Meet the podcast that doesn’t mind if you sleep through it

If you’re losing sleep these days, maybe John Moe can help.

Moe, a Twin Cities author and humorist, created the podcast Minnesota didn’t know it needed. A podcast that doesn’t mind if it puts its audience to sleep. A podcast designed to do just that.

“Settle down now and get comfy,” the show’s theme song croons. “It’s time to sleep with a celebrity.”

His “Sleeping with Celebrities,” available on most podcast apps, features interesting people. Celebrated authors. Famous actors. Great thinkers. A queen of Minnesota crop art.

He challenges those interesting people to be boring. To chat in low, soothing tones about topics they find mildly fascinating: Bone broth. Disc golf. The Indianapolis airport.

“We had [actor] Alan Tudyk on,” Moe said. “We explained what we wanted. There was a moment of silence, then he said, ‘Oh, like my yardstick collection?’”

Yes, Moe agreed. Exactly like your thousands and thousands of yardsticks. The “Resident Alien” star talked about them for almost an hour — leaving listeners with a deeper appreciation for vintage oak yardsticks, even if he left them with no memory of how the episode ended.

Some guests, “you can’t believe you’re talking to the person. Especially about something dull,” Moe said. “Tamara Keith from NPR knows more about the White House than anybody. But we talked to her just about pie.”

”The Joy Luck Club” author Amy Tan talked backyard bird feeders. Former Minnesota Viking Chris Kluwe described, in granular detail, how to punt a football. Comedian and storyteller Baratunde Thurston shared the secret of creating perfectly clear ice cubes. And, of course, crop artist Jill Moe talked with her husband about what it’s like to glue one seed after another after another until you win a blue ribbon at the Minnesota State Fair.

“Seeing all the crop art at the fair? A thrill,” John Moe said. “Hovering over a table with a little lamp, putting millet in a specific sequence? Yeah, that’s going to zonk you out.”

At the University of Minnesota’s sleep medicine clinic, Dr. Akinbolaji Akingbola knows that a little boredom before bedtime can be key to a good night’s sleep. For Minnesotans in the midst of Operation Metro Surge, Moe thinks, a little boredom might be a blessed relief.

A good night’s sleep, Akingbola said, starts long before bedtime.

His tips: Take time to process the events of the day an hour or two before bedtime. Pray, meditate, journal or just let yourself remember — so your mind doesn’t decide to dredge those memories up the moment your head hits the pillow.

Fill the rest of the evening with calm activities you enjoy: Read. Do a crossword. Watch a favorite show. Listen to a relaxing podcast. Turn down the thermostat. Dim the lights.

Don’t get into bed until you’re sleepy. Don’t stay in bed if you can’t fall asleep.

“Trying to force yourself asleep is like trying to grasp at water,” Akingbola said. For more tips, he recommends downloading Insomnia Coach, an app developed by the Veterans Health Administration.

Recent weeks have brought a surge of sleepless new listeners to “Sleeping with Celebrities.”

He’s also the host of "Depresh Mode,“ a podcast that invites very funny people to talk about the very serious topic of mental health. He’s not a therapist, he’s not a counselor or sleep expert; just a guy who wants his neighbors to rest easy.