divine angst

Since I don’t drive anymore, I don’t get the chance to listen to NPR news, Morning Edition, All Things Considered, or The World anymore. When we moved to Our New City, I looked up the public radio station number, just in case, but since I commute by public transportation, it doesn’t do me much good at the time of day when listening to the news is most convenient.

I had also looked for NPR podcasts, but found none. Perhaps I was too early–after all, the last time I looked, the only NPR program available was On the Media. A great show, but not exactly the news.

Well, guess what? Since that discouraging search, several months ago, NPR has gotten on the ball. NPR now publishes several podcasts, all of them available in iTunes. First, I can get news updates through the day. And while I can’t get the entire program of All Things Considered or Morning Edition, I can subscribe to the individual stories–NPR Technology, or NPR Music. Which means I get hours of NPR programming, ready to download to my iPod and listen to on the train, or in the library, or while I’m walking around the city.

Thank you, NPR, for publishing your podcasts online. Those of us who don’t drive have been waiting for this. And now that I can hear public radio again, I am more likely to subscribe to public radio.

You know what I’m starting to notice?

The collegial atmosphere in my Law School has started to dissipate. People who I would normally consider very noncompetitive are starting to develop little tics–like shaking their heads in disbelief when someone says something wrong in class, or sighing audibly when someone says something they disagree with. While some people have been doing this sort of thing all year, I’m noticing that it’s spreading. Now it’s not just the gunners, it’s a smattering of nice people, too.

Spring Break, as my counter shows, is not far away. It can’t come too soon, for my mental sanity and that of my classmates. At least the ones I like.