Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! - WWDTM: Jan Jensen

Episode Date: July 12, 2025

This week, we're live in Iowa with coach Jan Jensen and panelists Emmy Blotnick, Hari Kondabolu, and Faith SalieLearn more about sponsor message choices: podcastchoices.com/adchoicesNPR Privacy Policy

The House of Representatives has approved a White House request to claw back two years of previously approved funding for public media. The rescissions package now moves on to the Senate. This move poses a serious threat to local stations and public media as we know it. Please take a stand for public media today at GoACPR.org. Thank you. ["The New York Times"] From NPR and WBEZ Chicago, this is, wait, wait, don't tell me, the NPR News Quiz,

Des Moines Meet Da Man. ["The New York Times"] ["The New York Times"] ["The New York Times"] ["The New York Times"] ["The New York Times"] ["The New York Times"] I'm Bill Curtis, and here is your host

at the Des Moines Civic Center in Des Moines, Iowa, Peter Segal. Thank you Bill, thank you everybody. It's so great to be back here in Des Moines, especially because, and this is true all the other times our show has been here, has been of course during the Iowa presidential caucus in January and it is amazing to discover that Iowa exists at other times as well. We thought it was always miserably cold here. Now we know it's also miserably hot.

Later on we are going to be talking to Jan Jensen, the coach of the legendary University of Iowa women's basketball team. But first, we want to see how you handle the ball. So give us a call. The number is 1-888-WAITWAIT. That's 1-888-924-8924. Let's welcome our first listener contestant. Hi, you're on WAITWAIT, don't tell me.

Hi, my name is Olivia. I'm calling from Pittsburgh, North Carolina. Hey, Olivia, how are you? And how are things in North Carolina? They're good. They're hot. More recently, got a lot of rain. So we're going to be talking to Jan Jensen, the coach of the legendary University of Iowa

women's basketball team. But first, we want to see how you handle the ball. So give us a call. The number is 1-888-WAITWAIT. That's 1-888-924-8924. Hi, my name is Olivia. I'm calling from Pittsburgh, North Carolina. Hey, Olivia, how are you? And how are things in North Carolina? Um, they're good. They're hot. Um, recently got a lot of rain, so a little wet, but overall good. What do you do there? Um, I work as an occupational therapy assistant, and I also work on a horse farm. You do? You work on a horse farm? I do. That's an awesome thing. What sort of jobs do they have you do on the horse farm?

Oh, you know, all the fun stuff like cleaning up after the horses, feeding them, getting them in their meds. Wow. So you have to muck out the stalls, clean up the mess that they left, right? I do. I find it therapeutic, but that's just me. Well, it might be good training for playing this game. In a way, cleaning up after the week's news. First let me introduce you to our panel this week. First up it's a comedian appearing at Joe Firestone's first annual pie tasting festival August 10th at Littlefield in Brooklyn, New York.

It's Emmy Blotnick. Hello, Olivia. Hello. Next, the comedian headlining the Punchline Comedy Club in Philadelphia August 24th and the Vermont Comedy Club in Burlington September 18th through the 20th. It's Hari Kandabolu. Hello, Olivia. Hi.

And a CBS Sunday Morning contributor whose new Audible original series, Envy, Enlightened, is out now. It's Faith Salie. Hi, Olivia. Hi. So, Olivia, welcome to our show. You're going to play Who's Bill this time. Bill Curtis is going to read for you three quotations from this week's news. If you can correctly identify or explain just two of them, you will win

our prize. Any voice from our show you might choose on your voicemail. Are you ready to play? I am. All right. Your first quote is a traveler talking to NPR. I don't like my feet on floors that I don't know about. She was celebrating the fact that as of this week, you no longer have to take your shoes off before you do what? Is it go through the TSA check? Yes, going through airport security. That's right, everybody. Our long national nightmare is over.

The TSA just announced they'd be ending the policy of making travelers take off their shoes to go through security. It's great that we can finally leave our shoes on, but why are they making everyone take off their underwear? You know, for the past whatever it is, 20 years, I have assumed shoes were a security threat, but now that Secretary Kristi Noem has assured us they are not, I feel so safe. I think it is Kristi Noem's gravitas that makes me feel comforted. She said that we can put e-cigarettes in any bag we want now.

This is America. She said that we can put e-cigarettes in any bag we want. No? This is America. Well, Kristi Noem just got tired of peeling off her thigh-high stiletto she wears for food. Now, as you may remember, this policy was instituted more than 20 years ago after just one guy tried to blow up a plane with a bombing issue. So one failed bomb meant us seeing 10,000 gross toes we will never be able to forget.

No, it's like it was how humanity connected. We'd all put our gross toes on the same thing. It's like, you know, we're all the same. Yeah, I guess we're all... A beautiful ritual we're losing. It's true. Frequent travelers are celebrating, but let's not forget what a huge day this is for the shoe bombing community.

We are back, baby! I mean, isn't the whole model of TSA pre-check that, oh, I don't need to put my shoes off anymore? So if they take a... If everyone can go through the metal detector, that's everything they're there for. I know. That's actually a good point. Some of the news articles raise this this that not having to take off your

shoes was a huge incentive to pay the 80 bucks to join TSA pre and some people think they kept the policy just to keep that program going now that it's gone what are they going to use for an incentive to sign up every passenger gets to bring on one little gun do you think they'll raise it to four ounces of shampoo? Maybe. Oh, the parties will have. Oh, brother. All right, here is your next quote. People are celebrating and eating treats.

They don't want to be tasting beets. That was a candy company CEO talking about resisting the efforts to replace artificial food dyes with natural dyes, like that from beets. Who is trying to ruin our M&Ms? Can I get a hint? It's a person who's on a quest to get natural things back in our food.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Yes, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. Just make sure you say junior, the junior is important. Yes, it is. Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who ironically looks like he would melt in your hand, He's demanding that all food companies stop using artificial food dyes and they all fold it except for M&Ms, right? The Mars company was diplomatic in their response. I'll quote here, they said, no. Now Mars, big candy company, they say that natural dyes just don't work as well in their candies.

They're not as bright and they quickly fade. Not to mention that, as you heard, if you want to make a red dye naturally out of beets, quote, it tastes like beets unquote. So it's like, hey kids, who wants another Tootsie borscht? I'm surprised he's going after M&Ms and not gummy worms. Oh, those are the ones they get in your gummy brain? Is that right? That's right. Okay. He's a soft spot for worms though. A representative from the National Confectioners Association said, quote, people can freely buy cannabis, alcohol, and cigarettes, but vibrantly colored candy is an issue.

Give me a break, unquote. Before continuing, give me a break. Break me off a piece of that Kit Kat bar. Oh, has there been a response from Skittles? The rainbow you're supposed to taste? Skittles is the backup. It's also owned by Mars. So they too are part of the resistance.

Yes. Wow. Yeah. So Reese's Pieces just totally sold out. Is that what happened? Yeah, pretty much. Yeah. All right, Olivia, your last quote

is from the Wall Street Journal. Not surprisingly, a family moon can be a tough sell. They were writing about a new trend, they say, where newlyweds are bringing their parents along on what? Their honeymoon? Their honeymoon, yes! Aw. Aw. Oh, I can see it's going to catch on here. on what? Their honeymoon? Their honeymoon, yes.

Oh, I can see it's going to catch on here. No, bring your parents on your honeymoon. Nothing is sexier than giving up the honeymoon suite to your father-in-law, because the bed is better for his back. I mean, it's a form of contraception I've never considered. That's true. And we wonder why the birth rate is dropping. The people who embrace this say that it allows the new couples to spend quality time with, you know, their new family, but it is awkward when your mom pulls you aside and says,

these were your grandmother's furry handcuffs. I like that you can have adjoining rooms and your mother-in-law can peek her head through the door and just say, if you have any questions, I'm right here Bill how did Olivia do in our quiz off to a good start three in a row, that's a win. Congratulations. Thank you. Thank you guys. Right now, panel, it is of course time for you to answer some questions about this week's news. Harry, Cathedral in Wales has been sanctioned by the higher-ups in the church hierarchy after priests there created a what based on the final words spoken by Jesus?

Oh, they created a diorana. People love a good diorama, Peter. They really do. They really do. All right, so I'll give you a hint. For example, when Jesus weeps, you drink. A drinking game? They made a drinking game out of the last words of Jesus.

What? What? Thanks to the Anglican Church in Wales, services at Bangor Cathedral will no longer be dangerously interesting. The priests there instead were admonished for their seven last shots of Christ drinking gin. I'm not making that up. Why seven?

Well, this is how it works. You get out the sacramental wine, and they were really into this, and you take one shot for each of Christ's last words, which were, for those who don't remember, forgive them, Father, for they know not how to party. I mean, it's better, if you want to drum up attendance, it's better to do it with drinking than like lots of fishes, right? Right. Come to church this week and you'll get unlimited fish.

You're right. I have a question about the game. You may, yes. Do seven shots seem like too much to you guys? Well, it's wine. It wasn't like the sacramental Jack Daniels. Okay then. All right, I'll do it.

Coming up, it's a balmy bluff, the listener game called 1-triple-8-wait-wait-to-play. We'll be back in a minute with more of Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me from NPO. Support for this podcast comes from Dignity Memorial. For many families, remembering loved ones means honoring the details that made them unique. Dignity Memorial is dedicated to professionalism and compassion in every detail of a life celebration. Find a provider near you at DignityMemorial.com. This summer on Planet Money Summer School, we're learning about political economy. We're getting into the nitty-gritty of what government does with things like trade, taxes,

immigration and healthcare. So politics and economics, which are taught separately, they shouldn't be separated at all. I think you have to understand one to really appreciate the other. So what is the right amount of government in our lives? Tune into Planet Money Summer School from from NPR wherever you get your podcasts This is Eric Glass. In this American life, sometimes we just show up somewhere, turn on our tape recorders, and see what happens. If you can't get seven cars in 12 days,

you got to look yourself in the mirror and say, holy, what are you kidding me? Like this car dealership trying to sell its monthly quota of cars and it is not going well. I just don't want one balloon to a car. Balloon the whole freaking place so it looks like a circus. Real life stories every week. From NPR in WBEZ Chicago, this is Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, the NPR News Quiz. I'm Bill Curtis.

We are playing this week with Harikon Davolu, Faith Sealy, and Emmy Blatnick. And here again is your host at the Des Moines Civic Center in Iowa, Peter Segoff. Thank you, Bill. Right now, thank you everybody. Right now it is time for the Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me Bluff the Listener game. Call 1-888-WAITWAIT to play our game in the air or check out the pinned post on our Instagram

page at Wait Wait NPR. Hello, you are on Wait Wait Don't Tell Me. Hi, my name is Raeanne Rowland. I'm calling from Regalsville, Pennsylvania. Hey there, Raeanne. What do you do there in Regalsville? I work in fundraising and communications for the Arc of Warren County. It's a nonprofit organization that provides a wide range of services

and supports for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. That is wonderful. It's very rewarding. Rewarding work. And I'm so proud and pleased that you're out there doing that. So thank you so much for calling. You are going to play our game in which you must try to tell truth from fiction. Bill, what's Rayann's topic? Make summer summer.

Summer is easily one of the top four seasons of the year. And this week we heard about how somebody is making it even better this time around. Our panelists are going to tell you about it. Pick the one who's telling the truth. You'll win our prize, the voice of your choice and your voicemail. You ready to play? I'm ready. All right. First, let's hear from Faith Salie.

Summer can be schvitzy for anyone, but it's especially rough, even embarrassing, for those who sweat a lot. I'm afraid to meet a guy at a bar if it doesn't blast the AC, confesses Nicole Watson, who suffers from hyperhidrosis, excessive and uncontrollable sweating. At weddings, I have to dance by myself in the corner or else I end up splashing people. Like that water bucket scene from Flashdance, except not sexy but gross. Well, it's not gross anymore for those participating in a new trend of sweaty meetups called Drip.

At Drip, it's a celebration of perspiration. Wear your most sweat stained clothes, prizes for the darkest amber pit stains. A ritual burning of anti-perspirants. Guys and gals wear polyester shirts so they become sexy see-throughs once soaked. Every drip event ends with a competition to see who can ring the most liquid out of a shirt after a night of dancing. The only two rules are no cheating, some folks were caught in the bathroom doing jumping jacks, and you do

have to sign a waiver. There have been some injuries from the sweat-powered slip-and-slide. Drip! A series of gatherings for people to celebrate how much they sweat rather than shame them. Your next summer doldrum de-doldrumized comes from Hari Kandabolu. George Pipgrass has always hated summer. You see the Pipgrass family has been in the puffer coat business for decades and growing up summer was season non grata. We didn't call it summer, explained George.

We called it the devil's season. Because no one buys coats then. That is, until now. While George was tinkering away in his coat layer slash basement, he started an experiment. What happens when you freeze a down coat? Well it gets super cold like an ice pack. The light bulb went off for his brand new product. The Pipgrass Cool Down Down Coat. The Pipgrass Cool Down Down Coat has 16 sealed compartments with genuine

goose down soaking in propylene glycol, the same blue gunk used in ice packs. Just freeze it overnight in your industrial freezer and you've got the solution for a hot summer day. Quickly, customers from hot spots like Arizona and Florida started ordering the coats. Pipgrass was thrilled until he realized the coat had a flaw. It melts. According to one customer, I put it on to walk around my neighborhood and was soaking wet within 20 minutes, with another calling the product a 50-pound water prison.

A new summer parka that's just basically a wearable giant cold pack. Your last solution for the sunny season comes from Emmy Blotnick. Tired of getting sunburned this summer? Now there's a phone case that can remind you when you're burning in the sun. This new invention called the skin case is designed to look and feel just like human skin. It reacts to UV light by burning just like human skin. It even comes in three colors just like human skin. The sight of your burning flesh-covered cell phone is supposed to serve as a reminder that you too are outdoors and need protection for your burning flesh.

The researcher responsible for this invention insists that though it is creepily lifelike, the human skin is in fact synthetic, which is exactly what you would say if you accidentally made a phone case out of real human skin. All right. One of these things might make your summer a little more bearable. Is it from Faith Salie Drip, a gathering for people to celebrate their sweatiness rather than be ashamed by it. From Hari Kandabolu, a coat that is basically just a wearable ice pack to keep you cool. Or from Emmy Blotnick, a phone case with artificial skin that lets you know that you might be burning in the sun because it is.

I want it to be the skin case, but I'm gonna go with the drippers. So your choice is Faith's story. Well to bring you the correct answer, listen to this. Why does it feel like skin? Well this phone case when it exposed to the sun burns. That was Marc Tessier, the creator of the skin phone. I'm so sorry Rayann, You should have followed your heart. Yes, in fact, it was Emmy who horrifyingly was telling the truth. So you didn't win,

but you did earn a point for Faith for her. I genuinely think, speaking as a sweaty guy myself, a wonderful idea that we should implement. So I a point for Faith for her. I genuinely think, speaking as a sweaty guy myself, a wonderful idea that we should implement. So I commend you for picking that one. Thank you so much for playing. It's really rad, right, Anne? Take care. Thank you.

Goodbye. And now the game where we ask experts about something they know nothing about. That's why we call it Not My Job. A few years ago, Iowa women's basketball exploded in popularity nationwide, which is fitting because women's basketball was practically invented here in Iowa. True. Coach Jan Jensen herself grew up here, played basketball to Drake and Des Moines

before moving to the University of Iowa, where she has coached among others one Caitlin Clark. She is now the head coach of the Hawkeyes. We are delighted she joins us here. Coach Jensen, welcome to Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Thank you so much. Among the many things I learned this week, Coach Jansen, is that Iowa is in fact more or less the birthplace of women's basketball. Is that not right? It really is.

Yeah. In fact, my grandmother was the MVP of the 1921 state tournament. Your grandmother. Absolutely. Yeah, my grandmother. And didn't your grandmother have a great nickname? She did. It was named, she was named Lottie because she scored a lot of points. And didn't your grandmother had a great nickname? She did.

She was named Lottie because she scored a lot of points. So in enlightened state, not a very creative one, but that's OK. You got to take her. I'm sorry. I mean, I have these images in my head of what the 20s were like, especially for women. Did they have to play in bustles?

They played in bloomers. They played in bloomers, and they had like a sash. I actually have her uniform. No, really? I do, yes. And I have the ball of which they played with. No. And they weren't dribbling back then.

It almost looked like a leather, like a football. So I didn't really start talking to her about her history until I was getting recruited. And she never shared it until I tried it out. Wait a minute, wait a minute, because I happen to know you were one of like the greatest high school basketball players in the nation, right? I read that you had like a national record for points scored or something like that. And your grandmother never mentioned during all those years, oh, basketball, you know,

funny thing, forgot to mention. 1921 national, state champion. Your grandmother never mentioned during all those years, oh, basketball, you know, funny thing, forgot to mention, 1921 national, state champion. Slipped my mind being old enough. No. She did not, she mentioned it casually, but she didn't like, you know, it wasn't until I truly, really pried the stories out of her. I knew she played, I saw her Hall of Fame trophy. Of course.

And it was at her home. And my mother used to tell a story that when I was really little I looked up at that trophy. I said, Mom, I'm going to get a trophy like that someday. Right. And my mom said, I bet you will. And I did. You did, I bet you did. When we were talking, they did a news special, the Iowa Girls Athletic Union,

and it was on Iowa Public Television, which is awesome. Yeah. So great. And they also did a six on six special, right? So they were talking about the things. But the cool thing, my grandmother, she critiqued it. She said that it was much too physical and we showed way too much skin.

Oh really? Absolutely. She was very, she thought it was very risque. Really we showed way too much skin. Oh, really? Absolutely. She was very, she thought it was very risque. Really? Your grandmother was like, in my day, we played in bloomers and we liked it. We showed no ankle. That's right. Let's talk about your coaching career.

You spent 23 years as an assistant coach at Iowa before becoming head coach last year. And during that time time you coached the Global Phenomenon Caitlin Clark. So what was that like? You know, it was um, I Don't think we'll fully unpack it until well, certainly I won't till I slow down right because someone asked me What was it like to coach Caitlin Clark and I said everything you think it was In a matter of a minute because she's passionate You know, she's you know fun. She's feisty. She shoots it from the parking lot, you know, she makes a dazzling pass She challenges you she's a jokester and then as you're going through it

You know building a team To me, that's the most beautiful thing. And you know this on your show. You got you, you're the leading scorer. Oh, I am definitely the Caitlin Clark of this organization. I'm so glad. Yes, we all can send you to the parking lot. I'm so glad that somebody has finally noticed my central role. I'm now your favorite guest you've ever had.

You really are. Let's talk more about that. So go on, please. Well, just the building the team and the culture. And I think that's why a lot of people have enjoyed watching Iowa Women's Basketball. Way back when we were at Drake, our staff was together at Drake, is what we believe is just really playing with joy, playing hard. And I believe the best thing in life is if you can get a team,

I'd like to think if you can get a society to be celebrators of each other, that's the hardest thing. Right. You know? So one of your jobs is to motivate a player who's struggling. That's part of the deal. So let's say I, as you have identified, the Caitlin Clark of this show. Let's say I'm not doing well. Let's say I'm not playing to my astonishing potential. How would you say to me, what would be your learned coach? Well, for you particularly, I'd probably say, get your head out of your ass. For you.

Really? But now, for these lovely people over here, I would say, you know what, you got it. You can do it. I believe in you. You, get over here. Well, Coach Jensen, we are delighted to have you. Well, I'm delighted to be here. Speaking of games, we have invited you here to play a game that this time we're calling Let's Go Courting. You spent all your time in the basketball court, so we thought we'd ask you about the other kind of courting, finding a spouse.

So we're going to ask you three questions about courting rituals from around the world. Get two right, you'll win a prize for one of our listeners, Bill, who is Coach Jensen playing for. Matthew Kodus of Des Moines, Iowa. Alright. Alright, ready to go? Here's your first question. In the Puritan communities in New England back in the 1600s, courting couples would have to sit apart in a small room with a family member there to chaperone at all times. So for privacy, these couples used what? A, a six-foot-long speaking tube, which one person held to their ear while the other person

talked into the other side. B. An elaborate code using only eye blinks and squinting. Or C. Wooing leaves, which was a medicinal herb you would put in grandma's tea so she'd fall asleep and you could talk freely. Oh, gosh. Okay. I'm feeling maybe, are you feeling maybe one? I'm feeling one.

Yeah, it was the speaking tube. Yes. Yes. Let's go. Grandma. One for one. Grandma would sit there. I'm beginning to get a sense of your style on the court side.

Yeah. They'd sit there and they'd hold the tube and they speak. That was all net. It was. A little help for my buddies. Yeah, okay. All right. All right, that was very good.

Here's your second question. Pumpkins had a traditional role in courtship in medieval Ukraine. What was it? A, what was called love bowling. Women would roll a pumpkin down the largest hill in town and the first man it knocked over would be her betrothed. B, if a woman turned down a marriage proposal, she would give their suitor a pumpkin as a kind of consolation prize, but everyone who saw him walking home with it would know he just got rejected. Or C, suitors wore pumpkins over their heads to the town dance to ensure that matches were not just about physical appearance.

Oh, golly. Sort of a medieval Ukrainian version of love. What was that again? You're yelling B. I like that. That's correct. How did you know? That's right.

On my back. All of you. The consolation pumpkin or the pumpkin of shame, men would only, this is true, men would only propose at night so they wouldn't be seen carrying the pumpkin home. Here's your last question. In 19th century rural Austria, available women presented men who they liked with a challenge to prove their worth. What was it? A, she would feed a ring to a particular sheep and the man would have

to first guess the sheep and then get the ring back. B, after a town dance the woman would offer the man she fancied an apple slice that she had held in her armpit during the whole dance to see if he would eat it or see she would write a particular tongue twister love poem which the man was expected to recite after drinking four beers in one hour. I think it's B, Apple. And it is B! Yes! Three for three! I've been stressing about this the whole day. I like to win. Three for three.

Let's go! Bill, how did Coach Jensen do in our quiz? What else? A perfect score. Wow! That's all of you. Thank you. Jan Jensen is the head coach of the Iowa Hawkeyes women's basketball team.

Coach Jan Jensen, thank you so much for being on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Give it up for Jen Jensen, thank you so much for being on Weight, Weight, Don't Tell Me. Give it up for Coach Jensen. And just a minute, find out why your broccoli is out to get you in our listener limerick challenge. Call 1-triple-8-weight-weight to join us on the air. We will be back in a minute with more of Weight, Weight, Don't Tell Me from NPR.

We will be back in a minute with more of Wait of every day. Listen now to the NPR News Now podcast. You're listening to NPR because you're curious. You want to know what the world is like beyond the surface. NPR feeds that curiosity with stories from real people with real experiences and all the perspectives that come with them. It's our right to be curious and our prerogative to listen. So keep your curiosity alive. Hear the bigger picture every day on NPR. Love Island is pure chaos. And admittedly, we love it. The Trashy Reality Dating Show is the closest thing we've got to a water cooler event this summer.

And we're breaking down all the drama and what it tells us about our relationships in social media, dating, and race. Listen to Pop Culture Happy Hour on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. From NPR and WBEZ Chicago, this is, wait, wait, don't tell me, the NPR News Quiz. I'm Bill Curtis. We are playing this week with Faith Seely, Emmy Blotnick, and Hari Kandabolu. And here again is your host at the Des Moines Civic Center in Iowa, Peter Segel. Thank you, Bill. In just a minute, once again, our do nothing staff has failed to finish writing the limericks.

If you think you can come up with the last word, give us a call at 1-888-WAITWAIT. That's 1-888-924-8924. Right now, a panel of some more questions for you from the week's news. Faith, this week a judge in Canada awarded damages to a couple who said that a local furniture store had caused them intense distress by not warning them that their new couch would require constant what? Sitting on? No.

Reupholstering? No. Can I have a on? No. Um, uh, reupholstering? No. Um, can I have a hint? Sure. Start, you gotta take it home and start smacking those pillows immediately. Uh, fluffing? Fluffing, yes!

Constant fluffing. They were not worn. On the one hand, it's hard to imagine suing over this. On the other hand, it was a huge day for the lawyer who had put up the 1-800-FLUFF law. Somebody called JD Vance. Exactly. Whoa. He'd volunteer.

Did you guys forget he was into that? Yeah. The couple said that no one at the furniture store warned them that their couch would require what the manufacturer describes as, quote, frequent fluffing and rotating. How frequent was the fluff this fluffing required? This sounds like adult filmmaking. I know. I mean, how frequent do you have to fluff the couch?

Was it like, oh, excuse me, could we get the check? I have to be home by nine to fluff the couch or it explodes. I'm like, couch is out of my aggro again. The judge sided with the couple because the furniture store admitted that this couple had come in specifically asking for something quote, solid and not floppy. The judge did reduce the damages the store had to pay a bit for the pain and suffering of having to hear the phrase, solid and not floppy.

Go to rockhardcouches.com. Enter the promo code JD Vance. Moving on. Harry, according to a trend on TikTok, the hot new place that women are looking for men is where? Men's bathrooms. No. I'll give you a hint.

It's the number one place to bag a husband wearing a tool belt. Oh, a hardware store. Well, specifically, the biggest one. Do you think I go to hardware stores? I live in Brooklyn, New York. I listen to NPR. I'm hiring somebody. I'm getting somebody to fix whatever it is that has to be fixed. I'll give it to you specifically, the Home Depot.

Home Depot! Yes! Women are saying, if you want to find a man, go to Home Depot. That's where the real men are. There's a problem though with this theory. In the entire history of the world, going back to the creation of the universe, nobody has ever found anybody to answer a question they have at the Home Depot. I gotta learn about tools to find a partner? This sucks. No, you could just wander into Hobby Lobby and find yourself a nice trad wife.

Yeah. Emmy, you've probably heard about the trend of oversized fashion. That's when the clothing manufacturers keep the size label the same, but they're actually making the clothing bigger. Why would you think I'm familiar with this? For a particular reason? Well, perhaps you were one of those women who, because of this trend, clothes becoming bigger are having to shop for their own clothes.

Where? Is it, like, in the children's section? It is in the children's section, yes. This is great news for petite women who love the movie Frozen. No one's checking IDs over in the kids' department. The clothes fit, but according to one shopper, there is, quote, so much glitter. There were definitely a lot of items from the wicked promotional tour that were not made in adult sizes.

That's absolutely true. And it is a little less charming to wear a shirt bragging about how good a daughter you are when you're 43. One woman in kids clothing mentioned that she likes going to parties knowing nobody would be wearing the same outfit. And then tragically she was invited to an eight-year-old's birthday party. Coming up it's lightning film 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 1-888-WAIT-WAIT.

That's 1-888-924-8924. You can see us most weeks back at the Studenbaker Theater in Chicago, or come see us on the road. We'll be at Tanglewood in Western Massachusetts on August 28th. Tickets and information are at NPRpresents.org. You can check out our TikTok as well if you're thinking, Whoa, how can that not be totally cringe? Please keep in mind, I have nothing to do with it. Find us there at WaitWaitNPR. Hi, you're on WaitWait, don't tell me.

Hi, Peter. This is Molly from St. Louis, Missouri. Well, hey, nice to hear from you Molly We're gonna be in st. Louis in the fall. I'm looking forward to coming back. What do you do there? Well, when I'm not chasing my toddler around the zoo, I manage a dental practice, right? That's nice How did you convince the zoo to keep your toddler? Oh He's very good. He's very good. He's a good toddler. He's a great toddler Yeah, is he polite does he do what you ask him to do? Well, he's very good. He's very good. He's a good toddler. He's a great toddler. Yeah, is he polite? Does he do what you ask him to do? Well, he's a toddler. Oh

We'll just leave it there. All right Well, welcome to the show Molly. Bill Curtis is gonna read you three news related limericks with the last word or phrase missing From each if you can fill in that last word or phrase correctly into the limericks will be a big winner. You ready to go? Let's do it. All right. here is your first limerick. When service returns becomes potty, some Wimbledon players act naughty, cross their legs, cry, oh no, and then I've gotta go,

and then waste extra time in the... Potty. Yes. Players at Wimbledon are not allowed to delay the game, but there is an exception. They are allowed to take bathroom breaks. So instead of a timeout, just tell the official you need a little wee. Or if it's really important, say, hey, this game is headed for a different kind of deuce. Now, the reason this is important is because many players in elite tennis have been accused by their opponents of using strategically timed bathroom breaks to throw them off their rhythm or just change the momentum of the match, right?

So if the umpire objects because this is the fifth bathroom break they've asked for, they can say, all right, fine, I'll risk it, but remember, I am wearing all white. All right, here is your next limerick. My enamels, a thin, worn-out sheath. No more broccoli. Bring on the beef. Greens might keep me fit, but they have too much grit.

All those veggies are harming my teeth. Yes, teeth. After years of research and hundreds of studies, scientists finally found the proof that eating vegetables is bad for you. Fresh vegetables can degrade your teeth, according to a study just published in the Journal of Things Kids Want to be True. But a real study found that microscopic bits of silica from the earth found in plants can

cause mineral loss in your tooth enamel and also to quote one of the six-year-old scientists behind the study, vegetables are too squishy. Then what are you supposed to eat? That's a good question. Just chew on those micro plastics. Yeah. Alright, here is your last limerick. Jeffrey Dee almost seems plain vanilla.

Baby zodiacs more of a thriller. Shows with true crime made the creep quotient climb. My kids named like a serial. Killer. Yeah, according to the Mirror Tabloid, there's been a rise in British families naming their babies after criminals and killers from true crime documentaries. Oh, jeez.

What? No, the theory is people are like, oh, Rose, Rose, you know, Rose is a lovely name. Where did I hear it? Oh, yeah, that Netflix show about the woman who murdered all those people. I happen to have a son named Ted. And yes, he's named after Ted Bundy, but Bundy was very, very, very, very, very, a lot of other qualities.

I always assumed it was Kosinski, but I know you're more of a murder family. Bill, how did Molly do in our quiz? We have a smart bunch of people. That's perfect. Well done, Molly. Three in a row. Thank you. At Planet Money, we know that economic jargon can sometimes feel like speaking another language. Yeah, like arbitrage, alpha, autarky.

That's just what's in the news these days. There's also absolute advantage, aggregate demand, aggregate supply, and this is just the ace. Oh, animal spirits. That's a pretty good one. Planet Money from NPR. We help you translate the economy so you can understand the world wherever you get your podcasts.

As AI permeates every aspect of our lives, who are the people behind this huge inflection point? What keeps them up at night? I fear that what it means to be human may suddenly not be our own. We've got a special series from NPR's Ted Radio Hour It's called the prophets of technology What they got right wrong and where these pioneers think we're headed next listen to the Ted Radio Hour wherever you get your podcasts Now on to the final game lightning fill inank. Each of our players will have 60 seconds in which to answer as many Fill in the Blank questions

as they can. Each correct answer now worth two points. Bill, can you give us the scores? Faith has three. Hari and Emmy each have two. Okay. That means Hari and Emmy are tied for second, and I'm gonna arbitrarily choose Emmy to go first.

So here we go. The clock will start when I begin your first question. Fill in the blank. On Thursday, emergency workers said they were still looking for over 160 missing people following the flooding in blank. Texas. Right, according to new data from the CDC, U.S. blank cases have hit a 33-year high.

Measles. Right, this week Russia launched its largest aerial assault on blank. Ukraine. Right, after being freed from ICE detention, Mahmoud Khalil filed a $20 million lawsuit against blank. The government? Yeah, the Trump administration. For at least the second time, police in Wisconsin doing

a routine traffic stop found a bag full of drugs labeled blank. Cheese curds. No, it was labeled... The bag... The bag full of drugs was labeled, quote, definitely not a bag full of drugs. On Thursday, video game actors agreed to a new contract ending an 11-month-long blank. A strike. Right. On Wednesday, a 70-million-year-old blank

was discovered under Denver's Museum of Nature and Science. Fossil? Yeah, dinosaur fossil. This week a man in Switzerland who got trapped while hiking on a glacier credits blank with saving his life. A DJ? I'm just pausing to think how that would work. Don't think about how it would work.

Just say, no. He credits his chihuahua with saving his life. A man went hiking on a glacier with his little chihuahua and fell into a steep crevasse where he got trapped. And when rescuers came searching for him, they say they never would have found him except for the tiny little brown thing yapping at the crevasses edge. When asked why he took a chihuahua hiking on a glacier, the man said they were out of air horns and emergency whistles, so he bought the next best thing. Bill, how did Emmy do on our quiz? Six right, 12 more points, total of 14, good for the lead. Very well done. All right.

Hari, you are up next. Please fill in the blank. On Wednesday it was revealed that the FBI was investigating former director Blank for potentially making false statements to Congress. Comey. Right, this week an imposter used AI to contact foreign officials, posing as Secretary of State Blank.

Marco Rubio. Right, this week President Trump threatened Brazil with a 50% blank if they did not end their prosecution of higher Bolsonaro. Tariff. Right, according to the Labor Department, the blank rate for black Americans rose to its highest level in three years.

Unemployment. Right, to make the visitor experience more pleasant, London's Heathrow Airport said they would begin piping The blank rate for black Americans rose to its highest level in three years. Unemployment. Right. To make the visitor experience more pleasant, London's Heathrow Airport said they would begin piping in the sounds of blank at their airport. Poker. No. Quote, the sounds of an airport. On Wednesday, a judge blocked a Biden-era law, which would make it easier to cancel

online blanks. Subscriptions. Right. On Tuesday, doctors warned that the trend of taping your blanks shut while you sleep poses major health risks. Mouth. Right.

This week, a man in the UK was arrested when police caught him selling drugs at blank. Preschool. At his sentencing hearing for selling drugs. No. Ah. According to police, the man was caught selling pills and weed to another defendant while they both awaited their sentencing hearings.

After being caught doing that, the man pleaded guilty to those charges because what are you going to do, sentence me twice? Oh, you are? Damn it. Bill, how are you doing on our quiz? Well, he is a total of 14, which means he's tied with Emmy. Well done. All right.

How many then does Faith need to win the game? Six to win. All right, Faith. This is for the game. Here we go. On Thursday, a judge once again blocked President Trump's attempts to end blank. Birthright Citizenship. Right.

On Thursday, famous baby hippo blank celebrated its first birthday. Oh, me dang? Close enough, moodang. This week, several families in North Carolina complained when they learned a classic car show would be held at blank. Uh, a school gymnasium.

At the local cemetery. On Thursday, Italian chocolate company Ferrero bought breakfast cereal giant blank for $3.1 billion. Kellogg. Yes. On Wednesday, Netflix announced that the 10th season of its reboot of Makeover Show Blank would be the last. Queer Eye. Right. This week, researchers discovered a new trend among chimpanzees in Zambia. They're all starting to blank. Oh, they wear pieces of grass in their ears.

They do, in their ears and also between their butt cheeks. Researchers are calling it butt grass, and it's exactly what it sounds like. It doesn't have anything to do with health or hygiene. Chimps just like putting grass in their butts for fun. Wow, chimpanzees really are just like us, aren't they? Bill did faith too well enough to win. Came so close, five right, ten more points, total of 13 means Hari and Emmy are the winners this week.

What? Oh. How, how will you split the prize money? In our butt cheeks? Good place. Good choice. In just a minute, we're going to ask our panelists to predict, now that we can leave our shoes on, what would be the next thing we will be allowed to do at the airport.

But first, let me tell you all that, wait, wait, don't tell me. It's a production of NPR and WBEZ Chicago in association with Urgent Haircut Productions, Doug Berman, Benevolent Overlord, Philip Gotica, Reiser Lembrex, our public address announcer is Paul Friedman, our tour manager is Shayna Donald, BJ Liderman, composer, our theme, our program is produced by Jennifer Mills, Miles Dornbos, and Lillian King. Special thanks to Vinnie Thomas and Monica Hickey. Peter Gwynne is the winner in our straw poll. Emma Choi is our vibe curator. Technical directionist from Lorna White.

Our CFO is Colin Miller. Our production manager is Robert Newhouse. Our senior producer is Ian Chilag. And the executive producer, wait, wait, don't tell me, is Mike Danforth. Now panel, what will we be finally allowed to do at the airport next? Emmy Blotkin. Emmy Blunt.

Fly with explosives. Boof. Hari Kandabolu. Use your Costco card as a valid form of identification. And Faith Salie. Check your child in the overhead compartment. Check your child in the overhead compartment. And if any of that happens, Fennel, we'll ask you about it on Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. Thank you, Bill Curtis. Thanks also to Emmy Blotnick, Harry Tandibolo, and Faye Saly.

Thanks to the staff and crew at the Des Moines Civic Center. Special thanks to Andrea Hanson and everyone in Iowa Public Radio. And thanks to our fabulous audience here in Des Moines and thanks to all of you for listening wherever you might be this week. I'm Peter Sagal, we'll see you next week. This is NPR. With a major shift in our politics underway in this country, 1A is drilling down on what's

at stake for you and our democracy. In our weekly series, If You Can Keep It, we put these changes into focus and answer your questions about the impact of the Trump administration on the US. Join us every Monday for If You Can Keep It on the 1A podcast from NPR and WAMU. Hey, everybody. It's Ian from How to Do Everything. On our show, we attempt to answer your how-to questions. We don't know how to do anything. So we call experts. Last season, both Tom Hanks and Martha Stewart stopped by to help. Our next season is launching in just a few months. So get us your questions now by emailing howto at npr.org

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