Elizabeth Hurley Slips Into A Sweater Instead Of A Bikini, Interesting Super Bowl Gambling Angle & Fists Fly During Waffle House Fight
Texas travel ball hardos don't make any sense
Now I've heard it all from Travel Ball Hardo Chris B. in Houston who sent me a link on Michael Brantley retiring after 15 years of MLB service. The retiree says he wants to be a "Little League" coach for his boys.
"Something tells me they're using Little League as all-encompassing," I fired back at the Travel Ball Hardo who knew I wouldn't fall for the "Little League" trap when it comes to multi-multi-millionaires in Texas and baseball.
And then the Travel Ball Hardo said something that absolutely amused me.
"Absolutely they are. And many going further than 4 hours," Hardo Chris B. sent back. "The unfortunate reality is that in order to make it onto a high school team kids really need to play select / club / travel ball in middle school. Rec / house ball is so awesome to play with kids from the neighborhood & school but the upper levels of that don’t prepare them enough for the next level."
Further than four hours? HOLD UP.
"If baseball is so great in Texas, why do teams need to go further than four hours?" I responded.
Travel Ball Hardo Chris B. was caught in a bad spot. I was right. He knows it. His fellow Texas travel ball hardos know it.
The travel ball scam had been exposed. There is absolutely ZERO reason for Texas youth baseball teams to be leaving the Republic of Texas.
"Well they should not. It's bullshit for sure," the Hardo replied. "We live in the 4th largest city in the nation. There are multiple tourneys here every weekend at every age group but many of the local select orgs still take multiple trips out of town. The teams talk it up that you're going to be seen by different scouts at different events, but in reality there are only scouts except maybe at the highest level teams' games."
I'll give Hardo Chris B. credit for admitting it.
Folks, if your kid is playing travel ball in Texas and you're traveling to Florida for 10U travel ball tournaments, that's a trip for you to get drunk with your friends at a hotel by the beach. It's not about the baseball. You're from Texas. You can't spit in the wind without it hitting a 6'5 stud flamethrower for Billy to test his skills against while playing for Alpha Elite.
Even Travel Ball Hardo Chris B. can agree with that.
The destination wedding drama brought up by 'Anonymous' who doesn't want to go to the destination wedding caused quite a run of emails
I think it's important to go back over the predicament that Anonymous is in here with his destination wedding drama.
Here's what he sent to me this week and then we'll dive into the responses from the community.
My wife's nephew is getting married in Mexico next year. Wife wants the whole family of five to go. I have zero interest in spending all that money for the wedding and am currently refusing to go. So it'll be her and an undetermined amount of our children going.
Am I wrong for not wanting to go?
Is she crazy for being mad that I don't want to go? I would be interested to see what everyone thinks.
• Rick D. from Brentwood, TN unleashes a few thoughts and he's also going through this drama right now:
I think there is nothing more rude than for someone to expect guests to fly to another country to attend their wedding. My wife’s very good friend’s daughter has scheduled her wedding for this July in Italy. My wife in some sort of delusional state thought we would go. I told her that I would be a maybe if the wedding was in a church 10 miles from our house, but spending thousands of dollars to see someone get married in another country is a non-starter. We are a confirmed no.
• Screencaps lifer Mig writes:
I am currently witnessing something similar with people very close to me. I personally experienced similar situations early on in my current 34 year marriage. What I learned to do is protest early then capitulate and go along with the program.
I considered this a "chip" in my pocket, similar to a bar chip you get when someone buys you a beer and you already have 2 in front of you. I knew there would be things I wanted to do that would not fly over well when you have 4 kids between 0 and 4 years old (twins).
If an invite to a long golf weekend or fishing trip came my way and I received resistance, I would pull out the chip and cash it in. It worked pretty well overall and I didn't have to part with half my stuff.
• Wilda is all fed up with destination weddings:
That destination wedding question kinda set me off. I don't get people. I'm a woman, I get that you want a nice wedding. But really! If your definition of "a nice wedding" is that for your wedding, you want friends and family to part with a few thousand dollars to go to it, you are off in the head and off in your heart/spirit. Couples who have destination weddings should not expect their guests to pay airfare, hotel, meal and other expenses that total into a few thousand dollars just to attend. You must have a huge ego and sense of entitlement to ask people to do that. Have a destination wedding if you can pay for it, but don't send out invitations to guests.
If people are wealthy, then do what you want. If the guest would like to spend their funds to have a nice vacay, then go to the wedding. But expecting your middle-class friends/relatives to fork over that kind of money is presumptuous. Telling your friends/relatives to set their own vacation plan money and wishes aside and demand what you want is just rude, rude, rude. Unless the bride or groom's family is wealthy, and willing to pay ALL of the expenses of their guests, I say don't go. Buy a nice gift and explain that your dollars are already set aside to take your family to Yellowstone or whatever, that you can't afford both.
Sorry for the harsh tone, Joe. That destination wedding thing pressed my last-verve button. People need to stop being so selfish. They do destination weddings to save themselves money, but don't consider others.
• Dean from Monroe, GA is equally as mad:
Let me preface my take on destination weddings by letting u know my age, 65.official grumpy old man.
What kind of person thinks it's ok to invite people to spend thousands to go see someone get hitched?
People w families have only so much vacation time, money to spend on vacation. These women, and lets b honest, it's the women, are just being selfish. Spoiled, and entitled.
To this old man it's just another way to slowly emasculate society. All the money spent on this silly s--t could definately go towards better things. I wish i could type better, I would really go off on a rant about all this stuff. I earlier ranted to u about the bridal shower. If u get any man to reply in favor of this shit, he will b a millenial or even younger. Pull his man card!
• Myron from the UP writes:
Wasn't going to jump in but it involves family. If the wife is going to Mexico with some or all of the kids the husband should be there. Perhaps I am showing my age but a husband and wife needs to be together on these thongs. If, and it is a big If, you have the money and time off, supporting your spouse will only strengthen your relationship. But make it a decision between the two of you. Kids opinions don't count, they have no concept of money or opportunity expense.
• Joe from Westerville echoes the others:
Hi Joe: Thanks for continuing to make Screencaps a daily destination. Re: Anonymous and Destination Weddings, my advice to Anonymous is:
1) Destination weddings in general are a terrible idea. There are too many moving parts, including anyone participating in them. Transportation in our current world is a variable that will affect at least some of the guests, if not the wedding party itself.
2) If you don't want to go, don't go. Full stop. If you go and something goes wrong the unspoken stench of "I told you so will linger in your household for months. If everything goes well you will still be miserable. There is no upside to going. Making your wife happy on this issue is not an upside. There will be something later that will make her unhappy. That is just the nature of marriages in general and women in particular. She'll get over it.
3) Your wife is not crazy. She is just power-tripping. I assume that her nephew is her sister's son and she needs to show her sister that she has you on a leash. Slip it.
4) You are not being unreasonable by declining to attend. Your wife is being unreasonable by expecting you to go and using anger to manipulate you into going. Stand your ground.
• Dave K. says:
Destination weddings, like holiday weekend weddings, are selfish in my opinion. In destination weddings, you are asking folks to spend a lot of money, give up an abnormal amount of vacation time from work, essentially taking a vacation not of your choosing.
Some of this stuff is getting out of control, destination bachelor and bachelorette parties. I’ve heard of some kids going broke being in these weddings. What about immediate family members that can’t foot that bill? That said, if there is no pressure from the bride and groom to attend, fine. The bride and groom need to know their audience.
Are they just saying, “the more the merrier, but here’s what we are going to do and where”? If so, great. But if they get upset Aunt Edna and Uncle Jim can’t or won’t make it, it’s on them.
• Hank is out on destination weddings:
Congratulations to Anonymous for having some frigging common sense and a pair of balls to stand by his convictions.
This whole "Destination Wedding" thing is just another example of the self-absorbed, narcissistic tendencies of post Gen X generations that have never lived in an analog world. It's no longer about the "thing" whatever that thing may be - whether it is asking someone to the high school dance, or a marriage proposal, or a wedding, or any of the other milestones in a person's life. (Don't even get me started on gender reveals!)
The actual thing itself now takes a backseat to the PRESENTATION of the thing on social media, whether that be Facebook, Insta, TikTok, or whatever . . . The presentation has become what matters most - so that you can show everyone else how truly amazing the thing was and get a bunch of "likes" and comments to reinforce that it was "OMG LITERALLY THE BEST <THING> EVER!!!"
And if the participants in "the thing" have to fork over 10 times as much money as they would have before "the thing" became performance art? Well, that is just the price one has to pay to live up to modern expectations!
It is all complete and utter BULLSHIT!!
Unfortunately, it will take a lot more than common sense people like Anonymous saying "No Mas!" for this trend to end. But if nothing else, it is at least a good start in the right direction.
• Michael F. in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida says:
My experience with these types of affairs goes back to the early 2000’s when my brother and his second wife decided to have a Cancun Wedding.
Back then we just moved to Chicagoland into a brand new home/development with only a few neighbors. My wife and I had just welcomed our third son, seven years after his next oldest brother and a full decade after his oldest. After horrible experiences traveling with the elder two when they were still in strollers (Prime Example: about an hour in we suffered a broken stroller wheel deep in DisneyWorld in mid-September heat so I end up lugging two kids and a busted up Graco twelve miles to the monorail back to the parking lot while my wife carried the cooler and baby bag) we wanted no part of international travel with a two month old.
Being new in town we couldn’t just leave the kids with neighbors, heck we barely knew them! My parents were attending, so we couldn’t ask them to watch the kids while we jet setted. My mother in law was recently widowed and we would never think of burdening her with two Tasmanian Devils and a newborn. While regretting we couldn’t celebrate the nuptials, we could not justify spending that kind of shake for a three day bender for the bridal party and three days of sheer hell for my wife and I.
Our decision drove a spike into the relationship with my brother and his second wife, though that division did not last long as neither my brother nor my wife and I are grudge holders and we fully explained our decision. Sad ending is that my brother divorced a few years ago after more than a few years of extreme incompatibility.
General Rule of Thumb: destination weddings work for young singles/childless couples but creat a logistical nightmare for most married couples with children.
• Brandon C. in Pinckney, MI who told the Screencaps world about defense contractor shows in Russia writes:
Easy solution for the guy looking at the Mexico wedding... Mexico is crazy dangerous right now. With my job as a defense contractor, I have to report any potential foreign travel for approval.
I had a family wedding in Mexico last spring and I put in the paperwork and it came back red flagged as high threat of violent activity / criminal activity.
Yes, even the sanitized tourist corridors of Cozumel, Acapulco, Mexican Riveria, all-you-can-drink-all-inclusives.
For the civilian population, you can see the official notifications on https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/international-travel/International-Travel-Country-Information-Pages/Mexico.html
Here's a real dilemma: What would you say to a destination funeral?
• Derek writes:
So I have a similar predicament coming up this year, but for a destination FUNERAL. My wife's mother was born and raised in Sweden, but has been living here in the United States for the past 35 years.
She had been dealing with health related issues for a while, and unfortunately passed away last month. Her wishes were to always be buried in Sweden next to her parents, which I totally understand and respect. My father-in-law, though, is expecting his 3 daughters and their respected families to all fly out to Sweden for the ceremony.
This means round-trip international flights for myself, my wife, my 2 year old and my almost-4 year old in July for a funeral. Flying from Dallas to Fort Meyers with my kids to see my parents is always an adventure, I don't even want to think about what this international flight with a layover would look like.
Am I crazy for not wanting any part of this? Are there any suggestions from other SC readers on what I should do while I am there?
I am going to be in Helsinborg, Sweden.
Kinsey:
Derek, here's one where I'm not rocking the boat. Standing your ground on the wedding of a nephew is one thing.
You're not crazy for not wanting any part of this because mom will have been gone for seven months when she's buried in Sweden, but this is where you find it in yourself to stay positive, keep the energy as high as possible in the memory of your mother-in-law and hopefully the kids don't torture you too much in the process.
Your wife will want the support from you as she buries her mother in her final resting spot. The last thing you want on your conscious is to not be there to support your wife during this time, which might be the only time she ever visits the resting spot.
Someone on here knows Helsinborg, Sweden. I guarantee you're about to get suggestions.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
The Ts are already digging into Spanish culture
• Mike T. writes:
Just a few pictures to get ya caught up, I’ll start my blog in the new day or so for a bigger picture.
Plaza Mayor
Spanish deli
Catedral de Santa Maria la Real de la Almudena
Pork is a way of life in Spain!
And here's a Spanish lunch. Fried calamari sandwich with potatoes and hot sauce!
Kinsey:
Is it wrong to ask if you get a lemon to spray over the calamari or does that ruin it?
Thank you to all the readers who sent in advice for the fart fan I need to buy for our bathroom renovation
I knew the reaction would be huge, but I didn't expect so many of you to be up on sones and the noise level of fart fans.
• Voiceover Guy Mike L. in California writes:
Years ago I sold plumbing, faucets, toilets, and exhaust fans. I always went with the higher CFM's because who cares how loud it is if you can't stand the smell from the previous visitor? Nothing's worse than the smell of air freshener mixed with God knows what. I agree with the sound, you don't need to shake the house, but who wants to hear his buddy ripping the pre-deuce gasser?
Mike also expanded on the story he told about meeting his wife while working in guest relations at Disneyland:
My celebrity sighting may or may not qualify, goes back to my time at Disneyland, in Guest Relations. One of our job duties was to escort celebrities who came to the park. As I shared, my wife and I met there. Well, we honeymooned at Walt Disney World and coming back to work I found out that I had Tom Hanks and family that weekend. We had a great time, they asked about how I met my wife, the honeymoon, etc. I actually made Tom laugh a couple of times with well-placed one liners. At the end of the two days we were back at the hotel and he and Rita went to hand me an envelope. I politely declined and then Rita asked where we had registered.
I really didn't expect anything, but, a couple weeks later there were two boxes delivered to the house with all of our everyday dishes and flatware with a very nice thank you note.
A few years ago, my older daughter was at work (Yeah, Disneyland) and ran into him and asked him about it. He remembered, asked how I was and said to say hi.
Hats off to you, Hookstead, Amber, Sean, Anthony, and everyone who makes Outkick a daily must read for me. Keep up the great work.
• Bob R. in East Tennessee knows exactly which fan I need to drown out the "noise":
We have done two bathroom renovations (master and guest) in the past year and replaced the old noisy fans. This is what I bought:
www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09738RXB6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
They are pretty quiet, even on the highest setting, but they do produce kind of a low droning noise which should be adequate to cover all but the most explosive emissions. They also use very little electricity, and you don't have to change the light bulb.
I'm 67 & retired - a long time Steelers fan (4 Super Bowl victories in the 80's). Love the column. It's my first stop every morning after checking my email.
• Brendan in Indianapolis writes:
Loyal SC reader here, and a die-hard TNML guy (I acre, zero-turn). I am also a professional remodeler. We specialize in high-end kitchens, bathrooms, and whole-house projects.
We do 5-6 bathrooms per year. I often am asked about the bath fans we install. To be honest, the manufacturers rate them in sones for noise, but I always am more interested in the CFM rating. They are actually not designed for "blocking" the noise coming from the inside, but rather for removing moist /stinky air from the room (shower and tub activity create a lot of moisture that needs to be removed quickly).
Now, the bigger the fan, the higher the cfm, which typically means the louder (higher sones) the unit. I typically recommend the highest cfm, with the lowest sones. Translation: Stronger fan, with quieter operation. If you are looking for the higher noise output, then you would typically want the cheapest fan you can get. The home centers sell the cheaper ones for around $25. Those things sound like a helicopter is landing in your bathroom!
They are usually rated 3.5-4 sones. Anything under 1 sone is going to be virtually silent. Happy medium would be anything with 1.5-2 sones, with a cfm rating of 80-150 cfm. If it is a 1/2 bath, with no shower, then the lower end of that should be very sufficient for your needs.
Hope you have good luck figuring it out. End of the day, it's not the most important decision in the remodeling process. Hard to get it wrong.
Who needs one of these?
Tom Q. sent over this:
That's it for today. My mom is landing at the airport in 15 minutes, so I better get going.
Have a great weekend and remember to