Going Domestic

I'll take "Why Women Love Vampires" for $200, Alex

I think that podcasts are the second coolest invention, after The Internet, in my lifetime thus far. I love podcasts. I listen to the CBC news, the Vinyl Cafe, podcasts about knitting, podcasts about parenting, but the new little gem I am enamoured with is this one: Stuff Mom Never Told You. The two hosts chat for about 20 minutes per podcast about topics that I might not learn about anywhere else, like whether or not bras serve any practical purpose, how eary or hard it is to fail a gender test, why women's clothing sizes are so darned random, and ought cheerleading be considered a sport. The podcasts are quite delightful, and make my regular-ish morning runs pass by a lot quicker.

the internet is so cool

Something really cool happened today. I was checking my email account and trying to update my podcasts (it's my duty as a Canadian to support the CBC from afar), when a little box popped up on my computer and the computer speakers began to emit a jingle.

What was going on? Why, someone was calling me via Skype! Like every other ex-pat I know here, Chris and I have Skype on our computer. My use has been sporadic; I've used it a bit to call my folks on their land-lines, and Skype is the only way that we can access toll-free numbers in North America, which isn't very often. But no one had ever called me via Skype before, so I was totally unprepared and had to madly rummage through my desk drawer to find my headset!

Headset plugged in, I chatted with Chris's sister and her husband for just over fifteen minutes. A free long-distance call can't be beat, of course, but we were all amazed at how clear the connection was! Much better than what I've had calling land-lines via Skype. It was a cool way to start my morning ...