We tell stories
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about words, and about the way we tell stories. Today, I wanted to share some of the things that have been making me think.
I started listening to
Radiolab as a way to pass
the time while I walk the dog, because
he
needs a lot of walking,
and now I listen because I’m crazy for it. It’s part science,
part philosophy, and part sound editing wizardry, but mostly,
it’s good storytelling. Jad Abumrad and Robert Krulwich, its
hosts, spin the kind of stories that lure you away to somewhere
else, and when you drop back into yourself, you realize that
you’ve been staring into space, grinning like a dope, through
the entire show.
I’m particularly fond of
Animal Minds,
Words,
Oops, the
love story of Carl Sagan and Ann Druyan that begins at
approximately 14:45 of
This Is Your Brain on Love, and
Musical Language. If you’re short on time, start with this last, and listen to
only the first five minutes. I was so tickled by it, and
tickled really is the
word to use, that I laughed out loud on the sidewalk in front of
a stranger’s house, me and the dog and some crows.
There’s also a video that goes with
Words, and
after you listen, you should
watch it. They go together so well.
The video made me think of my friend
Brian’s blog. Brian
is a great observer of everyday life, and he records those
observations in photographs, which he then stitches together in
a way that, whether he means to or not, quietly tells a story.
If you don’t already know his work, you might start
here. It’s a story I could spend a lot of time in.
Have a great day.