This Is Love

Old color photograph of a young Black woman (Virginia Ali) standing at the front grill of Ben's Chili Bowl. She's holding a bun in one hand, and a hot dog in tongs in the other. There are hot dogs lined up cooking on the grill in front of her, and a sign behind her that reads "Hot Dog." She's wearing a white shirt and earrings and her hair is pulled back. She's looking at the camera and smiling.

Episode 117: Hot Dog!

Episode #117

2025-07-02 05:00:43

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An episode all about hot dogs and the people who love them.
Black and white photograph from an expedition on Antarctica in 1911. The photographer is standing within an ice cave and the photograph captures the cave entrance, where two men stand, and in the distance we see the ocean and a ship.

Episode 116: The Terra Nova

Episode #116

2025-06-18 05:00:19

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In 1910, a group of British men set off on an expedition to the South Pole. Over a hundred years later, in the journals and letters that survived, a writer discovered a love story.
A black and white photo of two people sitting at a table laughing. One is a man dressed in a suit, and the other person is a woman. On the wall behind them are posters for "Your next first lady president, Mrs. Yetta Bronstein." They appear to be working: there are papers scattered around the table as well as a coffee cup and some cake.

Episode 115: An American Original

Episode #115

2025-06-04 05:00:32

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In 1963, Jeanne and Alan Abel traveled to Washington, DC to picket in front of the White House. They said they were part of a campaign that wanted to put clothes on animals — including the first lady’s horse.
A photo of a 30 year old bear sent to Winey Bears Repair.

Episode 114: The Bear Repair

Episode #114

2025-05-21 05:00:16

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"That bear's been with them through everything.”
A photo of Terence McPherson and Shawnika Giger. They are standing outside, and Shawnika has her arm around Terence.

Episode 113: This Is Uncomfortable

Episode #113

2025-05-07 05:00:21

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When money makes falling in love uncomfortable.
A collage of four printed blind date columns side by side -- each with "Blind Date" in large pink text and a picture of a couple posing below.

Episode 112: And… Did You Kiss? Part 2

Episode #112

2025-04-23 05:00:43

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When The Guardian sends two strangers on a blind date, the last question they have to answer for the newspaper column is “Would you meet again?” We asked people how their dates went – and what happened next.
The digital template used by The Guardian newspaper for their "Blind Date" column.

Episode 111: And… Did You Kiss? Part 1

Episode #111

2025-04-09 05:00:03

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At The Guardian newspaper, there’s a person who has to find two complete strangers to send on a blind date every week. 
Color photograph of D'yan Forest on stage, in front of a microphone. She is laughing and playing her ukulele.

Episode 110: D’yan

Episode #110

2025-03-19 05:00:33

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About twenty years ago, D’yan Forest considered getting into stand-up comedy. “People told me, no, don’t go into comedy. Everybody is going to make fun of you. They’re gonna heckle you. You’re an old woman.” D’yan ignored them.
A photo of Patrick Bringley at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He is wearing a security guard's uniform - black suit, red tie and white shirt - and he's leaning against a railing.

Episode 109: The Security Guard

Episode #109

2025-03-05 05:00:50

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When his older brother died of cancer, Patrick Bringley quit his New York office job and got a new one at the Metropolitan Museum of Art—as a security guard. He stayed for 10 years.
Two men holding a baby, gazing down at him and feeding him a bottle.

Episode 108: On the Way to Dinner

Episode #108

2025-02-19 05:00:10

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On August 28th, 2000, Danny Stewart got on the subway to meet his boyfriend Pete Mercurio for dinner in New York City. As he was exiting the station, he noticed something on the ground. It looked like a baby doll wrapped in a shirt. And then he saw the doll's legs move.
A photo of Haley Woloshen and Cody Bryant standing on a mountain in front of an orange sunset. They are both smiling and have their arms around each other.

Episode 107: Nice to Meet You Again

Episode #107

2025-02-05 05:00:15

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When Cody Bryant suddenly stopped communicating with Haley Woloshen after weeks of hanging out, she assumed she was being ghosted. It was only later that she found out he’d forgotten about her entirely. 
An old color photograph of a couple standing on a porch under a clothesline. In front, a young Black man, Edgardo Griffth, smiles widely at the camera and holds a small frog in his hand. A young white woman, Heidi Ross, stands behind him with smiling eyes, arms wrapped around his waist.

Episode 106: Frog Call

Episode #106

2025-01-22 05:00:21

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The day Edgardo Griffith met Heidi Ross, he asked her if she’d like to come with him to look for frogs.
The first page of Goodnight Moon - an illustration of a room with green walls with two pictures hanging on the walls, a fireplace on one side of the room, and a window looking out at a starry night sky. A small bunny is dressed in pajamas tucked in bed. The floor is red with a brown circular rug and a small tiger rug next to the bed. There is a red balloon floating above the bunny, a small table with a lamp, and a night stand with a phone and a clock.

Episode 105: In the Great Green Room

Episode #105

2025-01-08 05:00:22

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Everything you didn’t know about Goodnight Moon, the book that’s put children to bed for generations — and the woman who wrote it. "She could write very well for young children because she remembered exactly what it was like to be one of them."
Photo collage of a beaver standing on its hind legs looking at fake christmas trees, another image of a cat wearing a bow sitting on someone’s lap, and a camel walking down the highway followed by a police van and other cars.

Episode 104: Beaver in the Christmas Aisle, Pig in the Pumpkins, Camel on the Run

Episode #104

2024-12-18 05:00:27

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Stories we love about animals really going for it.
A photo of a man's hand holding up a mango. In the background are dozens of boxes of more mangos.

Episode 103: The King of Fruit

Episode #103

2024-12-04 05:00:06

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One night in 2018, Ahmed Ali Akbar rented a car and drove two hours to the Detroit airport. He was picking up a package for his cousin – over a dozen boxes of a very special fruit.
A photograph of a page from the Voynich manuscript. Letters or symbols are scribbled across the page and towards the top of the page is an illustration of a group of small, nude women in what appears to be a pool of green water. Strange tubes connect to the pool.

Episode 102: The Manuscript

Episode #102

2024-11-20 05:00:39

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“After more than a hundred years of hard work from some of the greatest cryptological and linguistic minds on the planet, we still don’t quite know what this object is. There’s really nothing like it in the world.”