Mary Harris here, working on what you’ll be listening to this coming week.

We’re excited that the show is headed to Detroit and WDET next week, where Celeste will host on Thursday and Friday. While we’re in town, we’ll be talking about what Detroiters are buzzing about. If you’re one of our Detroit listeners, we’re asking you to write to us and let us know what you love about your city – and what we should talk about while we’re in town.

On to the show!

MONDAY, APRIL 26^TH: World Bank and IMF meetings will be ending over the weekend. On Monday, President Obama opens global summit on global entrepreneurship and Muslim communities. World Series championship Yankees at the White House. Opening night of August Wilson’s “Fences” on Broadway; Denzel Washington stars.

• NEW AMERICAN FAMILY: Around the office, we’ve been referring to Carey Goldberg, Beth Jones, and Pamela Ferdinand’s new book as “The Sisterhood of the Traveling Sperm”, but its actual title is Three Wishes. Producer Kristen Meinzer couldn’t put it down. (It’s the true story of Carey Goldberg’s decision to get pregnant on her own. She purchases her own vial of sperm…and then meets the man of her dreams [very “The Back-up Plan”]. So she passes the magical vial on to her friend Beth…and the same thing happens. Beth passes the sperm on to Pamela…and…you get the idea. And, yes, this really happened.) The story seemed to be a very modern American tale of what family really means these days, and that’s why all three women will join the show with us.
• YOU’RE INVITED TO THE TEA PARTY: You may have seen A New American Tea Party’s John O’Hara on The Daily Show this past week. We did, too, and we wanted to ask him a bit more about what he finds so inspiring in the Tea Party’s principles – and what he thinks the future of the movement is.

TUESDAY, APRIL 27^TH: Goldman Sachs executives scheduled to testify in Washington. House committee hosts hearing on federal mine safety laws. 1-year Anniversary of Arlen Spector becoming a Democrat. “Enron” the play opens on Broadway. New “Hole” album released.

• AROUND THE WATERCOOLER: Every Tuesday we talk about workplace issues, and we’re still weighing what we’ll discuss on this week. One thought: Gay activists are buzzing about a man who claims he was fired for being “too gay” at work. We’ve asked a few of our workplace regulars to give us an update on what it means to be gay at work – is there a “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy towards gay employees? Do gay workers have any legal protections? (The surprising answer is not always.) We’re hoping David Hill can join, too. He was actually fired for being gay last year. We’re also intrigued by the new Pew research showing that millenials don’t value their work ethic in the same way as older generations. Does it make them lazy? Or are they just thinking outside of the box?
• THE RESET BUTTON: Richard Florida made a name for himself pre-financial collapse talking about the rise of the “creative class.” Now he has a new book, called The Great Reset; it argues that our nation is changing fundamentally post-recession – becoming a nation of renters vs. owners. But Florida primarily believes that recession is the mother of invention. We’ll talk about rising from the ashes of the housing bust.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 28^TH: US interest rate decision. Supreme Court hears interesting first amendment case: in 2009, Protect Marriage Washington collected 138,000 signatures from “traditional marriage” supporters seeking to keep gay couples from having domestic partnership benefits; this fall, advocacy groups announced they would “out” the petition signers. Protect Marriage Washington wants to keep the signers’ information private. 5^th Anniversary of Iraq’s first democratically-elected government. UN Security Council debates Haiti. People Magazine issues “Most Beautiful People” list. Jay Leno turns 60.

• HOW DO YOU LIKE YOUR PEANUT BUTTER? When we asked our listeners to tell us their favorite grilled cheese recipes back in September, our comments went crazy. Now we’re taking on another classic: Peanut Butter and Jelly. Former Takeaway contributor Mark Garrison and his friend Dan Pashman have been investigating ways to remake PB&J over at their blog The Sporkful. So we’ve asked them to join us. With picnic season upon us: how can we update this classic sandwich? What can we replace the jelly with? We’re hoping to host an expert judge who can tell us what makes a perfect peanut butter sandwich.
• BAILING YOURSELF OUT: We continue our DIY Bailout series. This week, Beth Kobliner talks about whether parents should be saving for college…at all. That’s right: whether you should save for college AT ALL. The answer will surprise you, and might change how you think of that 529K.

THURSDAY, APRIL 29^TH: CELESTE IN DETROIT. Internal peace jirga convened in Afghanistan. Tarmac rule comes into effect, putting three hour limit on the amount of time that airlines can hold passengers in pre-takeoff limbo.

• GETTING SCHOOLED: Arne Duncan has called Detroit “ground zero” for education in the US. Since we’ll be broadcasting from there on Thursday, the schools’ Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb will join us in the studio. He’s embroiled in a bitter fight over Detroit’s future – he’s said he’ll close more than 40 city schools. But the school board says such drastic action is illegal.
• DETROIT RISING? What makes Detroit great? We’ll be talking about the past and future of the city – why creative types left the city – and why they may be returning – with Jeffrey Eugenides. Eugenides is the author of Middlesex and The Virgin Suicides, both set in his native Detroit. (And if you haven’t read Middlesex, seriously, you should.)

FRIDAY, APRIL 30^TH : CELESTE IN DETROIT. Advance GDP data for the first quarter of 2010 is released. Extended deadline to raise $12.5m to save iconic “Hollywood” sign. 35^th Anniversary of last US troops leaving Vietnam as Saigan falls to North Vietnamese.

• OFF TO THE RACES: As part of our Detroit coverage, we’ll talk to Luke Song, milliner to the stars. Best known for the hat worn by Aretha Franklin at the inauguration, he is headed to the Kentucky Derby, and will tell us what makes a good headpiece...
• OFF THE BOOKSHELF: Last year, Patrik Henry Bass told us about the rise of the black nerd. This week, he’ll explain how black men are rewriting the story of the black family this spring – and encourage all of us to pick up some exciting releases: The Other Wes Moore, A Game of Character, and Losing My Cool.

OVER THE WEEKEND: May Day. Kentucky Derby. President Obama attends the WH Correspondents’ Association annual dinner. He also delivers commencement address at University of Michigan.