Podcasts and other stuff

I admit it.  I really really like my new iPhone.  I resisted getting one until my little flip phone died.  The only upgraded feature I thought I needed was easier texting ...... but Verizon determined that going "smart" was the only way.

I had my iPad Mini which I dearly love.  The screen is big enough to READ stuff on it.  My fingers fit on the keypad.  It slips into my purse.  I had all I needed.  Life was good.

But I didn't realize the advantages of a smart phone.  The two biggest differences between phones and tablets are, obviously, one is a phone and one isn't.  And one fits in my pocket and one doesn't.

Um......yeah.   So?

My preferred form of exercise has lapsed from running back to walking.  I don't know if this is a permanent change or not, but since my sixties arrived a few months ago, I am cutting myself a little more slack.  I LOVED what running did for me and the pounds that it kept off, and I LOVED the events and social life it brought me.  But I didn't LOVE running in and of itself...... except for those wonderful two or three minutes at the start of a leg in a relay when I felt like I owned the world.  Regular daily runs were hard, boring, and lonely.

My phone has become my walking partner.  It talks to me about any subject I choose.   My iPad talks to me too, but it insists I carry it in a purse or backpack.  Pockets are better.   So.... how do they talk?  Podcasts!  Podcasts are audio commentaries, discussions, articles, blogs, or whatever can be produced via sound.  Podcasts are almost as good as walking with an actual person.  Almost... maybe.

I am always perusing the net for new podcasts and my cache is full of favorite subjects like politics, religion, history, and my latest obsession -- camping and/or RVing.  I'm powered by my frustration at Liberals in our government, and educated on how composting toilets work and why we all need one.  I am uplifted by spiritual topics and motivated to go camping in Yosemite.  I also can download audio books like the one I just finished about backpacking the entire Appalachian Trail.  And is it just me, or does everyone marvel at how the sound automatically stops when I get a call and resumes (on its own!) after the call ends?

Another cool thing about my phone is that afterwards, it tells me, via a GPS, how far I walked w/o me having to instruct it that I'll want that info at some point later on.  It just does it whether I ask for it or not.  (How it differentiates between miles traveled on foot and miles traveled in a car, I don't know.  Please explain that to me, if you do.)

If you are unfamiliar with podcasts, you can find them somewhere in iTunes..... or look for this in your app store.

Add it to your existing apps and then start searching for whatever topic you want and subscribe.  They're all free.  Or if you're really savvy and clever and can speak without stumbling over your own tongue, you can start your own podcast, like my friends Heather and Josh did.  They fell in love with backpacking on our last hike together and decided to tell the world.  I happily await their weekly episodes each Tuesday.

Anyway, give it a try.  Go for a walk.  I recommend conquering some thigh-killing hills to offset that weight you picked up, like I did since I stopped running.  Don't forget your earbuds and your phone and burn some calories while you catch up on the latest sordid scandals in DC, or the ins and outs of installing solar panels on your RV.  You know you want to.