A New Pod

While I enjoyed listening to the podcast titled “Sawbones,” it is time to move on and learn about something different. Sawbones pertained to the history of weird medical myths and/or facts. Since I had this area of knowledge sufficiently covered, I had to search for a podcast to fill my brain with a separate area of intellectual interest.

Since I liked Sawbone’s format of informative medical episodes, I decided to try How Stuff Works by Charles Bryant and Josh Clark. As I scanned through the titled, I landed on “Short Stuff: Johnny Appleseed” I’ve heard of the legend of Johnny Appleseed, but I never really looked into the level of truth it holds. I learned through the episode that the Johnny Appleseed’s real name was John Chapman. He went around most of America (in the 1800s) and planted apple trees that could be made into hard cider. He was a pioneer who was trying to make a living. While the speakers were entertaining, they weren’t able to hold my attention as long as I would have liked. I appreciated the content and what I learned from the episode, but I wanted a less fact heavy podcast for my next podcast

I love to laugh, so the podcast titled “Comedy Bang! Bang!” seemed like a good option. As an interview show, Scott Aukerman (the host of the show) brings on different guests for banter and conversations. I listened to the beginning of the podcast with guests Mat Walsh, Lauren Lapkus and Dhruv Uday Singh. The podcast seemed a little all over the place, with no real purpose or point. While this may appeal to some, I prefer more structure to my listening. Anyone looking for a casual “couch talk” sort of podcast should check it out, but I decided to look for a narrative driven podcast.

As I scrolled down the long list of possibilities, I came across a few that caught my eye. Crime Junkies, a show delving into crazy murders and various crimes seemed interesting. I’ve never listened to a crime podcast before, so I decided to try it out. I chose to listen to the episode “Wanted: Austin Yogurt Shop Killer” by Brit Prawat. The story opens up with a few young girls going to a yogurt shop late at night. The girls noticed a group of guys lurking by the girls, while ordering nothing at the shop. The girls worked at the shop, and were getting ready for the place to close up. But at some point, most likely around 11pm, the girls were murdered. Their bodies were found naked and burnt to a crisp (extremely eerie). No one knows exactly who did it. This podcast kept me on the edge of my feet! Abet a little gruesome, they speaker does a good job explaining all aspects of the case. The podcast included audio clips from investgations and real police calls, showing an attention to detail. I also liked that they include images and diagrams pertaining to the crime. Podcasts are about sound, but the little bits of pictures make it a more immersive experience. 

Crime Junkies will be my new podcast! (Hopefully it won’t give me nightmares).