Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! - The World Cup, Trad Wives, and the Wedding of the Century

Episode Date: June 20, 2026

This week, Caro Claire Burke, the author of book of the summer "Yesteryear", joins panelists Karen Chee, Peter Grosz, and Shane O'NeillSee pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

From NPR in WBEZ Chicago, this is Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, the NPR News Quiz. I'm the guy so new here, I'm still looking for the bathroom code. I'm Alzo Slade, and here's your host at the Student Baker Theater at the Fine Arts Building in Chicago, Illinois, Peter Sago. Thank you. We've got a great show for you today. Later on, we're going to be talking to Caro Claire Burke, author of Yesteryear, the Book of the Summer. That's the one about the Tradwife influencer, who's mysterious. transported back into the real olden days of 1855 where, okay, spoiler alert, everything kind of sucks.

But you can take advantage of our modern era by picking up your phone and giving us a call. The number is 1-3-8-8-Wa-Wa-Wa-Wat. That's 1-8-8-2-4. Now let's welcome our first listener contestant. Hi, everyone, wait, wait, wait, don't tell me. Hi, this is Alicia Booker. I'm calling from Cincinnati, Ohio. I love Cincinnati, the Queen City. We've been there only once. I hope to go back. What do you do there? I am a high school social studies teacher. Oh my goodness.

That is a noble profession. How are the kids doing these days? They're doing pretty good. I mean, right now they're on summer break, so they're fantastic. That's great. Well, Alicia, welcome to our show. Let me introduce you to our panel this week. First up, it's the writer of the seriously pop culture newsletter for the Washington Post.

It's Shane O'Neill. Hello, Alyssa. How are you? Next, she's a comedian and an Emmy-nominated TV writer. It's Karen Chee. Hi. And finally, an actor and writer you can see in the two-man improv show Two Square at UCB, New York, and July 1st. It's Peter Gross.

Hello. So, Alicia, welcome to the show. You're going to play Whose Alzo this time? Alzo Slade is going to perform for you. Three quotations of this week's news. If you can correctly identify or explain just two of them, you'll win our prize. Any voice from our show you might choose for your voicemail. You ready to go?

You bet. Okay. Your first quote is a visitor from Australia, one of many people currently marveling. at America's splendors. I get free refills as many times as I want. Bring it on. That person, like many, had come to the United States for what big sporting event?

That would be the World Cup. Yes, the World Cup. Social media is filled with visiting soccer fans fascinated by America. They're posting about our wide grocery store aisles, gas stations, larger than their parliament buildings. It's really, I have to admit, it's kind of refreshing to see America through their eyes.

I feel proud now of how giant our trucks are and how many flavors of caffeinated beef jerky flavors we have. I'm just thrilled that people come here and like us. Yeah. I thought that they were going to either not come or come and just sort of be really upset with us. Well, to be fair, they like our snacks. They're not saying they like us. Yeah.

I mean, some people, they're praising ranch dressing. They've never had that before. Yes, that's right. Did you see, they were like, we got to bring ranch dressing to Italy. Have you seen that? I was like, I think Italy's fine. Yeah, don't. No, don't.

That sounds like what the Olive Garden is. Pretty much. Like, ranch dressing in Italy put together. It also sounds like if you bring a koala to another country, like an invasive species, all the food turns to ranch. Americans are the invasive species of the world. Exactly. Right.

The next time you go to Italy, you're going to order a lasagna, and it's going to be like rants dressing all over the place. Well, they're being impressed with us. The foreign fans are also really impressing Americans. One Boston bar owner. Boston. They're cheering for the word bar. And he says, and remember, this is Boston.

He said the Scottish fans there to see the Scottish national team play drink like no one he's ever seen. He said they literally drank all. the liquor he had in his bar. It is truly superhuman when a customer at your bar tells you its last call. And that was just like four Scottish guys.

It wasn't even like that. All right, very good, Alicia. Your next quote is about somebody planning their wedding. It would be an ERAs tour level production. That was an event producer commenting about how, who could pull off the wedding. She is reportedly planning to stage at Madison Square Garden.

That'd be none other than Taylor Swift. Who else? Of course, Taylor Swift. Ms. Swift has reportedly reserved Madison Square Garden for her upcoming wedding. Of course, when you think about it, how could anyone start their lives together without a 45-person urinal? I wonder if they allot seating based on how much she likes you. So you're like excited to be invited and then you're up in the nosebleeds. I mean, it is a little weird when you think about it. Apparently she's going to have a thousand guests, right? And if you could afford to have a thousand of your close friends come to your wedding,

why would you do it in one of the only places in the world that can host that many people and still look empty? Yeah. Wait, so it's going to be. 1,000 people in a place that holds 20,000. Exactly, right. So if you're in the nosebleeds, she really hates you. When you think about it, okay, Madison Square Garden, she's going to throw a party in Madison Square Garden.

Impressive. But anybody can rent Madison Square Garden if you have the cash. She's Taylor Swift. She could do it anywhere. She could have the first wedding in the straight of Hormuz. I hear that's open now. Yeah, well, if it's not. But we know that that costs $300 billion.

Yes, exactly. That's true. So, Alicia, your last quote is a text that was sent from a parent to their college-aged kid as the kid was going through a Taco Bell drive-thru. Are you okay? Why are you in an alley? So that parent is among the many, many parents who are using their phones to do what with their adult children? Oh, track their location?

Yes, exactly. Right. This week, NPR covered a rising trend in which parents are still tracking their adult children on their phones. They asked if it was healthy for parents to keep such a close watch when their kids are independent adults. Well, the independent adult children asked, Hey, Mom, can I have $25? I do the reverse, which is I track my parents, but they don't track me. Oh, really? Yeah. Wait, so tell me about this. What are you holding? hoping to like gain from this? Are you hoping to prevent them from doing something?

I'm preventing, I'm trying to prevent them from partying and doing hard drugs all the time. I will say, I have met at least I think your mother. Yes, you have. And she's lovely. So sweet. Even as you said that, I had this image of that scene in the movie aliens where he's looking at the tracker and it's like, oh my God, they're inside the walls. There are a lot of benefits to this for the kid.

And not even if you're lucky enough to have your drug dealer live right next. of the public library. I mean, it's weird for the kid, especially as they get older, because not only are you at risk of your mom texting you, are you at a strip club? You're also at risk of your dad texting you. Are you at flash dancers? Is Rebecca there? Or we're both at flash dancers.

He's pulling his phone and waving. Whoa. Alzo, how did Alicia do in our quiz? Lisa did fantastically well. Three out of three, perfect score. That's great, Alicia. Congratulations. Thank you so much for playing and enjoy your summer off. Thank you so much.

Bye. Take care. Bye-bye. All right, panel, now it is time for you to answer some questions about this week's news. Shane, a new study has proven scientifically what everybody has always just known. If you want French fries to taste better, just do what? Eat them. No. Add more salt? No.

Fry them harder. No. Get someone else to pay for them. No, no, it does involve someone else. Oh. Oh, eat them off someone else's place. Yes, steal them. Stolen French fries taste better. Subjects in this experiment were served French fries of their own and then as to compare the taste of fries

that they had taken from somebody else. And they said these stolen fries were crispier, saltier, and overall more enjoyable. And as for the best fries of all, just carjack somebody in the drive-thru. Wow, okay, so Seagulls must be so happy. Exactly right. That's why they do it.

That's why they do it. There's a gradation, right? This is true. First, your own fries, they taste fine. Fries someone gave to you taste better. That's true. Fries you stole from someone without their permission taste better than that,

and the tasty at fries, again, proven by science, are the product of, quote, high-risk covert taking. I feel this way, this is how I feel about money. Yeah, if you earn it, it's fine, but if you steal it, it's great. Yeah, especially high-risk, like a nice heist, good bank heist. That's how Europeans felt about Native American land here. Yeah. Oh, wow.

Yeah, Spain is fine, but have you seen the Americans? Yeah, my God. Have they tried this with other foods? Like fries are a particularly easily stolen food. So it has like a bisque, you know. You pick the hardest food to steal. It's like scooping discs. I'm just imagining like Tom Cruise being lowered from the ceiling and a cable with a spoon.

Lapping it up like a cat. No, the best way to steal a bisque is with a piece of bread. This is going to be a good way, though. if it was good for other foods, it would be a good way to get kids to eat vegetables. Be like, steal that broccoli off your brother's flavor. That's actually so delicious. I got what you want, what you need.

Coming up, our panel is take on our bluffed listener game. Find out why I said it like that after the break and call one AAA wait-wait-wait-wait-to-play. We'll be back in a minute with more of Wait-W-W-W-W-T-Tel me. From NPR. From NPR and WB-B-E-Z Chicago, this is Wait, Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. The NPR News Quiz. I'm Alzo Slade.

We're playing this week with Peter Gross, Karen Chee, and Shane O'Neill. And here again is your host at the Studio Breaker Theater in Chicago, Illinois, Peter Seigle. Thank you so much. Right now it's time for the Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Bluff the listener game.

Call 1-3-8 Wait-Wate to play any of our games on the air. Hi, you're on. Wait, Wait, Wait, Don't Tell me. Hi, this is Kevin from Plymouth, Massachusetts. Plymouth, Massachusetts. There at the stad of Cape Cod, what do you do there? I plot accessory dwelling units in people's backyards. Oh, you plot secondary dwelling units in people's backyards. That's exactly it.

I didn't understand. I thought you were saying something else with a thick Boston accent, and I couldn't understand. Do you build or do you plan? Both. That's really cool. That's really cool. Well, congratulations on that good work. Kevin, it's great to have you with us.

You're going to play our game in which you must try to tell truth from fiction. Alzo, what's Kevin's topic? Aha. Aha. Not just what Alzo said when he finally found out where we hide the good snacks. That, of course, was also the name of the 80s band, whose song Take On Me became a global hit back then. The band made the news this week, though, for a rather surprising reason. Our panelists are each going to tell you about it, pick the real one, and get the wait-waiter of your choice on your voicemail. You ready to play?

I'm ready. Okay. First up, it's Shane O'Neill. Remember the music video for AHA's biggest hit Take On Me? The one where a woman is pulled into a comic book, and the animation is somehow like really impressive and really, really bad at the same time? Well, that woman has a name, Buntie Bailey. And as of last week, Bunti Bailey has an only fan.

After several recent appearances at comic book conventions where she spent hours signing AHA Kisingles, Bunti realized that she still had a devoted and very socially awkward fan base. Bunti says that she's actually rather modest. So how does she take on the challenge of adult content? Well, every time things get a little spicy, she activates an AI filter that renders her

in the sketchy, animated style of the music video. It's a surprise when people subscribe, she said. But most of these super fans love it. I mean, these people are super, super weird. And for the few people who are disappointed, who cares? they'll be gone I'm sorry we have to we have to stop all our equipment just shattered

oh I can do it again oh no we got it the first louder they're singing in mind the model who starred is the heroine of the famous music video now on only fans where she uses that animated effect to keep things modest your next aha moment comes from Karen Chee

earlier this year after her beloved grandmother Peggy passed away, 28-year-old Madeline Michelson took on the sobering task of cleaning out her grandma's bedroom. Peggy had been a meticulous woman who'd served as treasurer in multiple clubs and kept records of her finances throughout her life. So when Michelson came across yet another three-ring binder, she assumed it to be some more boring tax documents. But she was wrong. Inside, she found something else. Pages and pages of obsessive details about her grandma's celebrity crushes, said Michelson lovingly, oh my God, grandma was a freak.

It's true, the innocuously plain binder was actually a handwritten log about men like George Clooney and Matthew McConaug, complete with carefully cut and pasted photos and facts, including their zodiac signs. But even more surprising, the man featured the most, 80s band AHA's frontman Morton Harkett, proving that no matter how old you are, you can always be a tween girl with questionable taste. Losing a loved one is difficult for so many reasons, including the fact that you wish you'd

ask more questions when they were alive. And this is definitely true for Michelson, who'd give anything to turn back time and ask, Grandma, what the hell? A woman finds her grandma's file of her favorite huddies and the huddest of them, the lead singer of AHA, your last story of an AHA anecdote. comes from Peter Gross. In the wake of their thrilling NBA championship this week, the New York Knicks revealed an unlikely secret to success.

The aha song, Hunting High and Low. The brooding track about the obsessive search for a lost love was their pre-game hype song. As their Stargarde, Jalen Brunson told the New York Post, most teams go with high-energy hip-hop, but my favorite music they get psyched to is moody Nordic pop. After they lost game three to the spurs, Brunson knew the team needed a downturnet

tempo kick in the pants. So he lit some aromatherapy candles, dimmed the lights, and played them the following lyrics. She sound asleep, and she's sweeter now than the wildest dreams. There's no end to the lengths I'll go, hunting high and low. I explained to Kat, OG, and the others that it works pretty well if you just replace she with NBA championship, said Brunson. It's a trick that worked really well in the 90s when the Chicago Bulls used to sing the Neil Diamond song. Sweet, NBA All right. So AHA popped up in our feeds this week for one of these reasons. Was it from Shane, the model from the video, now on Only Fan, showing off her animated self, from Karen Chee, a woman found that her grandmother's meticulous records of huddies praise the lead singer of AHA as the hottest of them all.

from Peter Gross turns out the secret to the Knicks Championship was adopting the little known aha ballad hunting high and low as their fight song. Goodness gracious. Goodness gracious indeed, sir. You know, I think just because Shane

hit the note so perfectly, I might have to go with Shane's story. You've chosen Shane's story. To bring you the correct answer, we spoke to an expert on the real one. There are points in time when people seek again the celebrity crushes they had in their adolescence. That was

Chapman University professor and crush researcher Dr. Rebecca Tokachinsky talking about Grandma's Secret Binder. Ah. I'm afraid you didn't win our game but you did earn a point for Shane

and I think he deserved one for that performance. And I will do a recording on your voicemail for free. I know. Singing that song, no doubt. I can be the tone even. I will say we've been talking about the song all week on our office and now here on stage and none of us but Shane had the guts to actually try to sing it.

So there you go. Congratulations. Thank you so much for calling and playing with us. Thank you so much. Bye-bye. And now the game we call Not My Job. Almost as soon as it was published, Carol Claire Burke's novel yesterday was declared the book of the summer. The story of a

tradwife influencer who has to survive after being transported mysteriously to the 1850s was an instant bestseller. It's already being developed into a movie starring Anne Hathaway. And we're so excited, Carol Claire Burke is joining us here on what is undoubtedly the NPR News Quiz of the summer. Carol Claire Burke, welcome to Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Thank you. Thank you for having you. It's a pleasure to talk to you I devoured your book this week, like millions of other people really enjoyed it. It's a thrill to talk to you.

I would summarize the book as Trad Wife Gets Tradd-Wife Gets Tradded. That's me. How would you do it? Oh, I think that you're one step ahead of me. I think that's a really, really nice summary. Mine's usually much longer. Oh, really? Because I imagined, and I have no idea how it actually happened,

that when you first came up with the idea, it was so simple. It was so simple. Like, what if you took one of these trad-wife information? influencers who always praises the old way of living, and you actually made her do that against her will. Yeah. Yeah, I mean, I'd like to sound smarter, but that's exactly what happened. It was that elevator pitch, and then it was the title yesteryear, and then I was kind of off to the races. Right. And were you, as you came up with that, I know you've been in media and writing about these people, but were you like a fan of these people, the real Tradwife influencers?

You know, I think that I was kind of obsessed with the videos and I didn't get why, because, like, I have a degree. I'm a working woman. I'm secular. And I was, like, obsessed with buying a honeybee oven. And I didn't understand why. I was like, what's happening to me? And so I think because of that, I really decided to start researching the visuals a little bit more because I kept seeing them online. I feel I should ask this. I hope for other people of like mine, what is a honeybee oven? Okay, I don't exactly know. But it's beautiful. It's great. You have to have one. Yes, if I can pay an artisanal carpenter to make me one from scratch, I think that my life will probably improve. Right. Now, speaking of your life improving, this is an extraordinary story of how your first novel became the subject of a bidding war between publishers and then a bidding war in Hollywood producers, even before it was published, which is pretty cool, I have to admit.

But I understand you had your share of rejection before that? I did, yes. I was rejected for about a decade prior to this. that. Not this particular book, but by other ideas and other book ideas and people are like, yeah, no. Yeah, exactly. I think that it's good to build a healthy skin when you're a writer, and I certainly did so by just applying to everything and always getting told no. Right. And have you had your limo driver take you around to all those offices you laugh at them? No, but I really enjoyed, I had a few screenshots where I was like, this person's going to know that this was their email. Oh, yeah, I saw that. You were showing on TV some of the rejection.

you got. Because I imagine when I was like, we don't want you here at Harper Collins, where I am the editor. But I mean, it must have been a little weird because this is every writer's dream. You know, you're sitting there, you're working in this novel and you're saying, oh my God, the Hollywood's going to go nuts for this, there'll be a bidding war. In your case

there was, how weird was that? Oh, it's psychotic. I still don't fully believe it. And I think that's probably a good thing. I think it's probably been a blessing for me that I don't really I've been very dissociative, so that's a problem for my future therapist. Yeah, I see. It's like,

future therapists, let's talk about the fact you're not in therapy. That's fascinating. I wouldn't have written this book if I was in therapy. I want to get to the book in a second, but your character, as I've said, the principal character, Natalie, is a tradwife influencer. The novel has the feel of reality. Like, this must be what it's like

to be a tradwife influencer or an influence. You're not one. How did you find out what their lives are like? Well, a lot of this book is about misinformation and so part of the without giving any spoilers away I didn't really take much time to try to embody any one Tradwife Influencer. It was more just getting into the mind of a woman Who doesn't want to be in the world anymore and that was kind of where I had a jumping off point from. Yeah, I know you had to say that it's not based on anyone for legal reasons, but really who is it? Once we get off this video just text me. Okay, okay, that's great. Because apparently there's like a lot of people saying,

oh, I think it's this person. Or I think there's like one trad wife influencer who's got a farm, just like Natalie does. And she's like, no, it's not me. It's really not me. And which I guess is also flattering that like people are like having to deny being your model. Yeah, I don't think anyone would would publicly come out and say, yes, I am Natalie. And so that's kind of a nice defensive reflex for my, for my book in that way. And I say this with all sympathy. And maybe I'm not going to ask you the question, but I'll ask how you're dealing with the question. Someone like you who has an amazingly successful, deservedly so, debut as a novelist or anything else, always gets asked, well, what are you going to do next?

Have you come up with a way of dealing with that question? Oh, that's not even the top five of the first question I get asked on this tour. Yeah, I mean, I'm writing. I'll keep writing long after people aren't reading my book. I mean, I've always been a writer, so yeah, yeah, I'm working on my next novel. Right. Is it also going to be about another internet subculture? Yeah, the working title is Yesteryear-2 Noddily in Space.

Yeah, I mean, I got it. Yeah. Well, Carol Clareberg, it is a pleasure to talk to you, and we have asked you here to play a game we're calling yesteryear meet Yearbook. Your hit novel is called Yesteryear. So we thought we'd ask you about yearbook. and answer two to three questions about those wonderful souvenirs of times we would rather not remember,

and you will win a prize for one of our listeners, the voice of anyone they might choose from our show. Alzo, who is author Carol Claire Burke playing for? Katrina Anderson of Manchester, Massachusetts. All right, you're ready to play? Sorry, Katrina, I'll try. Here's your first question. When he was nominated for the Supreme Court some years ago, the high school yearbook of Neil Gorsuch came under some scrutiny.

why, A, he was voted by his class Most Pompous B, he had jokingly listed himself as a member of the quote, Fascism Forever Club or C, someone had written in it Have a Great Summer and overturn Roe v. Wade. I'm going to go with B, Fascism Forever.

That's right. And I should say, A boy could dream. He was making a little joke As far as we know, there was... Hardly all. Yeah. There was no, as far as we know, there was no fascism forever club at Georgetown Prep in those years.

All right. Here's your next question. Despite the yearbook club's best efforts, and we know they work hard, sometimes errors slip through, as in which of these, which happened to a Rhode Island school this month, A, the cover of the yearbook featured a misspelled word, school. B, all of the photos in the yearbook were of the graduating class of 1926, or C, every single senior was listed as a member of the Model Railway Club. I'm going to go with A.

You're going to go with A. They misspelled the word school. You're right. So that's a, that's a bad typo, yes. But in future years, the 2026 yearbook from Johnston Senior High School will be quite valuable. You're doing very well here. Here's your last question. This spring, as well.

Also this spring, parents at an elementary school in Florida complained because their yearbook featured what? Was it A, a retiring cafeteria lady quoted as saying, no more shoveling slop to tots. Or B, a joke picture of the teachers all doing shots in the faculty lounge. Or C, a picture of a toddler flipping the bird. This is Florida. It is, yes. So all bets are off.

Yeah, this is Florida. So I'm going to go with, I'm going to go with, I'm going to go with B. You're going to go with B. You're going to go with B. A joke picture of the teachers all doing shots in the faculty lounge. I am sure that's happened. But this particular yearbook brought some criticism because it featured a picture of a toddler

with her middle finger raised. And here's the best part. It was part of an ad placed by that child's parents. You know, one of those congratulations, graduate ads. They thought it was cute. Alzo, how did Carol Burke do in our quiz? She did enough. Two out of three, which is good for me.

There you go. Carol Claire Burke's best-selling book is yesteryear. Carol Claire Burke, thank you so much for joining us. I'm Wait, Wait, Don't Tell him. It's a pleasure to talk to you. And thanks for the book. Take care. In just a minute, a handbag, 65 million years in the making.

That's in our listener Limerick Challenge. Call 1-T-A-W-A-W-W-W-W-T-Leg to join us on the air. We'll be back in a minute with more of Wait-W-W-W-E-D-L-L-Legh. From NPR. From NPR, N-P-R, and WBEZ Chicago, this is Wait, Wait, Wait-D-Tel. I'm Al-Slaid. We're playing this week with Peter Gross,

Shane, Shane O'Neill, and Karen Chee. And here again is your host at the Studebaker Theater in Chicago, Illinois, Peter Sago. Thank you, Alzo. Thank you so much, everybody. In just a minute, It's the game the anti-Limerick media doesn't want you to know about.

It's our listener Limerick Challenge. If you'd like to play, give us a call at 1-3-8-8-8-8-8-2-4. That's 1-8-8-24. Right now, panel, some more questions for you from the week's news. Shane, this week we learned about a new trend in travel, catering to people who want to spend their vacations doing what? Stay inside for their whole vacation. That's almost right.

It's usually an inside activity, but it's nice to do it sometimes by the pool if the light's good. Well, the last time they called the police. Wait, oh, reading? Yes, reading. Vacation packages for people who just want to read. Smart. Right. They're offering vacation packages built entirely around, quote, reading and relaxing.

And no one's happier about this trend than your introverted niece who's wondering, if she can just read in your office after dinner, if that's okay. These packages are aimed at those people who want to go on vacation, but they don't want to go parasailing. Thank you. They just want two hours to read by the pool without interruption. Forget sandals, we found the perfect resort for you. It's called spotty Wi-Fi. It's called chairs.

This is actually true. My friend Eric, he and his husband have been doing this for years, where they go on two vacations a year, the adventure vacation where they like go parasailing or whatever, and then the reading vacation where they just choose a body of water and read next to it. That sounds amazing. Do you think they're looking for a third?

Maybe, but I don't think it's you. I'm listening and I'm learning. Do you have a brother or cousin? This is a true story. I once took a book on vacation. Wow, congratulations. That's it. That's all he's wanted to say.

Was this one of the ones you wrote, Peter? No. No, sadly, nobody reads those. No, so I've been really, really distracted and it hadn't really been able to focus in the book, so I took it on vacation. And once I got on vacation, I opened it up to where I left off,

And I said, you know, I've been so spotty about my reading. I can't remember what's going on. I'll start again from the beginning. But vacation itself was so distracting that I actually didn't get as far in the book as I had on the first attempt. So by the end of the vacation, I had read minus 75 pages of a book, which I thought was impressive. And then when you told this story, your wife was like, I'm going on my own vacation next year. Well, yes, but that is nothing to do with that. Karen, a home organization expert, has found that the reason many people can't declutter their homes

is that they believe there is such a thing as nice, desirable what? Trash. Right. Nice garbage, nice trash, nice clutter. Oh, good thing. Nice garbage is defined for these purposes as trash that for some reason you think is just too nice to throw out even though you have no use for it. Like, you know, really pretty shopping bags from a nice store or, like, like,

empty glass sauce jars. They'll be useful for something. Or shoe boxes from a particularly expensive brand. You know, you look at that shoebox, you don't need it, but you think, man, there's going to be a day when we do need that shoebox. That hamster can't live forever. Peter, I'm gently panicking.

I've got so many nice little glass bottles. Yeah. And I didn't know what to use them for, but they're too nice to throw away, so I filled them with cereal. You can't throw that cereal out. Okay, hang on. Yeah. So you have a nice bobbed.

Like what came in the marginally? What kind of bottles were talking about? I think they were like juice bottles. But they're like glass. What kind of cereal are you fitting in that small little hole? Well, this is the problem is I bought cereal to put in the... Wait a minute. So you were just like...

So you were like, wait a minute. I've got these bottles. I have no use for them. I don't want to throw out. You know what you look really decorative. If I filled them with fruity pebbles, say... Listen, you joke. This is my life.

Well, wait a minute. Karen, what do you do with that gorgeous fruity pebbles box? Because you can't throw that away. Coming up, it's Lightning Fill in the blank, but first it's the game where you have to listen for the rhyme. If you'd like to play on air, call or leave a message. At 1-8-8-8-8-8-8-2-4. That's 1-88-9-24.

You can see us most weeks right here at the Studio Baker Theater in beautiful downtown Chicago. You can also catch us on the road. We'll be at the beautiful Riverside Theater in Milwaukee on July 9th. Thank you, Milwaukee and-or Riverside Theater fans. and at the Green Music Center in Sonoma, California on July 30th. Thank you. I like every place has its ambassadors.

That's wonderful. For tickets and information about all our live events, just go over to NPRPresents.org. Hi, your own, wait, wait, wait, don't tell me. Hey, Peter, this is Andrew, calling from Kansas City. Hey, Andrew, how are things in beautiful Kansas City, a place I love? They're great. We've got the World Cup here, so I'm busy.

Oh, I didn't realize that. I haven't been noticing the venues. teams are playing there and have you met any of their fans walking around Kansas City? I haven't met any yet, but I think we have Argentina has stayed here, England stayed here. There's two others that I don't. Algeria's here. So obviously you're a very invested fan. I really am.

Right, right. Well, welcome to the show, Andrew Alzo Slade right here is going to read you three news-related limericks, but he's going to stop before he finishes. He's going to leave out the last word or phrase. You have to fill that in. do that two times out of three, you will win our prize, the voice of anyone you might choose from our show for your voicemail. Are you ready to go? I'm ready. Here's your first limerick. Growing dinosaur skin needs no pretext, and this great leather bag is a keyflex. Our lab-grown

concoction is now up for auction. It's a purse with the skin from a... A T-Rex. Yes, a T-Rex. This week, a purse made from... the recreated skin of a Tyrannosaurus rex went up for auction in Europe. Why a T-Rex? Because nobody can name even one other dinosaur. And, by the way, if you're trying and failing, Barney does not count. Now, you might be thinking, wait, they found a living T-Rex and immediately killed it to make a purse.

That's balzy. No. What happened was they grew synthesized skin in a lab from some protein found in a T-Rex fossil, and then they took that synthesized skin and made a purse. purse. So if you've ever wondered, what was that the gift shop at Jurassic Park? Now you know. More like Jurassic Park Avenue. Am I right? Oh, my God. I actually read about this story ahead of time. Have you seen the purse? I have not myself seen the purse. Well, it looks like a bag made of T-Rex skin. And if I'm right, I think it sold for like a quarter of the asking price. I think they

priced it at like $600,000 and it sold for like $32,000. Wow. A steal. You have a word. All right, very good. Here is your next limerick. Though lost teeth and sharp falls make a shake. They are not what jolts most folks awake. What breaks nightly bliss is a slither and hiss. The world dreams of a poisonous... Snake. Snake, yes. According to search data, the thing people all over the world dream about most are snakes. What? And yes, people do Google. the meaning of their dreams, and it turns out, you look at the data, most often they Google, why do the penises I dream about all appear as snakes?

Turns out that this data is regionally sorted out. Most snake dreams happen in countries with high snake populations. Makes sense, right? You're scared of something. It's a source of tension, anxiety. It shows up in your dreams. That's why. I'm always dreaming about my biggest fear, sitting on something.

wet on the train. So, like, if you're in a country with a lot of snakes, everyone's dreaming of snakes. People most often have bad dreams about snakes. So if you go to the suburbs, everyone's having dreams about golden doodles. You'd expect, right? I did move to L.A. last year, and I have had nightmares about traffic. There you are, I see? Proving the thing. There you are.

Here is your last limerick, Andrew. Our dexterous side is quite deft, while the other one's weak and bereft, And yet when we walk, we will counter the clock. In a crowd, we all turn to the left. Yes, human beings, it turns out, all, every one of us has a natural tendency to turn left to move in a counterclockwise direction. And scientists have no idea why. When moving in crowds, people veer to the left. Then it's one step to the right.

Then you do the time warp again. So the Brits are right when they drive on that side of the street. They were more in touch with their feelings, which is the first time anybody has ever said that about British people. Also, how did Andrew do in our quiz? Three out of three. Great job, Andrew. Congratulations, Andrew. Well done. Thank you, Anna.

You've won our prize, the voicemail of your choice, and a T-Rex purse. No one else wanted it. Thank you for playing, Andrew. Bye-bye. Thanks, Peter. Thank you. It's time for our final game. Lightning, fill in the blank. each of our players will have 60 seconds in which to answer as many fill-in-the-blank questions about the week's news as they can.

Each correct answer now worth two points. Alzo, can you give us the scores? Yes. Peter has two. Karen and Shane are tied up at three. Whoa. Hey. So Karen and Shane are tied for first.

Peter, you're in seconds. That means you go first. Here we go. The clock will start. We begin your first question, fill in the blank. On Wednesday, Donald Trump signed a peace plan with blank. Iran. Right. On Thursday, the Supreme Court ruled that the government cannot ban marijuana users from owning blanks. Periphanalia? No, guns. This week, Tropical Storm Arthur became the first named storm of the 2026 Atlantic blank season.

Hurricane. Right. On Thursday, Blanks Presidential Center opened here in Chicago. Oh, gosh. Obama. Right. Barack Obama's a new study found roommates. Roommates share 26% of their blank with each other. DNA. Mouth bacteria. You don't kiss your roommate. Okay, fine. Live that way. In Argentina's first game at this year's World Cup,

soccer superstar Blank scored a hat trick. Leonel Messi. Messy indeed. On Wednesday, Tom Holland confirmed he'd married Blank in a private ceremony. Mrs. Holland. No. I don't know who he's dating.

She married, he married Zendaya, the actress. This week, a woman in Arizona who was ticketed for going a hundred and eight miles per hour in a 65 mile per hour zone, explained to police she was only speeding so she could blank. She was only speeding so that she could get to Tom Holland and Zendaya's wedding. No, she was going that fast so she could make it home in time to watch Love Island. The Arizona Highway Patrol clocked this woman driving 108 miles per hour, and they managed to pull her over somehow.

And when they did, she said she was only speeding so that she did not miss Love Island. The police charged her with, quote, criminal speed, that's a real thing, and reminded her the opening credits of Love Island are like 40 minutes long. You don't need to rush. Alzo, how did Peter Gross do in our quiz? He did all right. He got four right for eight more points, which for now puts him in the lead with 10. Thank you, Al so for now. I'm an arbitrarily pick Shane to go next. Here we go, Shane, fill in the blank. On Tuesday, the UK announced it was banning kids under 16 from using blank. Social media. Right. On Monday, the FBI said it had thwarted and a

attack in the blank event held at the White House. The UFC. Right. This week, world leaders met in France for the blank summit. G7? Right, this week. A four-ton elephant brought out to surprise guests at the Texas State Republican Convention blanked during Governor Greg Abbott's keynote speech.

Took a leak. All over the convention hall floor. That's right. This week, Yum Brands announced the sale of struggling pizza chain blank. Oh, God, this is going to break my heart, Little Caesars? No, pizza hot. Oh, thank God. This week, the tragic ending of a performance of Romeo and Juliet and Turkey was interrupted by blank.

Orange cats. Yes, a cat walking onto stage and biting Romeo's hair as he was supposed to be dead. Amazingly, the performers managed to keep it together when the tragic ending of Romeo and Juliet was interrupted by a stray cat, getting into the stage and playfully biting the putatively dead Romeo's hair. It's not the cat's fault, though. This is just what the producers get for cats. casting an open can of tuna to play Romeo. Alzo, how did Shane doing our quiz?

He did well. He got five right for ten more points, which gives him a total of 13 and the lead. All right. How many then does Karen need to win? Five to tie six to win. Here we go, Karen. This is for the game.

Fill in the blank on Thursday. A million fans attended the parade, celebrating the New York Blanks NBA tournament win? Knicks. Right, for the first time since March, the average price of blank fell below $4 a gallon. Gas? Right, this week, Kevin Warsh held his first meeting as the chairman of the blank.

The Fed. Federal Reserve. This week, a lawmaker in Connecticut was criticized after he blanked during an event celebrating firefighters. Burped. No, parked in an emergency fire lane on Wednesday. Cool. Africa CDC warned that the blank outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo may be its worst ever. Ebola.

Right, on Monday, New York wine bar lay was named Best New Restaurant at the Blank Awards. James Beard? Yes, even though it's still ongoing. The best headline of this year's Pride Month is blank. Yay, gay pride. Best headline for this year's Pride Month so far is, quote, enemy lesbian nuns quit convent and marry each other. Enemy, lesbian nuns.

Tale as old as time. Two nuns apparently hated each other, but after deciding cloistered life wasn't in fact for them, they left the convent, moved in together to save money, and they finally confessed their feelings for each other while watching a rom-com called Love in the Villa. And they've been together ever since. So delightful the two look forward to getting married someday

and walking down the aisle to that classic gay anthem, Ave Maria. Alzo did Karen Chee do well enough to win. Nope. She got five right for 10 more points, which makes her tied with Shane. So they are co-champs. In just a minute, we're going to ask our panelists to predict what will be the big surprise at Taylor Swift's wedding. But first, let me tell you that, wait, wait, don't tell me. He's a production of NPR and WBEZ Chicago in association with urgent hair cut productions,

Doug Berman, benevolent overlord. Philip Godica writes our limericks. Our public address announcer is Paul Friedman. Our ops manager is Jazeera Vardack. Thanks to the staff and crew here at the studio Baker Theater, B.J. Leiderman. Composed, our theme. Our program is produced by Jennifer Mills, Miles Dornboss, and Lillian King. Special thanks this week to Blythe Robertson. Peter Gwynn is our trad wife.

Emma Choi is our vibe curator. Technical direction is from Lorna White. Our CFO is Colin Miller. Our production manager is Robert Neuhaus. Our senior producer is Ian Chilog and the executive producer. Wait, wait, don't tell me. Is Mr. Mike Danforth. Now panel, what will be the big surprise at Taylor Swift's Madison Square Garden Wedding? Jane O'Neill, the chicken dance. Taylor's version. Karen Chee.

Their first kiss is going to be on the kiss cam. Oh, finally. Peter Gross. She won't invite her parents, but they are going to show up anyway because they tracked her there on their phones. And if any of that happens, panel, we'll ask you about it on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Thank you, Alzo. Slay.

Thanks, awesome. It's Shane O'Neill, Karen Chee. Peter Gross. Thanks for our fabulous audience here at the Sudubaker Theater in downtown Chicago. Illinois. Thanks to all of you for listening wherever you might be. I'm Peter Sagan. We'll be back with you next week. This is NPR.