We’ve all been there: the trip finally makes it out of the group chat, only to become a complete disaster. This week we tell the harrowing stories of two groups that know this pattern all too well: The Donner Party and The Real Housewives of New York City.

How did Lansford Hastings convince James Reed to travel a shortcut he himself had never tried? How did Ramona Singer convince Bethenny Frankel to do Turtle Time for 15 minutes? We’ll explore the terrifying series of events.

Plus: the trials and tribulations of our Hopital Summer.

This week, we tell you the stories of how two iconic foods came to be and the genius minds behind them. Back up against the wall, Chef Caesar Cardini invented the Caesar Salad during a devastatingly FOMO-inducing July Fourth weekend in Tijuana and gave girls everywhere a reason to believe in dinner. Girlboss Sarah Hamouda turned her pregnancy cravings into a global dessert sensation with Dubai Chocolate. Will it stand the test of time the way Caesar’s emergency salad has? We shall see.

Plus: we refuse to buy package insurance, Anneliese’s ex gets engaged (in JOGGERS), and the decades long Brussels sprout smear campaign.

This week we analyze the challenges of parenting in the public eye — especially when a famous parent messes up. We explore the wide range of public reactions to two infamous parenting mistakes: Michael Jackson holding his son Blanket over a balcony, and the drowning of influencer Emilie Kiser’s son Trigg.

The public outrage over both incidents was swift, and we analyze how social media has changed how this outrage plays out. We also consider the grace and leniency given to famous parents that would not necessarily be given to less fortunate parents or other caregivers.

Plus: our summer travels, an official journalistic report from the World Lumberjack Championships, and the great generational divide of being able to sew a button onto a shirt.

It’s witch hunting season! This week, for our annual Love Island analysis episode, we compare fan investigations of Love Island contestants to the Salem Witch Trials. What compels us as humans to seek out the worst in others and demand punishment? And how do these investigations spiral out of control so quickly?

We discuss the events of the Salem Witch Trials and ponder how such a tragic miscarriage of justice became American folklore, and ultimately made Salem a hotspot for modern day witchery. We also take a look at several cases of fan-investigated islanders and the range of consequences they have been subjected to, and the varying validity of these campaigns.

Plus: our summer camp experiences, Anneliese’s last day with the 10-year-old, and a Trader Joe’s employee find his calling.

On this episode, we explore two instances of faces losing their identity in the pursuit of perfection: Jennifer Grey’s infamous nose job and the ongoing epidemic of Instagram Face. As women appear to be striving to get closer and closer to everyone having the same perfect face, how does this take away from individual identity and beauty?

We look at Jennifer Grey’s career pre- and post-nose job (and how the Matthew Broderick vehicular manslaughter case is involved) and examine why many speculate that her new, conventionally attractive nose cost her her career. How have we seen this pattern repeated in the age of plastic surgery, fillers, and filters as we all increasingly live in the public eye?

Plus: our summer reading, grammatical pet peeves, and people who bend the rules of rock paper scissors.

This week we’re talking great escapes. Men backed into a corner and forced to break the rules to get out. Anneliese tells us about the 1962 escape from Alcatraz, and Ellie reminisces on the golden age of Bachelor Nation, when Colton jumped the fence.

Who are we rooting for? Where are these men now? How did they pull it off? We’ll get into all of it.

Plus: Ellie gets some unexpected mail, the stress of choosing a marker when coloring, and the curse of being named Sincere.

As any good self help book will tell you, “no” is a complete sentence. Today we tell the stories of two icons who said drew a boundary, said no, and walked away from the opportunity of a lifetime.

Philip Benizi was offered the chance to be literal Pope and he fled to a cave until the election was over to avoid the title. America’s Next Top Model contestant Natalie (maybe) made it to the semifinals of auditions only to determine that this path wasn’t right for her. Today, we celebrate their strength and knowledge of self and ponder how their actions shaped religious institutions and generations to come.

Plus: our reactions to the first half of the Knicks game that would become the greatest comeback in NBA finals history (we didn’t know, sorry for being negative), doing too much at Corporate Drag Bingo, and getting uninvited from Shrimp Fest 2024.

Every once in a while, a woman gives birth in a way that really makes people stop and stare. In 1978, that woman was Lesley Brown, who gave birth to the first baby conceived via IVF. In 2009, that woman was Nadya Suleman, also known as the Octomom, who gave birth to octuplets and became a media sensation.

Why did these births draw such intense public reaction? How did the media attention affect their children? And most importantly, was Octomom in it for the fame??

Plus: Jumping on the Knicks bandwagon, the importance of morally flawed Islanders, and how Beaker has stolen Erlenmeyer Flask’s clout for generations.