Britney Spears Poses For Wild Photos With Her Dog, Alejandro Kirk Is On The Garage Beer All-Star Team & Rickie Fowler's Crazy Bogey
I just have to laugh at the money The Athletic has burned through
Who didn't see this coming? You had a couple of blowhard young executives show up on the scene like six or seven years ago saying how they were going to put newspapers out of business -- they could've just let newspapers put themselves out of business -- by buying up all the reporting talent at these papers and then build up a massive subscription base that would then dominate the content world.
You had blue checkmarks making long tear-jerker Twitter announcements on how they were leaving the print world for this new amazing start-up called The Athletic. Then the blue checkmark would have to pimp out subscription links to their followers.
Look at how successful that has been over the years for the company. Just flat-out lighting cash on fire and all I can do is laugh at this nonsense.
Those of us who were in the independent sports site world had to sit and listen to dumb valuations, blue checkmarks ramble on about how they were revolutionizing the content game and jerkoff executives brag about what they were building with investment funding. Meanwhile, the whole time they were blowing right through all that cash and some.
What a beautiful gig if you can get it and you're a scumbag who doesn't mind sitting there letting it all burn.
I'll just be off over here minding my business like I've been doing for all these years. This business plan has worked just fine for me and my family.
Minds of America
• This minding my business thing leads right into a message that popped up at 6:54 a.m. from Kurtis J. right here in NW Ohio. He writes:
You want to know how much TNML has invaded the minds of the regular American man? I just woke up at 3:30AM to take a leak and what crossed my mind? That I forgot to send in the photo of my freshly cut, work in progress, getting greener and more lush grass that I so enjoyed cutting on a Thursday evening, even if it was rushed to beat the rain.
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Do you think Athletic subscribers are waking up at 3:30 a.m. with a semi-virtual mowing league on the brain?
And it needs to be said, Kurtis has that rough looking like it's ready for the U.S. Open. I'm actually impressed he got the job done before the rain that rolled in last night.
More career/life advice for Danny H. in Alabama
• Richard H., Ph.D. writes:
Look at positions in Higher Education. Student Services jobs are very fulfilling such as Admissions, Financial Aid, Housing, Veterans Assistance .....
I also served in the Marine Corps as an 0302, Infantry Officer 1962-66. Vietnam Veteran, then joined the Army National Guard . Spent 44 years in Student Life work at three Universities: U. WYOMING, CSU-Ft. Collins and CSU-PUEBLO. LOVED THE WORK - 22 Years as Dean of Student Life at Pueblo.
If you enjoy working with and teaching students higher education is great! I'm 83 years old now and truly loved the work. Miss it.
Semper Fidelis & God Bless,
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Hold up...did Richard just say 83? Folks, I think we might just have ourselves the oldest Screencaps emailer on the books. You guys have no idea how pumped I get over moments like this where a column can resonate with an 83-year-old all the way down to the college guys who pop in from time to time.
I mentioned it earlier this week in my own advice to Danny H. and I'll say it again: lean into those old-timers who've been through these life battles. That said, I'm forwarding Richard's email to Danny. This is what it's all about, folks.
• Joe O. in Maine writes:
Back in the day, I thought I was going to change the world by teaching as well. I loved school and had a bunch of great teachers that changed my life. I wanted to be like them. When I was 34 I was fed up with where I was in life. So I became a police officer!
I worked the night shift for three years and finally got the Detective spot I always wanted. It wasn't a general investigation spot. It was the Crime Scene Investigation (CSI) position! I know in today's world it is crazy! I hear stories from my children that are in high school. The school system is nuts...... I still have the drive to help society in a different way. Instead of teaching full time, I can teach kids of all ages about forensics when I'm not standing over a body, or at an autopsy, or mapping a scene(UAV, Drone), doing bloodstain pattern analysis, shooting reconstruction, etc.
Have you ever thought about law enforcement? School resource officer? Great money! Good benefits, state retirement! Great area to live 4 seasons!
https://www.bangormaine.gov/applypolice
I am not a salesman, just giving you an opportunity. Stay safe!
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An 83-year-old emailer and we hear from Maine. This is a good day for Screencaps' reach. I know we're gaining steam with readers in Boston who are stuck in woke-topia, and now it seems the OutKick tentacles are branching further into the northeast.
Thank you to Richard and Joe O. for sending great messages for Danny H. and those who think they're stuck in a career. There's hope out there.
On concerts
• JB H. writes:
Two best concert / trip entries. Am sure every reader has great stories, but I’ll put both up against anyone’s string of wins. We crushed it.
Woodstock 1994. Four of us. 20 years old.
Drove from Nashville TN to D.C. overnight. Walked to the Lincoln Memorial and to the Capital at sunrise.
Left D.C. in time to catch a Yankee’s game that afternoon. Got lost in the Bronx in a minivan with TN tags, thought we were dead. No cell phones, no map quest, just kids on the open road.
Ended up alive and in Saugerties NY for the festival.
164K tickets sold. 550K people showed up.
Turned into a free for all. Camped for three days. Every square foot of ground was covered with a tent. Crazy town.
New Orleans / Baton Rouge. Sept 1995
All of the below was unscripted. Can’t make it up.
Last minute decision to drive from Auburn AL to New Orleans on a Thursday. Skipped class. (Note for kids: Not one regret.)
Friday started at Café Du Monde, then Pat O’s, and then Lafitte’s Blacksmith Shop. (Among Others). All gas. No break. No hotel. Slept in the car for some amount of time. Some rough accommodations, but no one cared. At all.
Left New Orleans for Baton Rouge sometime early Saturday. Gameday. Let’s go!
Tailgated the entire day with LSU fans. Gumbo. Jambalaya. Ceiling fans hanging from trees. All you can eat and drink. No questions asked. Fantastic day on all fronts. (If you’ve never been, get it on the list.)
LSU / Auburn Football in Tiger Stadium at night. Place is Wild. Crashed in someone’s sunroom in Baton Rouge. Friend of a friend of a friend.
Roll back to New Orleans on Sunday in time for the Saints / Falcons game in the dome. Don’t feel like we can miss that opportunity, so we snatch some tickets and are sipping on dome foam at kick off.
At some point, we catch wind that Pearl Jam has a show that night. Make our way toward Tad Gormley Stadium and secure general admission tickets. It’s on. Maybe four rows from the front. Total chaos.
The Ramones opened. (Of the “I Wanna Be Sedated” among others fame.)
Pearl Jam rolls onto the stage and cranks for 2+ hours.
Ten minutes in, Vedder has to stop the show to have security pull a kid from the crowd, so they didn’t get trampled. Less than ten feet from us.
Closed with Neil Young’s “Rockin’ in the Free World”
Place was wild. It might not be every one’s flavor, but no one can deny the passion. Makes my hair stand on end watching it even today.
As often declared….
“THERE IS NO SUBSTITUE FOR LIVE ROCK N’ ROLL!”
• Eddie from Acworth, GA is in on this subject:
Thought I would contribute to the concert thing-but my experience led directly to a "doing hard things" category.
My friends dragged me to a Phish concert in 2013, and I got hooked and have been to 45 of their shows since then (yea I am one of those weird jam band guys). It is certainly not for everyone-in fact I would put it in the category of you either love it or you hate it. Eg-I love it, and the wife hates it. To each his own when it comes to music.
I was blown away by the lead guitarist Trey Anastasio,and after the concert I was determined to learn to play guitar-after having never touched an instrument in my 43 years of life at the time.
The first year was tough-but I stuck with it-and I now play every day. Yea it was hard because I was self-taught-but damn well worth it as that is something I can now do and enjoy for the rest of my life. I have even played on stage with a buddy of mine who performs locally at bars-absolutely nerve wracking at first but quite the thrill once you get comfortable.
Glad I went to that first Phish show in 2013 as it changed my life for the better-and motivated me to do a hard thing.
You guys ready to fire up the grill/smoker/Blackstone/Traeger talk that dominated Screencaps back in the fall?
• Scott B. in SC writes:
I saw the question about the Weber grill purchase and I had to weigh in. I do not work for Weber but this is my 3rd Weber and the customer service has been fantastic.
I am including a picture of my grill with the grilling pan that can be taken out for regular grilling space. A picture of my other grill that I use when I have more time (sorry the 55" tv fit better I did not go 65"). The last picture is my fire pit, and I am a patio beer guy, and I am within 2 weeks of my sod being ready for my first mow of the year.
I bought the Weber natural gas grill (Summit) so I do not have to worry about propane tanks and running out of fuel in the middle of a cook. This model has a smoker box so I can get smoke on my food if I want it. It has the rotisserie so I can rival Costco. It has two searing units in the grill and so I can sear and get things to a cooler part of the grill. It is big enough with enough burners that I can do indirect cooking or cook different things and cook with heat zones. It also has the cast iron grill that I can put in any location in the grill and use like a Blackstone. I do not have a side burner as I have had them in the past and not utilized them. I chose counter space instead. It comes as a stand-alone or as a built-in like I have.
I have cooked with all types of grills and for me this gives me the best features for how I like to cook. I did not get involved in the grill debates because to me you have to use the tool that gets the job done for you. I do not want to criticize others for their preferences. I know the best way to cook a steak for restaurant-quality, is not how I do it. But I am cooking it for my enjoyment.
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That's a great email from Scott and I am thankful for all the information, but I can't stop looking at that sunshine. I haven't seen a clear sunny day like this without 45 mile per hour winds in weeks, Scott. Thank you for a shot of Vitamin D this morning.
Not trained for this
• Dillon L. from Crosby, North Dakota is back and the golf course is open, but he has a problem:
Hey Joe, thought you and the readers might enjoy my latest adventures at the ol' Crosby Country Club. So a little background, I coach the high school golf team. Yesterday was the nicest day of spring so far (made er to 70) and the local hockey team has to do some work for charity.... This takes about 90% of our team so we are down to 1 high school golfer at practice.
We decide it's pretty nice out so might as well just hit a round together. Everything's going pretty good until hole 4 where a little family of geese and their eggs call home. The geese are around 80 yards away, no big deal. I hit my drive and next is my freshmen partner. He proceeds to hit a low line drive that smacks one of the geese directly in the head, snapping his neck around 360 degrees... Never seen or heard anything like it.
We both look at each other in utter disbelief. I HAVE NOT BEEN TRAINED FOR THIS! I feel like I need to take the lead since I'm the adult but I have no clue what I need to do. I instantly try to get ahold of the greenskeeper, no luck. Try to call one of our friends that lives on the golf course, he might have a gun or something to take this thing out of its misery... no luck. At this point my 15 year old farmboy partner shrugs and says "I guess I'll go ring its neck." We start getting close to this thing writhing around and mama/papa goose (once again, I'm not studied in geese) starts attacking us. We get the heck out of dodge, leaving his ball in the dust.
Luckily this wasn't a tournament and we just decide he can drop up by me. We continue the round discussing the possibilities of how much damage a goose attack could truly do. I'm sure I did NOT handle this correctly, but I blame the lack of goose training in all of our coaching clinics.
This great country
• Dan K. writes:
Just writing to tell you how much I enjoy you ending your column every day with some version of “have a great day across this great country”. As simple as it sounds, it always brings a smile to my face.
Here's what I emailed back to Dan:
Quite often I wonder why TV stations don't end their shows with messages like this after they've beaten people over the head with sludge for 23 minutes.
Screw it, I'll carry the flame for the cause.
Speaking of this great country
• This week, Bill L. in Nebraska sent me a package of beer:
Sending 2 bottles of my English Extra Special Bitter (4.8%abv) and 1 bottle of my Double Rye IPA (8.7%abv). Since you're also Commissioner of the TNML I'm including 2 cans each of of my favorite lawnmower beers. Zipline Dear Old Nebraska Brew (tailgate lager beer) and Cosmic Eye Everything Has Eyes (hazy ipa).
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Let me say that Bill's one of those guys I really enjoy hearing from. He's well-traveled. He is passionate about his beer. He loves the Crock-Pot game. He knows the grilling game. He rooted for MY Bengals in the Super Bowl.
And now I have the honor of sitting back to suck down a seven-pack hand-picked by Bill. These are going to be patio and basement beers. I'm going to sit down and really dive in and give them the respect that Bill showed to me by sending them from Nebraska.
I cannot say enough how much I appreciate the connection so many of you have made with this column.
Here's to a great weekend celebrating the moms across this incredible country. Go out there and make it a great one -- after that long lunch here in a few hours followed by a quick nine at the home track.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
