life Episodes"
A few weeks ago, while I was driving home late at night, I was trying to find an NPR station that wasn’t playing classical music (as some stations do on weekends). But there was no luck — just 4 stations playing the same fire-and-brimstone religious program.
In the car, I switch between music and NPR, depending on mood. On longer trips, NPR almost always wins out because I like to hear a story. It makes the trips go faster, especially the landmark-bereft stretch between our state capital and my home. I stopped at the PilotDonalds because I had to pee, and while there I thought to see if Android had an NPR application. Answer: it does. Answer: it’s free.
Around the same time, I started listening to This American Life on my computer while doing data analysis. I think I started doing it because I’d read a description of an episode, and it sounded so hilarious I immediately wanted to listen to it. So, I found it, and I listened to it — and thus started my TAL obsession. [The episode, “A Little Bit of Knowledge,” is on this list and deservedly so].
I searched for a This American Life app for my phone, and I found one. $2.99 is a steal. Seriously, if you have a Droid and you like stories, buy it.
I’m still new enough to the game that I’m ravenously going through episodes, a mix of what’s recommended and what I happen to see while scrolling that looks interesting. I’m excited about checking out this list, but I’d also humbly like to add one episode to it: No. 400, Stories Pitched By Our Parents. Apparently, the contributors to TAL are often suggested stories by their parents, and in this episode they sought to fulfill those suggestions. The result is funny but also sweet. Lisa’s Mom’s Story, Act I, is my favorite — it was particularly well done.
