How much time do you spend in the car?  The time spent driving to work, to and from gigs, to the store, and gym all adds up week to week.  On a weekly basis during high season here in Miami I can be in my car at least 5-10 hours a week traveling around for work.

On a day to day basis, a 30-minute drive here and there doesn’t seem like much, but it really adds up!

What do you do with this time?

When I first realized how much time I was wasting in the car first I had a bit of a freakout, and then I set to ensuring that my time would be better spent.  This isn’t to say that every moment spent in my vehicle would be a productive one, but I set out to find a way give myself the option to use the time in a meaningful way if I so choose.

This is when I first discovered podcasts.  In the 5 years since I have started listening to podcasts, I have learned more about the world than I ever could have imagined.  The wonderful thing about podcasts is that they are as diverse as they are numerous.  For most, the creation of a podcast is a labor of love rather than a financial endeavor, and for this reason, you can find some really strange and fascinating things out there.

The world is at your fingertips.  You can always access podcasts through iTunes, but the best apps for podcast listening are PocketCasts if you are an Andriod user, or Overcast if you have an iPhone.  Politics, science, history, personal stories, fiction, comedy, and so much more await to fill your empty hours in the car!

Now for a little shameless self-aggrandizement…

Want to listen to things specifically about harp??

Well, you are in luck.  We are 14 episodes into the Harp Column Podcast, and have some really exciting episodes coming up!  Take a listen and let us know if you like the podcast!

But that’s not all!

How terrible would that have been to have created this whole blog just to talk about my own podcast??

There are also other great services to satiate your harp cravings!  

• Check out iHarp Radio (I only wish I had come up with the title to this blog…) for all harp all day long.
• Something new that I just found the other day that I am so excited about is a new radio show by harpist Denise Grupp-Verbon called “Harp Matters – Matters of the Harp.”  The show will run from August 22nd to December 30th and will play on Monday mornings at 10:30 (Eastern time) and Friday afternoons at 2:30 (Eastern Time).
  It will be featured on Owens Community College Radio (OCCR), the Music Business Technology degree student-run radio station at Owens Community College. You can listen online or you can download the OCCR App.
  I haven’t tuned in yet, but can’t wait to hear the episode tomorrow morning!

Have you ever thought about spending your time in the car more productively?  Comment below on how you pass the hours and any other harp related car activity you can think of!

Podcasts I listen to regularly:

• “This American Life” – NPR’s weekly show hosted by Ira Glass
• “The Moth” – People telling 10 minute real life stories
• “Serial” – NPR’s investigative podcast
• “Presidential” – 30-45 minute episodes each featuring a president from George Washington on! (one of my favorites!)
• “Beautiful Stories from Anonymous People” – 60 minute coversations between comedian Chris Gethard and an anonymous caller
• “Note to Self” – Humanity in the digital age
• “StarTalk” – Science and the Universe with Neil Degrasse Tyson
• “A Musical Life” – True stories, interviews, and songs from musicians from a variety of genres