I'm Natalie Moore. I fell in love with soap operas when I was just five years old, and I still

watch them. Their television's longest scripted series and have zero reruns. Now let me tell you,

soap operas aren't just some silly art form. They are significant. In this season of making,

Stories Without End from WBEZ Chicago.

Join me as I share how the genre began, their social impact, and why these stories endure.

Listen wherever you get your podcast.

Hello, you're listening to Nerdette from WBEZ in Chicago.

I'm Greta Johnson.

And I'm Trisha Bobita.

This week, Alexandra Petri, a very punny blogger with The Washington Post. She's got a book out called A Field Guide to Awkward Silences, which is all about how fun it is to put yourself in horribly awkward situations, which you can completely empathize with, right, Tricia?

Oh, yeah, I kind of love that.

We talk with Alexandra about puns and being awkward,

and what are those word thingies that you guys got really excited about together?

It's a literary device known as the Zygma.

Okay, good. We'll talk about those too.

That's Alexandra Petri, plus a beautiful Harry Potter-related nerd confession and some light summary homework.

All that and more this week on Nerdette.

Because everybody's a little nerdy about something.

Make it snappy, nerd.

Nerds!

Nerd!

You're listening to Nerdette.

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