Jessica Alba Celebrates Her Lady Parts, Snoop Dogg Crashes Nashville Bar & Puka Nacua Has The Meats
Y'all, I am exhausted. Truly.
Over the past week, I have barely slept, I'm averaging 15,000 steps a day, and I haven't had a moment to myself.
No, I don't have a toddler, and I didn't pick up a second job as a bartender downtown.
I adopted this guy:
If you're a Nightcaps regular, you know I lost my dog to cancer back in January. It's been a really rough five months since we got Lucy's diagnosis in October, and at the risk of sounding dramatic, I just haven't been the same since saying goodbye to my constant companion of nearly 16 years.
I told myself it would probably be a while before I got another dog — maybe a year or so. But that didn't last long.
I started getting puppy fever last month, and I asked my husband if he'd be open to at least keeping an eye out for a rescue dog who might be a good fit for us. He wasn't fully on board with adopting a new pet so soon, but he also doesn't possess the ability to tell me no. It's a good quality to have in a husband.
A couple of weeks ago, I saw a picture of a 1-year-old German Shepherd up for adoption. He had been pulled from a kill shelter in Alabama and brought to a local rescue here in Nashville. I immediately fell in love with his silly ears — one up, one down — and I convinced my husband to go with me to meet him last Tuesday.
Turns out, he didn't need any convincing. As soon as we walked through the door and laid eyes on Rocky, my husband was enamored. They bonded instantly. We brought him home that night.
(Amber Harding Snyder)
Rocky is a very good boy — he's goofy, loves people, and he's extremely smart. We've only had him a week, and he's already learned all of his basic obedience commands and walks like a champ on the leash. He still has a few puppy tendencies and some separation anxiety, but I can already tell he's going to be the best and most loyal adventure buddy. We are PUMPED.
Now I just have to get used to cleaning up all this hair.
If you have any expertise in German Shepherds (or Malinois or Dutch Shepherds… any breed of fur missile, really) send any and all tips to Amber.Harding@outkick.com! I already know he needs extraordinary amounts of exercise (that part is fun for me, actually), but I'm open to all the knowledge you have.
And, of course, if you want to follow Rocky's adventures, follow me on Instagram. Or just read Tuesday Nightcaps.
Speaking of, let's get to that, shall we?
Drake Bulldog Was The Weekend MVP
The Drake Bulldogs had a big weekend — dominating the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament and punching their ticket to the NCAA Tournament. But nevermind all that. Because the real winner in St. Louis this weekend didn't play any basketball. Heck, he probably didn't even know there was basketball happening in the same room.
A moment of appreciation, please, for the actual Drake bulldog — Griff.
Now, bulldogs aren't exactly an original or creative live mascot. In fact, at last count, there were 15 Division I schools who play in honor of the wrinkle-faced, couch-potato chunk dog. But every time I see one on the sidelines — looking like he would rather be literally anywhere but there — I always get a chuckle.
Now, I'm not bad-mouthing bulldogs. In fact, I had a bulldog once. Well, my ex-boyfriend had a bulldog, but he was always at my house. That dog had absolute rocks for brains, and that's being generous. He snored, he farted, he communicated in grunts (I've met some men like this, too), and if he wasn't sleeping or trying to find something he could eat with his little Chiclet teeth, I'd often catch him touching himself on the couch. When I'd call him out, he'd get embarrassed and bury his face in a pillow.
He was such a doofus it was actually endearing. And I'd venture to guess Griff shares some similar characteristics.
So would I have a bulldog again? No. But if you have a sedentary lifestyle and just want a best buddy who matches that speed, then that breed might just be your match made in heaven.
Griff did get me thinking, though, about the best canine mascots in college sports. Here are my Top 5:
- Smokey (Tennessee). My alma mater, so maybe I'm biased.
- Tuffy (NC State). This might seem out of left field, but the Tamaskan (a mix of German shepherd, Alaskan malamute and Siberian husky) is a cool-ass dog. And it actually looks like a wolf. My thoughts and prayers, though, to whoever has to vacuum after this little buddy.
- Reveille (Texas A&M). She just seems so dainty yet so dignified. Also, she has five actual diamonds on her blanket to signify her rank as the highest-ranking member in the Corps of Cadets. What a diva.
- Dubbs (Washington). He's the mascot for the Huskies, but (fun fact) he's actually an Alaskan Malamute. I grew up with two Alaskan Malamutes. Majestic giant balls of fluff.
- Handsome Dan (Yale). Solely because his name is Handsome Dan, and he is, indeed, much more handsome than that big ol' chunk "Uga" down in Athens.
The goodest boy in college sports.
(Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images)
Alright, let me hear it. Who would you put in your Top 5? Did I nail it, or where did I go wrong? Email me at Amber.Harding@outkick.com. After Selection Sunday, I'll do a full ranking of all the dog mascots in the Big Dance.
And I'm already prepared for the hate mail from Georgia fans.
Jessica Alba Celebrates International Women's Day
In case you didn't know, it's Paris Fashion Week. I actually just learned this little tidbit myself.
Jessica Alba showed up to watch one of the many runway events wearing a long white coat with some black lacy lingerie underneath. If you look very closely at that coat, though, you'll notice an interesting detail on the button.
"My button is a vagina. Little detail. Don't worry about it. Isn't it cool?" Jessica says in an Instagram video.
It's actually a vulva, Jess. Misnaming the female anatomy is a personal pet peeve of mine. But we'll let it slide because she seems very nice.
The subtle detail was Jessica's way of celebrating the "divine feminine" on International Women's Day. (I'm just waiting for the gender identity cult to come out of the woodwork and call her a "transphobe" for suggesting that all women have vaginas/vulvas.)
The actress sent out an International Women's Day post on Instagram, too.
"On International Women’s Day, I’m standing in solidarity with women everywhere to #AccelerateAction—because equality isn’t just an idea, it’s something we have to fight for, push for, and demand now," Alba wrote. "Let’s break the cycle. Let’s challenge bias. Let’s lift each other up. And let’s make sure the next generation doesn’t have to wait 133 years for the equity they deserve. Who’s with me?"
I'm not entirely sure what aspect of gender equality it's going to take 133 years to achieve, but sure, we're with you, Jessica. As long as we're all clear on what — exactly — a woman is.
But at least we got the right genitalia. That's a good place to start!
And now I'm reminded of that one episode of Everybody Loves Raymond where Marie creates an "abstract" sculpture.
Puka Nacua Has The Meats
Eat your heart out Arby's.
Now, I promise I didn't intend to segue straight from lady part buttons to manly meats in Nightcaps today, but sometimes in life there are happy accidents.
I just wanted to share this absolute masterclass of a grilling session put on by TikTok-famous chef Jack Mancuso and Rams wide receiver Puka Nacua.
These dudes whipped up a Wagyu tri-tip and a slab of ahi to sheer perfection. They threw it all together with some well-seasoned bone marrow, guacamole and a few runny eggs… BOOM — the manliest charcuterie board you've ever seen.
I'd love to show you more of Jack's phenomenal food porn videos, but WordPress isn't letting us embed TikTok videos at the moment. You can watch them here, though — AFTER you finish Nightcaps.
I'm starving now, and suddenly nothing in my refrigerator seems worthy of eating.
Snoop Dog Does Surprise Performance In Nashville
This month marks 10 years since I moved to Nashville. This once quaint and charming town has changed A LOT over the years and even in the decade since I became a permanent resident. But one thing still holds true: You truly never know who you're going to run into in Nashville.
Case in point: On Sunday night, who wandered in for a surprise performance in Midtown? None other than the Doggfather himself — Snoop Dogg. The legendary rapper treated folks at Losers Bar & Grill to a rendition of "Gin & Juice." With a full house band!
Back when I used to frequent the Nashville bar scene, I ran into a sh*tfaced Morgan Wallen at that same bar more times than I can count. I've also bumped into Kenny Rogers (RIP), Kane Brown, Sam Hunt and a handful of other entertainers that I can't remember at Losers. But I've certainly never been lucky enough to accidentally stumble upon a Snoop Dogg concert.
Turns out, Snoop was in town to shoot a music video with singer/songwriter Ernest. They collaborated on a yet-to-be-released song called "Gettin’ Gone."
I mean, if Beyoncé can win a Grammy for Best Country Album, we might as well make Snoop a member of the Grand Ole Opry.
While we wait for that song and music video to drop, though, we have another very exciting week ahead here in the Music City. It's SEC Tournament time! OutKick's own Trey Wallace will be onsite to cover everything happening on the basketball court, but here's a quick look at what you can expect just outside of Bridgestone Arena:
One More Thing: A Hairy Situation
A teenager from India has just broken the Guinness World Record for hairiest face.
Yes, that's a thing.
Lalit Patidar has a rare condition called hypertrichosis, which causes excessive hair growth on the body — even the face. And when I say rare, that's an understatement. According to Guinness, only approximately 50 cases of congenital hypertrichosis — since someone's birth — have been documented since the Middle Ages!
Check this guy out.
I mean, I'd probably get that lasered off or something, but Lalit is proud of his unique look.
"I am speechless," he said when presented the award. "I don’t know what to say because I’m very happy to get this recognition."
Lalit has also built up a strong social media following (266K and growing on Instagram) where he shows off his luscious facial locks. And now he's forever immortalized in the Guinness Book of World Records!
I say "forever" because I just don't see anyone topping this record anytime soon.
Somebody get this kid a Head & Shoulders endorsement. I want to see him in a commercial with Troy Polamalu.
OutKick Nightcaps is a daily column set to run Monday through Friday at 4 p.m.
Follow me on X / Twitter at @TheAmberHarding or email me at Amber.Harding@OutKick.com.