cutting out and listening

A long long time ago, in a galaxy before blogger I used to work in a science laboratory, and for several months I carried out experiments with involved weighing out minuscule amounts of the finest powder (usually dried ground leaves.....) you can possibly imagine, into tiny tinfoil cups which were then squished tight shut, weighed again and then put into tiny trays with a little well for each tiny parcel. The weighing scales were so impossibly accurate and thus incredibly sensitive that anyone walking nearby would cause havoc with the readings, and therefore the whole set up was in rather a nice cupboard. It was called a room but really it was a large cupboard. just me and the scales and my lifeline, Radio 4.

Sometimes people would try to rescue me from the cupboard, tempt me out with trips to get a cup of tea, but I would always have to say "can't come now, woman's hour is just starting" or "but it's book of the week time" or "if I come to coffee break I will never know what happens at the end of the afternoon play".

Why am I telling you this? you may well ask,  and the reason is that recently I have found myself cutting out tiny scraps of fabric, a task that allows for quiet contemplation and perhaps a little background listening.

Since having a houseful of children and the resulting chaos, I have found I am never in one room long enough to actually listen to proper conversation on the radio, or if I am sitting down sewing then the roaring (it's not quiet) of my machine deafens out the story, so the radio is more often set to a music channel.

right now however, I have just run out of teeny tiny leaves, and if I hurry I might catch the food program before the children get home from school.

what do listen to in the day? any recommendations?