Patreon Preview #324: Welcome to Minnesota ❄️

Summary

Hey Riddle Riddle Podcast Summary Episode: Patreon Preview #324: Welcome to Minnesota ❄️
Release Date: May 23, 2025
Hosts: Adal Rifai, Erin Keif, John Patrick Coan (Headgum)

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Introduction to Minnesota

The episode kicks off with the hosts introducing Minnesota, affectionately known as the "North Star State" and the "Gopher State." Aaron sets the stage by highlighting Minnesota as the 32nd state:
“The North Star state, land of 10,000 lakes. Gopher State. We are doing Minnesota.” [00:02]

Personal Experiences and Impressions

Cathy shares her limited but fond experiences in Minnesota, having lived there for about 25 years and recalling her last visit seven years prior for a friend's wedding:
“I haven't really spent a lot of time in Minnesota. I like Minnesota.” [00:32]

Bobby reminisces about his trip to Minneapolis, praising the city's cleanliness and mentioning his awe at the immaculate streets and sidewalks:
“I remember vividly being, like, being gobsmacked at how clean the city is.” [00:46]

Minnesota’s Vibrant Culture

The hosts delve into Minnesota’s rich cultural landscape. Bobby mentions encountering a music venue that once hosted Nirvana and acknowledges Minnesota as Prince's hometown:
“I know Prince is from Minnesota somewhere.” [01:24]

Cathy adds depth by discussing the extensive theater scene and the unique architectural features like sky bridges and underground pathways, which are particularly useful during Minnesota's harsh winters:
“I know they have a lot of Guthrie interconnected, like, sky bridges and underground things for the buildings downtown.” [01:32]

Humorous Anecdotes: The Moose Encounter

Cathy recounts a memorable encounter with a moose near the Canadian border in Minnesota, humorously comparing its size to Shaquille O'Neal:
“The moose was like seeing three Shaquille o' Neal's.” [02:17]
“I would equally would not know what one of them was going to do when they got a basketball in their hands.” [02:27]

Bobby jests about a fictional crossover:
“You've never seen if they made a Rocky and Bullwinkle with Shaquille o' Neal and, like, Joe Pesci.” [02:37]

Focusing on Mall of America

Transitioning to one of Minnesota's most famous landmarks, the hosts discuss the Mall of America. They highlight its vastness, diverse stores, and attractions:
“Mall of America, created in 1992. I have not been there.” [03:41]

Cathy shares an amusing memory of the Olsen twins promoting a movie at the mall:
“They had a banner that was three stories tall that was, like, hanging down the middle.” [04:04]

Bobby and Cathy praise the mall's comprehensive offerings, including roller coasters and mini-golf:
“It's like every store you could ever find at a mall. Plus, like, roller coasters.” [04:36]
“And mini golf as well.” [04:43]

Real or Fake Mini-Game: Mall of America Edition

The hosts engage in a fun mini-game discerning whether certain mall attractions are real or fake:

1. SpongeBob SquarePants Rock Bottom Plunge
   Aaron: “That is real.” [05:51]
   Bobby: “Real.” [05:52]

2. The Paul Bunyan Log Chute
   Aaron: “That is real.” [06:05]

3. Dora's Sky Adventure
   Aaron: “It's fake.” [06:11]
   Cathy & Bobby: Agree it’s fake. [06:20]

4. The Tater Tot Twister
   Aaron: “Real.” [06:24]
   Cathy: Shares a humorous past experience. [06:28]

5. Fairly Odd Coaster
   Aaron: “It's real.” [06:44]
   Cathy: “No.” [06:50]
   Final Verdict: Fake. [06:53]

6. Minnesota Ice Slide
   Aaron: “It is fake.” [07:05]

7. Barnyard Hayride
   Aaron: “It's fake.” [07:16]

The game showcases the hosts' camaraderie and playful banter, highlighting the unique and sometimes quirky attractions of the Mall of America.

Favorite Stores at Mall of America

In a show of trust and sincerity, the hosts discuss their favorite mall stores, hypothetically assigned a $100 budget:

• Aaron:
  “Candles and anthropology.” [08:14]

• Cathy:
  “The LEGO store… and if available, the American Girl store.” [08:20]
  “I would be ecstatic.” [08:38]

Bobby doesn't explicitly state his choice in the transcript provided but engages in the conversation by exploring the availability of stores like American Girl and Hooters, adding humorous remarks:
“I bet they have the other continents too.” [08:52]

Plans and Closing Remarks

The hosts express excitement about possibly visiting the Mall of America during their Minnesota tour, contemplating adding extra days if shows sell out:
“We're definitely going to this mall when we go there.” [07:39]
“We might add another day… spend all Monday at the mall and then go to our live show.” [07:57]

Cathy humorously refers to the Mall of America as "Darth," a playful nod to a previous joke, keeping the atmosphere light and engaging:
“To me, the Mall of America will always be Darth.” [05:13]

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Notable Quotes:

• “I was around that same age when I saw Shaquille o' Neal in person for the first time. And the moose was like seeing three Shaquille o' Neal's.” — Cathy [02:17]
• “The mall was so big that it was like you could walk the whole mall and not see them.” — Cathy [04:14]
• “I hope so. Otherwise it's like... just. Just weirdo parents being like, I think we could ride this.” — Bobby [06:54]

Conclusion

This Patreon Preview episode offers a delightful glimpse into Minnesota's charm, the grandeur of the Mall of America, and the hosts' humorous interactions. Perfect for fans eager for more exclusive content, the episode blends personal anecdotes with playful games, encapsulating the essence of the "Hey Riddle Riddle" podcast.

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Join the Clue Crew: For more engaging episodes and bonus content, consider supporting the podcast at Patreon.com/heyriddleriddle.

Transcript

[Aaron]

The North Star state, land of 10,000 lakes. Gopher State. We are doing Minnesota.

[Bobby]

Gopher State.

[Aaron]

Like I said, it's the 32nd state. And what is your experience with that state?

[Cathy]

I've only ever lived in three states. Indiana, Illinois, and Minnesota.

[Aaron]

Yes. And what do we think of Minnesota, you guys?

[Cathy]

Well, I haven't lived there in. Let's see, how old am I now? 36. Drop the 25 years. 26 years. Um, so I.

[Aaron]

But you've been there since.

[Cathy]

Yes, yes. The last time I was in Minnesota was for a friend's wedding, like, seven years ago, I want to say. So I haven't really spent a lot of time in Minnesota. I like Minnesota.

[Bobby]

I've been to Minneapolis. I can't remember why, but I remember vividly being, like, being gobsmacked at how clean the city is. Like, I remember, like, in terms like the sidewalks, the streets. I was like. I did not see a speck of trash. It was fairly immaculate when I went there, and I was very impressed. And I remember seeing a music club, music venue with a lot of, like, maybe faux signatures on the outside and somebody telling me, like, that was the last place Nirvana played or something.

[Cathy]

Whoa.

[Bobby]

And I know Prince is from Minnesota somewhere.

[Cathy]

I know it's a big theater town. There's a huge theater scene there. I know they have a lot of Guthrie interconnected, like, sky bridges and underground things for the buildings downtown. Because I want to say six months out of the year, you don't want to be outside there. Which is probably also why ADOL found it so clean, was because for six months of the year, people don't use the sidewalks. I remember when I lived in Minnesota during the wintertime, I did the thing where I took a glass of water and threw it up in the air and watched it freeze before it hit the ground. That was fun.

[Aaron]

Oh, yeah.

[Bobby]

That was a big to do. Minnesota.

[Cathy]

I saw a moose. The first moose I ever saw was in Minnesota up on the Canadian border. So, like, far north in Minnesota, almost in Canada. It was humongous. It scared the absolute shit out of us.

[Aaron]

Can you, like, give it like a scale to me? Explain to me how big it was?

[Cathy]

I was around that same age when I saw Shaquille o' Neal in person for the first time. And the moose was like seeing three Shaquille o' Neal's.

[Aaron]

Whoa.

[Cathy]

Yeah. And I would equally would not know what one of them was going to do when they got a basketball in their hands. I'm like, it could be. It could be some wild shit.

[Bobby]

You've never seen if they made a Rocky and Bullwinkle with Shaquille o' Neal and, like, Joe Pesci. I think that would be. I would watch it.

[Aaron]

I would as well. Well, let's talk Minnesota. You guys had more experience with it than I remembered. I've been there as well. I loved it. I wanted to pick a state that we're headed off to on this tour.

[Cathy]

Smart, smart.

[Aaron]

Very excited. One of my best friends lives there currently, so that all good reasons to talk about it.

[Cathy]

Are they gonna come see the show?

[Aaron]

I think so. I like.

[Cathy]

Let's give them a comp. Let's give em a comp.

[Aaron]

You got a comp ticket plan? Yeah.

[Cathy]

If you're Aaron's friend, you get a comp. Yeah, we'll give you two. Bring a date.

[Aaron]

Who are you dating now? Bring a date.

[Cathy]

Who are you dating now? Are you dating anyone? You don't have to be, but if you want to share this moment with a special someone.

[Aaron]

Yeah, if you want to bring someone along. Okay, so here are some famous people who were born there. Prince, Bob Dylan, Judy Garland, Jessica Lange, Chris Pratt, Winona Ryder and Sinclair Lewis. The author. Here are some shows.

[Cathy]

Chris Pratt is from Minnesota.

[Aaron]

Yeah.

[Cathy]

Wow.

[Aaron]

I'm gonna skip that part. Here are some famous locations. Mall of America.

[Cathy]

Yep. Been there.

[Bobby]

Oh, yes.

[Aaron]

Mall of America, created in 1992. I have not been there.

[Cathy]

Can I tell you there when I. And I. I may be getting the movie wrong, but when I was at Mall of America, the Olsen twins were also there and they were on a, like, promoting their movie. And I wanna say it was Billboard dad, but it might not have been Billboard dad, but I remember. What's that?

[Bobby]

Brother for sale?

[Cathy]

I don't remember what movie it was, but I remember they had a banner that was three stories tall that was, like, hanging down the middle. It was Banner Dad. That would have been very funny if it said Banner dad just for that thing. But I remember. Yeah, they were. They were there when we were at the Mall of America, and it was chaos. But also, the mall was so big that it was like you could walk the whole mall and not see them.

[Bobby]

So it's like the appeal is it's like every store you could ever find at a mall. Plus, like, roller coasters. That's the appeal.

[Aaron]

Yeah.

[Cathy]

And mini golf as well.

[Bobby]

Okay.

[Cathy]

Indoor. Yeah. Is it still open?

[Aaron]

Must be.

[Cathy]

Man, that's crazy. I would love to go to Mall of America now and just see what it could possibly be after all of the malls have, like, died, basically.

[Aaron]

Approximately 40 million people visit the mall annually.

[Bobby]

Damn. Can we go before or after our show?

[Aaron]

Let me try to figure out.

[Cathy]

We probably could. Hey, to me, the Mall of America will always be Darth.

[Aaron]

Oh, I guess it's not too far from where we're gonna be. We could go.

[Cathy]

Aaron, for me, the Mall of America will always be Darth.

[Aaron]

Okay, It's Darth Maul. Sorry, I was missing your joke because I was looking something up on a map. Well, then, you know what? Let's. Let's have that. Bring us to our first game. This one's a mini game. Real or fake Ride at Mall of America.

[Bobby]

Whoa. Okay.

[Aaron]

I tell you to keep your own score, but I did that earlier today, and both of you told me to fuck right off.

[Cathy]

It was hard to do your words.

[Aaron]

All right, SpongeBob SquarePants. Rock bottom plunge.

[Bobby]

Real.

[Aaron]

That is real.

[Cathy]

Damn. Are these all current or are these just, like, historical attractions that were at Mall of America?

[Aaron]

I'm just saying. I don't know.

[Cathy]

Okay, great. I don't know either.

[Aaron]

The Paul Bunyan Log Chute.

[Cathy]

That seems real.

[Aaron]

That is real. Dora's Sky Adventure.

[Bobby]

No.

[Cathy]

What could that possibly be? Like, does Dora have a big tie in with sky, or did they just want to do indoor skydiving with, like, a Dora theme? Real. I want to say real.

[Aaron]

It's fake.

[Bobby]

Target kids for skydiving.

[Cathy]

Yeah.

[Aaron]

The Tater Tot Twister.

[Bobby]

Real. That's gotta be real. In the food court.

[Cathy]

I remember when I was in seventh grade, someone gave me one of the worst Tater Tot twisters that I've ever had in my entire life.

[Bobby]

I forgot your nipples are the size of Tater Tots.

[Aaron]

Yeah. I've seen you fake. Fake. Yes. Fairly odd coaster.

[Bobby]

Fake. I hope that's fake.

[Cathy]

I gotta say fake, right?

[Aaron]

It's real.

[Cathy]

No.

[Aaron]

Based on, I think, the fairly odd parents ip.

[Bobby]

Yeah, I hope so.

[Cathy]

I hope so.

[Bobby]

Otherwise it's like. Yeah, just. Just weirdo parents being like, I think we could ride this.

[Cathy]

I would not get on a coaster that built itself as odd.

[Aaron]

The Minnesota Ice Slide.

[Cathy]

Minnesota Ice Slide. Oof. I fake.

[Bobby]

I'll say fake.

[Aaron]

It is fake.

[Cathy]

Yeah.

[Aaron]

Back at the Barnyard Hayride.

[Bobby]

Fake. A hayride is mall.

[Cathy]

But the Mall of America is the place that that would be a thing that could happen. I'm gonna say real.

[Aaron]

It's fake.

[Bobby]

Damn it.

[Aaron]

You guys are falling for the traps.

[Cathy]

I thought it could be, like, a seasonal thing, too. Like, they have, like, a hayride in there, like, around hay season.

[Aaron]

You know what? Maybe they do have a hayride. You know what? Maybe they do. Great.

[Cathy]

Thank you, Aaron.

[Bobby]

Hayride.

[Aaron]

We're definitely going to this mall when we go there.

[Cathy]

You guys, I think that, look, there's a possibility if this, the Minneapolis show is, or the St. Paul Show, I should say is selling really well. But if it sells out, we might add another day. And if we add another day, it would be that Monday. So then we could spend all Monday at the mall and then go to our live show. It's a big mall.

[Bobby]

I want to do something and this requires a lot of trust. I want everyone to be sincere. What is your number one mall store? And this can be past or present. You get $100 to spend at a store in the mall. What's your go to?

[Cathy]

Damn, this is tough.

[Aaron]

I mean, candles and anthropology.

[Bobby]

Okay.

[Cathy]

If it's, if it's, if it's me and it's past, it's gotta be like the LEGO store. Although I don't ever think I went in a Lego store. I think I always just bought Legos at like Kmart or whatever. But now, like now if you told, you know what, 10 year old me that I could go to the mall and spend a hundred dollars at the Lego store, I think I'd be ecstatic.

[Aaron]

Also, if they have it, American Girl store would be actually my number one answer.

[Cathy]

They have to have it.

[Aaron]

No, they might not.

[Cathy]

I'm looking it up at Mall of America. They have every store there. I would be shocked if they didn't have an American Girl stor.

[Aaron]

I'm looking, I'm looking.

[Bobby]

And I bet they have the other continents too. Yeah, the South American Girl store looks like they don't.

[Cathy]

Damn it.

[Aaron]

But they do have a Hooters. So.

[Bobby]

Same thing. Same thing.

[Cathy]

That's the American Women's Store. 1, 2, 3, 4. Hate Riddle. Riddle's clue crew listen to the rest of the episode now by starting your free 7 day trial at patreon.com heyriddle riddle.