On Monday’s podcast, Sarah and I talked about the Opium Wars. We realized we’d been on Western streak, so we’re branching out.

To understand the First and Second Opium Wars (1839-1842 and 1856-1860), you have to have a little background. The British had been trying to open up the Chinese market for years, to no avail. The Chinese were uninterested in the goods the British had to offer. The British, however, were importing tons of tea, along with silk, candy, spices and porcelain. This created a trade imbalance — lots of imports for the British, no exports. But they finally discovered something the Chinese did want: opium.

Wednesday’s podcast was about the first Thanksgiving.

Did your Thanksgiving dinner involve a lovely roasted swan? Perhaps a dish of eel? A scrumptious eagle? No? Then your feast didn’t accurately reflect its origins!