Not feeling so great today, you guys. I think it's because my day job office is a Plague Office.

We're creeping up on Christmas, which Josh and I will spend with his family in Illinois, so I have an even huger to-do list to add to my already out of control normal to-do lists.

So for this week's blog posting, I am bringing you a list of my favorite podcasts. I like to listen to podcasts all the time, but especially at work. Sometimes, the day job can get a little repetitive.

Citizen Radio and This Week in Blackness are my go-to podcasts. I'm a monthly paying member in both. Because I'm a lefty, and these two podcasts provide coverage of issues that don't get covered elsewhere-- like labor, anti-war, rape culture, LGBT, feminism and race, for starters.

Because even if the regular media bothers to cover these issues, they way they cover them is stupid. Also, CR and TWIB are funny. And since the news is often bleak as hell, I could use some funny with my news. These are the two podcasts that if they don't happen, most make me sad. How will I get through my day now?

Also This Week in Blackness is not just for black people. And honestly, the best thing in the world for white people might be listening to what black people have to say, 2-3 hours a day, four days a week.

Pop Culture Happy Hour I look forward to this one every week. The discussions are great, thoughtful and funny, and they have a segment called What's Making Us Happy This Week-- where I find out about awesome pop culture I didn't know about. The hosts have excellent taste, even about their low brow taste. I have faced the fact that most of my taste is fairly low brow anyway, so I don't mind.

Welcome to Night Vale The best I can do here is copy their own description, because this show is pretty hard to describe.

"WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE is a twice-monthly podcast in the style of community updates for the small desert town of Night Vale, featuring local weather, news, announcements from the Sheriff's Secret Police, mysterious lights in the night sky, dark hooded figures with unknowable powers, and cultural events.

Turn on your radio and hide."

I adore this podcast. It fills my spooky heart with such joy.

This American Life and RadioLab are both public radio shows that feature a range of subjects. Radiolab's themes tend more science based. Both of these show are examples of public radio at it's very best, taking issues we think we know and introducing complexity and new viewpoints.

99% Invisible is a very short podcast about design. And because it's about design, it's about everything. I love it.

Edited to add- I am no longer a paying member to This Week in Blackness due to issues with fat shaming that they seem unwilling to address.