Our (early) endless summer with Lucy Dacus and more!

25:54We call them feeds. They're basically just like liquid fuel. So like a Gatorade with like some sort of energy gel melted into it. So yeah, I wasn't fully alone even though like I couldn't touch the boat. Nobody was allowed to touch me because then you're disqualified if that happens. But there were people nearby in case I needed help or anything.

26:12Lucy Dacus:Okay, so there were people nearby. My question is, what's the most incredible thing you've seen in the open ocean? Because I won't be going. I need to live vicariously through you. I think I've seen three sharks and I really love sharks. All of them were, it was two black tip reef sharks and then one white tip reef shark. And I think that they're just such beautiful creatures. All of them were like very peaceful and yeah i love i love all the animals they're probably surprised to see you yeah what are you doing in my house oh yeah they have they have a real they have a real reputation for being peaceful so that's those ones in particular i met some nice ones well so speaking of like fish have you ever like had a relationship in with a fish in this style of my octopus teacher I can't say that I have I mean are you open to that I'm open to everything we'll see do you ever like swim in a hotel pool and just like casually do laps but also smoke everybody and show off definitely

27:27depending on what kind of mood I'm in Oh, Becca, man. Well, we've actually asked you here to play a game we're calling... Tanks for Joining Us. So you know all about... Oh, no. Oh, no is right. You know all about open water. So we're going to ask you about closed water, aquariums. Answer two out of three questions correctly, and you'll win our prize for one of our listeners, the voice of any of us on their voicemail. Bill, who is Becca playing for? Ryan Campbell of Houston, Texas. All right. All right. I won't let you down, Ryan. I hope. Here's your first question. The San Antonio Aquarium has a touch tank which can provide guests with unique experiences like which of these?

28:19Is it A, an archerfish spitting water directly into your boyfriend's eye? Is it B, an octopus grabbing your six-year-old by the arm and trying to climb out of the tank to get the rest of her? Or is it C, the can you handle a lionfish sting challenge? I'm going to say C, just because I don't know if the aquarium would be able to get away with the first two. Oh, it is B. They got away with an octopus grabbing a kid. Don't worry. Don't worry, the kid is fine. And it only took three adults armed with ice packs to make the octopus let go. All right, here's your next question. The San Antonio Aquarium had another situation in 2018.

29:15When one of their sharks went missing. Fortunately, they were able to track it down quickly because security footage showed what? Was it A, one shark was hiding on the bottom of its tank while another shark buried it in the sand? Was it B, the shark jumping a barrier into the beluga whale tank where it was now playing with a whale like they were best friends? Or was it C, two people lifting the shark out of its tank, putting it in a baby stroller and walking out of the aquarium? Okay, I feel like it could be any of these three things. C seems like it would be the most fun, so I'm going to go with C.

29:56You're right, it is C. Oh my God. I can't believe you got that. Police recovered the shark from the guy who wanted it for the, quote, extensive aquarium habitat in his garage. I really see a lot of myself in that guy. All right, here's your last question. According to a 2017 interview, when the sharks at one aquarium wouldn't mate, the staff solved the issue by doing what? Was it A, piping salt and pepper's push-it-into-the-enclosure on a loop? Was it B, putting jasmine oil into their water as an aphrodisiac? Or was it C, putting lipstick on the female shark? Okay, what's the audience thinking?

30:47A. A? Okay, I can't say no to that, then. It has to be A. Oh my god, that's right!

30:57Push It is a cross-species sexy song. Wow. Bill, how did Becca do on our quiz? Well, she did swim a very long way. So we're going to call her a winner. Two out of three. Yeah. I think we can call the audience the true winner though Well Becca Mann is a champion open water swimmer and a writer Becca Mann thank you so much for joining us on Wait Wait Don't Tell Me Thank you for having me This was so much fun

31:37When we come back our panel continues to do anything other than study for our quiz And singer-songwriter Lucy Dacus tells us how she started her career in music as a favor to a friend. That's when we come back with more Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me from NPR. This message comes from Prolon. Want to look and feel your best this spring? Prolon's five-day fasting mimicking diet is a clinically developed nutrition program with the goal of promoting fat loss while protecting lean body mass. Developed at USC's Longevity Institute, it aims to assist the body in entering a fasting-like state that helps reset metabolism, target visceral fat, and support healthy metabolic markers.

32:16Get 15 % off plus a bonus gift when you subscribe at prolonlife.com slash NPR. This message comes from Capella University. That spark you feel? That's your drive for more. Capella University's FlexPath learning format lets you earn your degree at your pace without putting life on pause. Learn more at capella.edu.

32:58Icy topics that are filling your feed.

33:05From NPR and WBEZ Chicago, this is Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me, the NPR News Quiz. I'm Bill Curtis, and here is your host at the Studebaker Theater and the Fine Arts Building in Chicago, Peter Sagal. Thank you, Bill. Thank you, everybody. Hey, if you want to come see us in person, we're here most weeks at the Studi Baker Theater in downtown Chicago. You can catch us on the road as well. We'll be in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on July 9th and in Sonoma, California on July 30th. For tickets and information to all our live events, go to nprpresents.org. Right now, Bill and I are busy getting the playlist just right for NPR's annual beach limbo party.

33:46Everybody is surprised by how low I can go.

33:54But I'm going to be honest with you. I hope our panelists are spending their week off studying the news because apparently some of them haven't figured out that when they appear in our show, I might ask them about it. Here's some of our panelists covering up for their ignorance by being funny. Eugene, don't be alarmed, but this week we were assured that your airplane is not actually outdated and old just because it still has what? No engine? no that would be a problem that you should be alarmed um that it still has a no smoking sign close not only does it have no smoking signs which it shouldn't have because nobody smokes in airplanes but it also seems to have still what oh the ashtrays ashtrays yes people have been seeing ashtrays in the lavatories of planes and thinking oh my god how old is this plane right You think, oh no, was this plane built in the 60s?

34:53And then you think about how well us people who were built in the 60s are holding together right now. And you start to panic. But you can relax. The Washington Post reported this week that the FAA still requires that all airplane bathrooms still have ashtrays. That way they can guarantee that the dirtiest thing in there is not the toilet seat. Why do they have them? The idea is you're not allowed to smoke on airplanes. And they tell you when they give the announcement, there's smoke detectors in the bathrooms. If you smoke in there, it's a crime. Don't do it. But what if somebody does anyway? And they want to make sure that if somebody does break the law and lights a cigarette in there, they want a safe, fireproof place for them to put the cigarette besides a trash can, say, full of paper.

35:40And you especially don't want them flushing them down the toilet because that blue stuff in there, that's leftover jet fuel. Wow. So then what happens to the cocaine that I have in there? Well... You can snort that right off the toilet seat.

36:04Alzo, people are upset... About a lot. It's true, yeah. Actually, I wasn't even a question. People are upset. No, people are upset in Thailand after a parade there went by this museum full of priceless cultural artifacts. And then what happened? They broke in and... No, no. I'll give you a hint. We don't know why they routed the annual subwoofer celebration parade by the National Museum of Tippy Objects. Oh, wow. Yes. I grew up in the South, and dudes would have these woofers in their cars, and they drive by and they rattle every dish, every window in your house. And so they just rattled those artifacts and destroyed them.

36:50That's exactly what happened. The loud music from the parade shattered priceless artifacts. The parade celebrates this particular province's unique contributions to Thai culture, including Rod Hay, which is the relatively recent tradition of modifying cars and trucks with, yes, super powerful loudspeakers. Okay, bad enough, but why did the parade also follow those with floats filled with those sopranos singing so high they shatter glass? The noise was so loud it knocked several priceless pieces of historical pottery off their shelves onto the floor where they shattered. What's the problem? Now there are a bunch more objects and they're much more reasonably priced.

37:31Yeah, I was going to say, they were priceless before, now they have a price. Exactly, now we know. Capitalism. Four for a dollar. I think it's great. More destructive parades. I want to see a Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade where a wind gust makes Snoopy take out the entire Metropolitan Museum. You know what? What? I used to have this picture that I got from a newspaper, and I had it on my notebook for the longest time. It was one time at the Macy's Day parade. They had an underdog inflatable, and he had a menacing look like his eyebrows were. And he was pointing And a gust of wind caught it And it went like towards People and the people scattered Sure And it was such a great I mean it didn't destroy a museum But I do feel it's a similar story And that's why I told it Yeah Katie, according to the New York Times Contrary to the popular belief Held by many pet owners All dogs are what?

38:37Oh, the popular belief is that they're all lovely. So I would say me. What are we even, what are you even asking me for, Tom? All dogs are destined for hell.

38:54I'll give you a hint. Maybe it'll narrow it down. These are the creatures that literally chase their own tails.

39:01Lucy Dacus:So actually they're all really dumb? Yes, dumb. I knew that. I knew that about my dog. Yeah, mine too. Mine's very dumb and she's loud about it. Yeah. The New York Times wants you to know your dog is most likely not a genius. Which is weird because they're always trying to get my dog to sign up for the Wordle. Opening word, grr. Josh. Yes. You have a pug. I do. Smart or dumb? Dumb. She's so dumb. We bought her a step so that she can hop up onto the couch because the couch cushion's kind of high. She sits on the step. I'm just like, come on, get me the rest of the way I have a pug too Is your pug smart?

39:46No No, so dumb So dumb What does your dog smell like? Your pug smell like? She doesn't smell great Mine has a very distinct smell I want to know if this is just a pug thing Is it? Because we've had moments of the Frito smell Frito! That's all dogs I think Yeah, my dog smells like Fritos too. You smell like Fritos. You're like, this dog isn't that bright. And then you smell him and you're like, I just want to meet your face.

40:21This message comes from Prolon. Want to look and feel your best this spring? Prolon's five-day fasting mimicking diet is a clinically developed nutrition program with the goal of promoting fat loss while protecting lean body mass. Developed at USC's Longevity Institute, it aims to assist the body in entering a fasting-like state that helps reset metabolism, target visceral fat, and support healthy metabolic markers. Get 15 % off plus a bonus gift when you subscribe at prolonlife.com slash NPR. This message comes from Capella University. You know that feeling when there's a spark building inside you, that you were meant for more?

41:00That's your own drive pushing you towards what's next. Capella University gets that. With their FlexPath learning format, you can set the pace and earn your degree without putting life on pause. You've built experience and know what you're capable of. Now, this is your time to turn that momentum into more. The only real question is, what can't you do? Learn more at capella.edu. Brazil used to have one of the fastest growing economies in the world. People called it the country of the future. Their songs. O Brasil é o país do futuro. Because it seems like we have it all, man. But then the music stopped.

41:41On the Planet Money podcast, a lot of countries these days aren't rich, they aren't poor, they're just kind of stuck in the middle. Why is that? Listen on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts. Finally, Lucy Dacus is one of the most popular singer-songwriters working today, both on her own and with the supergroup Boy Genius. When she joined us in December, I asked her if it was true that she put out her first record as a favor to a friend

42:05Lucy Dacus:Yeah, he had a school project to do and my friend was working at Reba McIntyre's studio Yeah And he was like, no one's scheduled on this Saturday, should we sneak in? And so the whole record, we recorded it in one day Illegally, well I don't know if it's illegal, but without approval Right, and I guess the first question is, did he get a good grade? I never asked him that. Really? He didn't like, he didn't fail and have to have you record another record, did he? Yeah, and that's what historian is. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. That was the second project. So that's an amazing story. You started playing guitar, I'm told, at 12 years old?

42:45Lucy Dacus:I would say the correct answer is yes. The correct answer is yes. I like the fact that you're already getting into the quiz aspect. That's good. I'm not very... I'm still not the best at guitar. I feel like guitar at that time was hardly listenable. Really? But you're actually quite an accomplished guitarist. You were on a list of some one of the greatest of all time I saw. Yeah. Wow. Do you remember... I'm always curious about this, artists like yourself, like what your first songs were like when you first wrote a song. Do You remember what it was? I had a song called Stupid Cupid, which was like, why won't Cupid come to me?

43:23Lucy Dacus:I was probably like seven years old. What? Yeah, I know. You were already pining for a partner at seven? Yes. Stupid Cupid. I mean, I also had a song that was about people who are upset when someone cheats on them, but it is probably their fault because why would they cheat on you if you weren't hard to be with? Again, I was probably like eight years old. Oh, my goodness. Wow. You were eight years old. What was happening at your elementary school? I'm glad I don't remember. You also, in your early days, before you recorded that school project and began to become very popular, you worked at a, I didn't even know that these still existed within a young person's lifetime, but a photo processing shop in Richmond where you grew up?

44:08Lucy Dacus:Mm-hmm. Wow. Richmond Camera. Richmond Camera. Did that experience inspire any of your writing? Well, it was so mindless, and it was eight hours a day. And so I would sit and do my, like, da-da-da-da-da-da-da-da, and then I had a pad of paper, and I would write songs, and I'd get home, and I'd get on the guitar, and I'd write, like, a song a day at that time, which is not, like, what I do anymore. Wow. Have you considered, I mean, you seem to be nostalgic for when you were that productive. Have you considered taking on, like, a mindless day job again just to reignite the creative spirit? Yeah, I think you're being funny, but I'm not.

44:42Lucy Dacus:Really? I've never thought about that. I'm ready. You're ready. You're ready. Somebody hire this woman for drudge work so she can reach the heights of productivity. The photo counter at Walgreens. I think that's exactly how you dress. Why not? In 2019, you released a song on certain holidays throughout the year and then put out a record of them all called Holidays, and I love this record. how did you decide which holidays to do the real truth is that I had recorded a bunch of things for no reason because it's fun to do and I was like when are these gonna see the world and so I realized that some of them have like a holiday aspect others I kind of could make it up like dancing in the dark we just said that Bruce Springsteen's birthday is a holiday which I stand by.

45:37Lucy Dacus:Right. And then like in the air tonight, like that was kind of eerie. So we did it for Halloween. I also wanted to ask, as you say, one of the holidays, Bruce Springsteen's birthday. And you do think that's a holiday. You're a big fan, right? It was in my house growing up. I mean, it was written out. We had like a big calendar in the kitchen where we put like, you know, basketball practice, church, Bruce Springsteen's birthday. Please tell me you called it, Please tell me you called it the Springsteen. The Springsteen? You're a genius. That's crazy. I have to call my dad.

46:15Yeah. I saw a picture of you with Springsteen. So you didn't meet him, right? Did you tell him about the Springsteen? No.

46:25Lucy Dacus:Oh! I already knew. I'm not that fazed when I meet people, but he like is so important to my dad and to me. And I like showed up at a friend's birthday party and like saw him and I was like, I need to go. I'm about to make a fool of myself. And so I was crying at the bar to a friend. I was like, this is weird. And I should go. And so then I turned around and he was right there and he actually like knew me and knew my music already. So I was just like, I think you're the best. I like, yeah, and he was very gracious. And he kind of, he seems to be like the guy that you want him to be, which is not always true.

47:13Lucy Dacus:It's always true. Well, Lucy Dacus, it is a pleasure to talk to you. And we have invited you here to play a game we're calling Boy Genius Meet Boy Geniuses. So your band is called Boy Genius. So we're going to ask you three questions about geniuses who are also boys. Answer two or three.

47:33Well, okay, you're rolling your eyes. I did warn you earlier it would be dumb. I feel like genius is opposite of dumb, so let's go. Let's go. All right, I appreciate it. That was very charitable. Okay. So as I was saying, answer two or three questions correctly, and you'll win our prize for one of our listeners. Also, who is Lucy playing for? Kimberly Ramos of Chicago, Illinois. All right.

47:59Here's your first question. Math genius Suborno Bari started at NYU last fall at the age of 12 when a reporter asked him, do you sometimes wonder at the fact that you're only 12? What was his response? A, quote, why wonder at that when there's dark matter to wonder about? B, quote, not really. I've seen my birth certificate. Or C, quote, yes, mainly when my classmates go to a bar without me.

48:28Lucy Dacus:I'm going to say the second option I think it's two You are right, it was B, yes He said yes, I've seen my birth certificate He is a math genius, he can count to 12 Alright, here's your next question Doogie Howser was a fictional boy genius Who in the show completed med school at the age of 14 But the actor who played him, Neil Patrick Harris Was not a medical prodigy So how did he get through the scenes Where he had to spout a lot of medical jar while performing surgery? Was it A, he recorded each big word just one at a time and then the editors would just cut away to the nurses a lot to make it sound like he was saying it all at once?

49:07B, he put a card with his lines written on them inside the surgical wound he was supposed to be operating on? Or C, the actor playing the patient on the operating table would whisper the lines to him, taking advantage of the fact he couldn't see his mouth under a oxygen mask? I'm going to say B You say B, you're right It was

49:32Alright, here is your last question Get this right, you'll be perfect Boy geniuses from around the country were once invited To participate in a game show called Our Little Genius where prodigies Answered nearly impossible questions In the pursuit of winning$500 ,000 But the show, the recorded Never aired, why? A, the network head said, people already feel dumb watching game shows. Now we're going to make them feel dumber. B, the phone a friend feature failed when every single contestant asked, does my mom count? Or C, it was shut down when it was revealed the kids weren't actually geniuses. Producers were just feeding them the answers right before they filmed.

50:07Lucy Dacus:I feel like we live in the world of C. We do, sadly. It is a fallen world that we live in, and you are correct. It was C. The whole thing was a scam. It was never broadcast. Also, how did Lucy do on our quiz? She did great. Three out of three. Well done. Great. Lucy Dacus is a singer-songwriter and one-third of the supergroup Boy Genius. Her new album, Forever is a Feeling, is out now. Lucy Dacus, thank you so much for joining us on My Way Time Time. Thank you for having me. It was a pleasure to talk to you. Take care. Likewise. Bye-bye. See you. That's it for our spring is the best time to prepare for summer edition.

50:49We'll be back next week with beautiful new tan lines. But first, let me tell you. 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 writes our limericks. Our public address announcer is Paul Friedman. BJ Liederman composed our theme. Our program is produced by Jennifer Mills, Miles Dronbos, and Lillian King. Special thanks, as always, to Monica Hickey. Peter Gwynn is helping us get sunscreen in that hard-to-reach spot on our backs. Our visual host is Emma Choi. Our ops manager is Jasira Vardak.

51:17Technical direction is from Lorna White. Our CFO is Colin Miller. Our production manager is Robert Newhouse. Our senior producer is Ian Chilag and the executive producer of Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me. That's Mike Danforth. Thanks to everybody you heard on this week's show. That would be all our panelists, all our fabulous guests. Our guest scorekeeper, Alzo Slade, and guest host, Nageen Farsad. And, of course, Bill Curtis. And thanks to all of you for listening. I'm Peter Sagal, and we'll see you next week.

51:53This is NPR. This message comes from Grainger. For the ones who get it done, Grainger offers the professional-grade products you need to get the job done. With fast delivery and access to technical product experts ready to help you meet any challenge. Call, click Grainger.com, or just stop by. This week on Consider This, the president trading massive amounts of stock and settling lawsuits with himself. One legal expert calls it epic corruption in plain sight. There really needs to be a moment of reform and reconstruction after the wreckage of the current moment. A view of that moment and what reform could look like on Consider This.

52:34Listen on the NPR app or wherever you get your podcasts.