A wonderful thing happened in my life this past weekend: our TV broke. Now, Drew didn’t think that was such a wonderful thing, and I’ll admit, I was bummed to miss my guilty pleasure, “The Bachelor,” on Monday night (though I caught it on Hulu the next evening), but being without a TV was one of the best things to happen to me in awhile. Working from home, I often turn the television on just to have some mindless background noise. This was especially true when I was writing for The Frisky and would find inspiration for posts in shows like “The View.” I am happy those days are behind me.
Anyway, our TV broke and so instead of tuning in to crappy shows for background entertainment/work diversions, I turned to a couple of long-lost loves: the radio and podcasts. This week, I got reacquainted with NPR, The Moth, and a relatively new favorite: StoryCorps podcasts. For those who are unfamiliar, StoryCorps is an independent nonprofit that records and shares stories from everyday people like you and me. On its website, it says: “The heart of StoryCorps is the conversation between two people who are important to each other: a son asking his mother about her childhood, an immigrant telling his friend about coming to America, or a couple reminiscing on their 50th wedding anniversary. By helping people to connect, and to talk about the questions that matter, the StoryCorps experience is powerful and sometimes even life-changing.”
The experience is indeed powerful, as the above video illustrates. The story of Annie and Danny, which is one of a handful of stories to be animated, has been floating around the web for a while, but it’s so powerful, it worth showing again, especially in this, the month of love. Warning: if you haven’t yet seen it, you may want to wait until you have some privacy and a box of Kleenex; this one’s a tearjerker.
Oh, and we did end up replacing our broken TV on Wednesday. I still haven’t turned it on.
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Diana February 4, 2011, 4:38 pm
the story about danny and annie made me cry!!!! i love that that kind of love still exists! they’re so sweet!
callmehobo February 4, 2011, 5:51 pm
So I saw this a few months ago and bawled like a baby.
The storycorps is still collecting stories; You can schedule an interview with one in a city near you, if you check out their website…
Wendy February 4, 2011, 7:44 pm
I think that would be a wonderful Valentine’s Day activity, actually.
callmehobo February 5, 2011, 4:19 pm
You’re in luck, Wendy!
I’m pretty sure that there is a booth in NYC that I think is open indefinitely!
Amber February 4, 2011, 5:58 pm
I saw this a few months ago too. It made me cry so much I’m not sure I’m ready to rewatch. A good reminder of what true love is though!
Maracuya February 4, 2011, 6:51 pm
Aww, I cried so hard! So beautiful.
silvii February 4, 2011, 7:03 pm
Thanks goodness I’m not wearing any makeup. Stuff like this gets to me – in life stories and movies, all the time.
TaraMonster February 4, 2011, 9:23 pm
Tear jerker is an understatement. I’m STILL crying.
abby February 4, 2011, 9:36 pm
I just looked this up again yesterday! My grandma died this week, and I was talking with a friend about how my grandparents had been married for 67 years. 67 years!!! I said that I want to love someone that much someday, and it made me think of this story, so I had to look it up and send it to him. Made me cry all over again.