Listening to History

One of the hardest parts of not being in school for me is not having a dedicated time and place for academic learning. I'm trying to start reading academic texts, but I've got a backlog of for-fun reading (as one does) that I'm trying to get through. Soon, I hope, I'll be all caught up and can check out GW's library.

Every day, though, for at least part of my commute, I've been listening to Dan Snow's History Hit podcast. I've listened to the oldest ones off and on since last Christmas, but I'm working through them quickly. Which is great because there are new ones all the time. If I every catch completely up, there are at least two other history-related podcasts that I can listen to (Art Detective and Histories of the Unexpected, if you're interested). 

Honestly, I didn't really understand the draw of podcasts until this year. Between this one and the political one I listen to (Hellbent, if you're interested), I feel more connected to communities outside of my physical location. And I can't say how important this is for me. Not only do I get to learn about historical events and places outside of my own interests (the Terracotta Army in China or most of Naval warfare), I get to hear historians, and the occasional non-historian, talking about what they love. Hearing someone talk about their passion is probably one of my top five interpersonal interactions.  (A few days after starting this post, I was listening to a episode with a couple other historians, Drs. Sam Willis and James Daybell, and I was so entertained and happy hearing them talk about what they are doing and why they are doing it.)

What I love may not be what I am currently employed in, but I hope it is someday. Because when passion and work meet, careers are born. And I know I will have to work extremely hard to get there, but I want to be the kind of academic I listen to on History Hit.

A final note is this short clip from one of the most recent episodes, which I've not actually listened to yet (because I'm a tad late to the party as it were), but it sums up a lot of what I find valuable in studying history.