I Couldn’t Throw It Out

Craving more Olympics? I Couldn't Throw It Out has staged its own world-class event: The Treasure Toss. In our first mini-episode, photographer and collage artist Joyce Seymore commits to the daring feat of throwing out an artwork and maybe one other possession. This is no easy feat, considering that Joyce has spent a lifetime saving just about everything, including a huge collection of art materials, books, shells, and more. The outcome is as tense as an Olympic snowboard half-pipe com...

Janny Scott explains how saving things helped her grieve – and preserve her connection with journalist Joseph Lelyveld --------------- When someone you love dies, the grieving process is different for each of us. But one thing is always the same: You've got to decide what to do with the things your loved one left behind. Janny Scott experienced this in January 2024 when Joseph Lelyveld, her partner of 19 years, died from complications of Parkinson's Disease. Joe had been a star at...

You heard how I smashed violins as kid (in a previous episode). Hear how I saved one as an adult. ----- These days, we all could use a story with a happy ending, right? Well, here's one that answers the question: What ever happened to a family heirloom I inherited from my father? When last we spoke of my father's treasured violin (previous episode: Listen up! A Violin Lesson with Strings Attached), I was headed off – once again – to learn how to play it. Did I find a way to make music that wo...

1991 flashback: Hear candid talk about female rappers, obscenity, sexism, and more with Salt-N-Pepa, 2025's newest members of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame ----------- When I interviewed Salt-N-Pepa for my 1992 book Break It Down, they were among the most successful rappers on the planet. One platinum album and another coming soon. Sell-out concerts around the world. But did I include them on my list of the top 5 hip-hop groups? Nope. Oops. That was a mistake. Now t...

The director and cast of the TV series Waack Girls (Amazon Prime) explain why saving stuff is so common in India, and around the world -------------- If you ever suspected that an obsession with saving things is a mostly American habit, here's proof that it ain't so. Sooni Taraporevala -- who wrote the screenplays for Salaam Bombay!, Mississippi Masala, The Namesake, Yeh Ballet, and other movies -- recently told me that she's been saving treasures in Mumbai, India since she was 5. Not only t...