Bourbon Cowboy

The adventures of an urbane bar-hopping transplant to New York.

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Location: New York, New York, United States

I'm a storyteller in the New York area who is a regular on NPR's "This American Life" and at shows around the city. Moved to New York in 2006 and am working on selling a memoir of my years as a greeting card writer, and (as a personal, noncommercial obsession) a nonfiction book called "How to Love God Without Being a Jerk." My agent is Adam Chromy at Artists and Artisans. If you came here after hearing about my book on "This American Life" and Googling my name, the "How to Love God" book itself isn't in print yet, and may not even see print in its current form (I'm focusing on humorous memoir), but here's a sample I've posted in case you're curious anyway: Sample How To Love God Introduction, Pt. 1 of 3. Or just look through the archives for September 18, 2007.) The book you should be expecting is the greeting card book, about which more information is pending. Keep checking back!

Friday, February 29, 2008

Podcast Recommendations

This week's This American Life is one of my all-time favorites, on the theme of "Testosterone." If you have a chance and haven't heard it, do yourself a favor. It'll completely change the way you think of testosterone and what it does--and your jaw will drop at least four times as you listen. (The last segment is filler, but the first three are all top-notch.)

And while you're on iTunes, go--immediately--to WNYC's RadioLab, and download their latest episode titled "Laughter." They not only talk very intriguingly about why we laugh and what laughter means, but the episode ends with a flat-out amazing discussion of a "laughter epidemic" that struck Kinshasa in 1962 and affected hundreds of people. RadioLab is the most entertaining science program I've ever come across, and this is a perfect example of the kind of thing they do best: raising weird questions you didn't even know were questions in the first place.

4 Comments:

Blogger Karen said...

Yes! I love listening to the RadioLab podcast. It's a great example of how science can be fun and interesting and hip all at the same time. There should be educators lining up to listen to it and see what principles they can emulate in teaching.

3/01/2008 1:21 PM  
Blogger Unknown said...

Link?

3/01/2008 6:39 PM  
Blogger Laura Rebecca said...

I thought the Testosterone show was very interesting, and my jaw DID drop at least four times, though what stuck with me the longest was a statement in Act II: men, walking alone down the street, intentionally swerve toward (or even into) each other as some sort of aggressive statement. I'm gobsmacked at the idea of adult men doing this to each other; I mean, really? Does that really happen?

3/02/2008 6:54 PM  
Blogger Cowboy Dave Dickerson said...

Aggressive swerving? Not outside of a high school locker room, or possibly a crowded bar where there are women watching. So I don't know where he was getting that. I wouldn't let that trouble you too much. I was mostly horrified by his increased interest in science. Oy! And I have to say, it was nice to think that there might be some biochemical reason that makes it so damn hard for even a sensitive guy like me to cry, even when I know it would be healthy. I swear it's like pulling teeth.

3/02/2008 9:20 PM  

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