I got my new headphones today. Straight out of the package, I was pretty impressed. They feel sturdy, the case they come in is nice and hard without being too bulky, and will be nice for carrying them around in, and it even came with a AAA battery - an Engergizer, at that. How many times do you see the words “batteries not included” on a package these days? And when one is included, it’s usually an el-cheapo battery that drains before you even turn on whatever it is you’re turning on. In some ways, I like them better than the Bose headphones - they’re a bit smaller and fit my head better (though I have small ears and a small head, so that could be bad for someone with, say, a regular-sized head and/or ears), the cable is detachable, so I can remove the cable and use them for just the noise-cancelling feature if I want. The other nice thing is that, unlike the Bose, these work for audio without having to turn on the noise-cancelling feature, so even if the battery is dead, they’re still functional headphones. The Bose wins out on noise-cancelling functionality, though - these Audio-Technica ones don’t cancel out background noise quite as well, and the “hiss” that they all put out is far more noticeable on these compared to the Bose ones. The ultimate verdict after 30 minutes is that the sound quality is really great (not nociably different from the Bose), and they’re still comfortable to wear. So, for 1/3 of the cost of the Bose ones, I’m happy with my purchase. At least for now. Ask me again after I’ve used them for more than half an hour.

So what have I been listening to as I test these babies out? The new Paul McCartney album, Memory Almost Full. I really liked the single, “Dance Tonight” (you’ve likely heard part of it on one of the new iTunes/iPod ads, if not on the radio). The rest of the album is… meh. It’s nothing particularly memorable. It may grow on me - albums have a habit of doing that where my listening habits are concerned. We’ll see. As far as new albums from old artists go, though, I have to say I far prefer the new one from Cat Stevens, An Other Cup.

I missed having my headphones today at work. I’m quite attached to my internet radio station, WXPN, an NPR station out of Philadephia, funded by the University of Pennsylvania. They play the best mix of music I’ve ever heard on a radio station - modern rock, classic rock, the occasional classical piece, jazz, etc. Check out their playlist for an example of what I mean. It reminds me of what Dad says radio like to be like “back in the day,” when a station wasn’t limited to one narrowly-defined genre.

And what can I say? I’m an NRP junkie. I’m actually having a difficult time right now. For the first time in my life, I feel like I’m finally entering a place where I will soon be financially stable, with money to put away in savings. I’d really like to make a donation to NPR. But here’s my problem - do I donate to WUNC, my local NPR station, which I listen to on my drive to and from work, or to WXPN, the station I listen to when I’m at work? Or do I split up what I’m willing to contribute and give each half? I suppose as far as problems go, this isn’t a terrible one to have.

I’ve always been an NPR junkie. My senior year of high school, my AP Gov teacher, Mrs. Bailey, wanted all of us to be as much of an NPR junkie as she was. Monday mornings we’d have short class discussions about what happened on that weekend’s edition of A Prairie Home Companion before we got down to work, and she’d occasionally slip in a bonus question on quizzes and tests about what happened on NPR during the last week. Very few of us actually ever got those points, but I think those of us who did were her secret favorites. Whenever I listen to Car Talk, I immediately think of my dad and my Uncle Jerry (it’s so totally they’re type of humor, to the T), and I have a secret girl-crush on Tess Vigeland.

Okay, Tess Vigeland deserves her own paragraph, because this girl-crush has been going on for a long time. My senior year of college, I tutored for a family that lived on the other side of Birmingham, and my commute down to their house almost always coincided with the airing of Marketplace. I cherished those thirty minutes or so, not because I have any great interest in the state of our economy or am interested in listening to stories about money issues. No, I love listening to Tess Vigeland. Her voice is… capturing. And her style of speech is casual and bouncy without sounding unprofessional. I get giddy whenever I hear her come on the air. I fell out of listening to her when I moved to NC, mainly because I wasn’t driving anywhere during the week anymore. However, now that I’m driving again these days, I catch her every now and then, and she still manages to capture my full attention whenever she comes on. Have you ever listened to her? Her voice is mesmerizing. I have no idea what she looks like, and I have no desire to find out. I’m sure she wouldn’t look a thing like what I imagine she does, and seeing a real picture of her would, I’m sure, shatter the illusion just a little.

So, that’s my story for tonight. I’m an NPR junkie, and I’m in love with Tess Vigeland. And on that note, I think it’s time to go and do some cleaning. Fun fun. (Kids, whenever you say to yourself, “Life will be so much better when I’m an adult and I can do whatever I want,” don’t kid yourselves - adults don’t get to do what they want any more than you do.)