Thomas Dambo spent three weeks building five giant trolls from recycled materials at Dix Park—and what he's done with 24 tons of trash and a mission called "Waste No More" is something you need to see. Also: emergency response times improving and the biggest Christmas light displays returning to Wake County.
Your daily dose of good news from Wake County with Steve Rhode.
Stories: Wake EMS response times improving: https://www.cbs17.com/news/cbs17-investigates/new-data-shows-wake-ems-response-time-for-high-priority-calls-is-dropping/
Lake Myra Christmas Lights returning to Wendell: https://triangleonthecheap.com/lake-myra-christmas-lights-wendell/
NC Chinese Lantern Festival 10th anniversary: https://ground.news/article/nc-chinese-lantern-festival-2025-back-for-its-10th-year-at-koka-booth-amphitheatre
Thomas Dambo trolls at Dix Park: https://indyweek.com/culture/trolls-thomas-dambo-dix-park-raleigh/
More about Thomas Dambo's work: https://www.visitraleigh.com/plan-a-trip/visitraleigh-insider-blog/post/thomas-dambo-trolls-dix-park-raleigh/
Dix Park Conservancy info: https://www.dixparkconservancy.org/art/dambo-trolls
Raleigh Christmas Parade info: https://abc11.com/post/raleigh-christmas-parade-2025-parking-start-time-route-more/18137236/
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Episode Transcript
Good morning, Wake County. I'm Steve Rhode, and here we are
again. Well, you know, right now at
Dick's Park, there are 5 wooden giants hiding in the trees.
Trolls taller than your house, built from trash nobody wanted
anymore. Also, Wake County's 911 crews
are actually getting faster at saving lives.
(00:23):
A Christmas light display in Wendell that uses a quarter
million bulbs is coming back. And downtown Raleigh's getting
ready to shut down streets for aparade that kicks off every
holiday season around here. I'm glad you're back with me.
And hey, I got a dad joke for you at the end.
(00:44):
Safe for the kiddos in the car. So here's something you don't
hear every day. Emergency response times are
getting better while more peoplemove here and the population
keeps aging. Wake EMS just released new data
showing they're actually responding to high priority
calls faster than ever before, even though demand keeps
(01:07):
climbing. That's the kind of trend you
want to see when you think abouthaving to dial 911 someday.
It means somebody's doing something right behind the
scenes, even when services are stretched thin.
All right, if you're the type who drives around looking at
Christmas lights with a thermos of hot chocolate or maybe is
(01:30):
something a little spicier, let's be honest.
We, I mean, we all do that at times.
Mark November 26th Lake mirror Christmas lights are coming back
to downtown Wendell and Triangleon the cheap says it's one of
the biggest displays in the state.
We're talking 250,000 lights synced to music, 1/4 million
(01:54):
lights, and it's free. Might be worth a little drive
out there once it's dark enough.Speaking of lights, the North
Carolina Chinese Lantern Festival is back at Coco Booth
Amphitheater in Cary for the 10th year.
You know, I've been to that a couple times.
It's a lot of fun, and between the food trucks in the
(02:18):
incredible displays and people all just in a good vibe, it's a
fun time. This year they got a brand new
floating display on Symphony Lake, which sounds like the kind
of thing you need to see in person.
I am. It's always one of those events
where you show up thinking, hey,you know, this will be nice, and
then you walk outgoing. OK, That was actually
(02:39):
incredible. Yeah. 10 years straight, they've
been doing this and that's a transition at this point.
By the way, if you make, you have to get tickets, so go to
the Coco Booth Amphitheatre site, get tickets, and you can
also get more preferred parking ticket if you want.
(03:01):
So check that out. Now this next one's different.
There's a guy named Thomas Dambo.
He's a Danish artist and he lives on a farm in the
countryside and his parents taught him to build toys and
tree houses out of whatever got thrown away.
Not new stuff, just scraps, you know, pallets, branches, things
(03:21):
nobody wanted, not even Martha Stewart.
And he took that stuff and he turned it into a life mission.
Waste no more. Thomas has built over 170 giant
wooden trolls from recycled materials and placed them across
5 continents. Not small trolls.
(03:42):
We're talking 10 feet tall and up, hiding in forests from
Denmark to South Korea to Wake County.
Yeah, he's here. For the past three weeks, Thomas
and 336 volunteers have been working at Dick's Park. 24 tons
of reclaimed wood. 50,000 Nails,old bourbon barrels from
(04:07):
Kentucky, fallen tree branches, building 5 trolls and the mother
troll. She's got a tail that's 645 feet
long snaking through the pine Groves made entirely from barrel
staves. You got to see it, to believe
it. This isn't just public art.
(04:28):
I mean, Thomas is showing peoplethat what we throw away can
still hold beauty, meaning and magic.
He's built this whole global scavenger hunt.
Four and a half million people ayear use his troll map to find
them. And now Raleigh, Wake County,
(04:49):
it's part of that story. You can wander Dick's Park for
free right now and find them tucked into trees.
It's part art installation, parttreasure hunt, part reminder
that creativity doesn't have to cost the planet.
It can actually help it. That's the kind of thing that
makes you think about what's possible when someone commits to
(05:10):
a vision. Thomas Dambo took a childhood of
building with trash and turned it into a worldwide movement.
And now we get to walk through it.
Hey, one more before I let you go.
If you've been in downtown Raleigh during the holidays, you
know the Christmas parade is oneof those things that just
(05:31):
happens. I mean, floats, marching bands,
fire trucks, hot chocolate stands, kids waving from the
curb. Well, ABC 11 already has the
route start times and parking details if you want to plan
ahead and beat the crowds. It's not groundbreaking news,
but it's the kind of news that reminds you winter's officially
(05:52):
here. Some years you go, some years
you don't, but you always kind of feel it when it's happening.
Hey, I've got links to all the stories in the podcast
description. You want more information?
That is the place to go. And before I give you your dad
joke, I need to remind you thereis an e-mail newsletter.
(06:16):
If you want to sign up for free,go to tapyournews.com.
Sign up for the podcast newsletter and follow me on
whatever platform you're listening on right now.
Click subscribe, click the plus button, Give me a thumbs up and
give me a five star review, please.
That's all I want for Christmas.You don't even have to wrap it
(06:37):
up. You don't even have to tuck it
under a tree. Just drop me a five star review.
Thank you. I appreciate that.
Well, that's what's going on. Oh, before I let you go, here's
your joke. You ready?
I gave my handyman A to do list,but he only did jobs 1/3 and
(06:59):
five. Turns out he only does odd jobs.
I like that one. All right, I will see you next
time. Love you.
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