This week we're talking the love lives of famous poets and writers, including Sappho, Shakespeare, Lord Byron, Edgar Allen Poe, Oscar Wilde, Virginia Woolf, Walt Whitman, Allen Ginsberg, Audre Lorde, James Baldwin, and Sylvia Plath. Hear salacious stories, enjoy engrossing excerpts, and learn about the torrid affairs behind the quivering pens of your favorite wordsmiths!

This week we're talking about the history of dating, courtship, matchmaking, marriage, and the many ways that couples get together. From the earliest marriages to the first personal ads, to online dating scandals, you'll like this one so much that you might just fall in love and propose to this episode!

We're welcoming the year of the Water Tiger! This week we're talking about the history and fun traditions of Chinese New Year. Learn about the symbolism of fireworks, dragon dances and red envelopes, take a tour of the Chinese zodiac, and get psyched for a holiday that feels like a mix of the west's Christmas, Hanukkah and Valentine's Day all rolled into a two-week long party!

This week we're talking about the stock market and the history of financial bubbles, scandals and crashes, from the Dutch East India Company to GameStop and AMC.

We talk about eating well, the history of nutritional science, the food pyramid, and how to successfully improve you diet by eating more healthy foods and avoiding "low fat" gimmicks.

This week we're tackling our new year's resolutions, discussing the history of exercise and answering listener questions about fitness.

This week we're talking about Christmas traditions from around the world - from the Yule Cat and Krampus to Japan's love of Christmas fried chicken.

This week we're talking about the history of Christmas. How pagan solstice celebrations and the bacchanalia of Saturnalia became Christ's Mass and the celebration of Jesus's Birthday.

This week we're talking about the history and culture of coffee, from Ethiopian goat herders to Starbucks baristas.

This week we're live from the Big Island, talking about the history and culture of Hawaii. From Captain Cook and Kamehameha to surfing and aloha Fridays, the facts in this episode enough to totally get you lei'd.