I am sure someone is going to scream if there is one more “BOOKS ON TAPE!” suggestion… but I wanted to chime in that they finally now have Books on CD. We got one from the local library for our last driving trip. They now have the book divided into continuous tracks, 3 minutes each. That way if you decided to eject the CD before you’re done, you can find where you left off, not having to repeat more than 3 minutes of it.
My father in law swears by the “Great Lectures” series. There is some company who hires some of the best lecturers (generally college professors) from across the country to deliver their best lectures on key topics. They’re good, though expensive. Great way to ge the skinny on anything from philosophy to opera to history. The cassettes are a lot cheaper than the videos, though.
You might also dig for a great old thread here on “What do you do during boring meetings?” I was amazed at what Dopers do to pass the time mentally. Some of those suggestions would work for a drive.
Also, if your local library doesn’t have a good selection or you can’t get to it during regular hours, Cracker Barrel restaurants now rent some audiobooks. You buy the thing, and then can return them to any Cracker Barrel to get a refund minus a $3 a week rental fee. If you decide to not return it, no big deal, you already bought it.
When I had a long commute, I found that I have a hard time driving and listening to books on tape because if they were good, I would get very caught up in the story and miss my exit and all sorts of other driving nightmares.
So, I started picking one day each week and tried to learn more about different genres of music. I would borrow from friends, the library, or buy on sale anything that had titles like “Greatest Jazz Hits 1930-1940.” I’m sure many of the jazz fans on the SMDB would be shocked and horrified to see what these collections were claiming to be “the greatest hits,” but for someone who really had NO idea about jazz, it was good enough to get me started. I did a few jazz, some opera, some classical. That sort of thing.
You can also rent books on tape online. My mom and I listened to the first three Harry Potter books on our roadtrip last year. The narrator is incredible.
3 hours? THREE HOURS! That’s just insane, Sappo, but I guess it explains your handle (okay, so that’s a mean-spirited joke, I apologize in advance)
Me, I would have skipped the brand new car and gone for an apartment closer to work if the pay was that lousy.
As for suggestions-- how 'bout singing and working on your voice? It can’t hurt, especially if you’re thinking of maybe moving into radio or TV (where the pay is better).
Yeah, us evil publishing types really screw you cub reporters don’t we?
heh heh heh
Well, I do 3 hours total commute each day (you are NOT alone!) and I swear by NPR right now. Just listening to Morning Edition or All Things Considered gives me ideas for threads right here on this fabulous board. Not that I execute them, but there’s always something I find provocative enough that it would make a decent Great Debate.
Mrs Chance, God help me, likes C&W these days. The drive home (when we commute together) ain’t anywhere NEAR as much fun.
Me, I just keep my microcassette recorder handy for little story snippets that tend to pop into my head. My fellow drivers probably think I’m a nut talking to the voices in my head, but, hey, it beats the radio.
handy would not use a microcassette recorder as he cannot hear them.
For $299 you can get a video system for your car. I saw one on the net yesterday. You can watch videos when you are driving & it hooks up to your cig lighter. Is this safe? Hmmmm.
The local car stereo shop has a Car Video System for about a thousand dollars but I have no idea what it is.
Hi Sappo! I am also a reporter who, in the past, has had very long commutes too! Small world.
I am a musically oriented person, so I play a lot of CDs when I drive (mostly because the radio stations around me are unimaginative and sucky). Singing along at the top of my lungs, of course.
My best suggestion would be, flip your radio over to AM, and see if you can get into talk radio. Do you like sports? Some of the smarter sports talk radio shows on AM are entertaining for an hour or so. Politics? You won’t have any trouble finding that.
About the only one I’ve found that makes me want to drive an icepick through my eye is Dr. Laura.
It’s lighter than a book on tape, but still a little intellectually stimulating. Like browsing through a magazine.
You can always play ‘The Alphabet Game’ with signs and license plates, but that would be a little strange for an adult who is by himself.
[sub]You registered in May 1999, and you have 32 posts? Not much to say? Do you have remarkable restraint? Were you in a Turkish prison?[/sub]
(okay, so that’s a mean-spirited joke, I apologize in advance)
