Love & Heartache: Listening List

This month Chicago PBClubber, Adela (that’s me!), made the selections. The listenings are lengthier than in the past because it’s a series. The podcast is called “Strangers,” which is part of the Radiotopia network. Strangers is hosted and produced by Lea Thau, who used to direct the Moth. Each episode features true stories about the people we meet, the connections we make, the kindnesses we encounter, and those frightful moments when we discover that WE aren’t even who we thought we were.

In the Love Hurts series, Producer Lea Thau investigates….wait for it….herself! She explores why she’s single, a task that most of us would NOT want to take on. It’s an honest (sometimes cringingly honest) look inward.

WARNING: Lea is an amazing and thoughtful host, but a lot of people find her voice hard to listen to. My suggestion: get over it. Her message and story will make you forget the slight annoyance you may experience when you hear her voice.

• Love Hurts: Lea goes back to guys who didn’t want to date her in recent years and asks them why. From ages 15 to 38 Lea was never single, but since her fiancé left her while she was pregnant, finding love again has been hard. Is she too old? Is she too broken from that last big heartbreak? Is she too much this or not enough that?
• Love Hurts 2: Lea continues her quest to discover why she’s been single for nearly four years. She interviews another guy who turned her down and tells stories of her past loves and present dates.
• Love Hurts 3: Lea seeks dating advise from 2 experts and lets it all hang out.
• Love Hurts 4: Lea talks to a guy she turned down
• Love Hurts – The Follow-Up: Lea received hundreds of messages in response to her raw, personal four-part series, Love Hurts. In this follow-up episode, she strings together the funny, poignant, and moving voice mails she received from listeners in response to the series and tries to make sense of this thing called love. She also gives an update on her most recent dating adventure.
• Love Hurts – One Year Later: Lea provides listeners with a follow-up about her quest for love this past year.