Nicole Kidman's Odd Vanity Fair Cover, Tenn. St. Basketball Player Loses Her Hair & Sapp Cycling
Let's not waste any time this morning...let's get going!
On dogs:
• Craig V. gets us started with a great story of bonding with the family dog...after the birth of his daughter. Sandy and Craig had to adjust their lives and this is the result:
Joe—
I didn’t get to the ‘Caps until late last night as I was traveling yesterday. I did give you a tip of the proverbial cap as I was driving through Northwest Ohio.
Anyway, the story about how we got our dog Sandy is one of my favorites. I remember it was June 2nd, 2013. I was at our condo’s pool talking sports with a couple buddies. I saw the top of my wife’s car drive by. She had hinted at going to look at this rescue dog earlier in the day. The place we were living at the time didn’t permit us to have a dog, so I tried to talk her out of it.
Anyway, the clouds rolled in that afternoon and I decided to go back to the house and flipped on The Memorial golf tournament. I was scrolling through Twitter and enjoying the quiet. Just then, I see my wife—whose name in my phone is “The Boss” wants to FaceTime. She’s got this dog’s face up against hers, with tears in her eyes says, “I want to save this dog’s life.” So I drop what I’m doing and run and get some pet supplies (kennel, food, etc.) Sandy was attached at the hip to my wife for the first year or so we had her. She loved me but The Boss was her favorite.
Fast forward a year and 12 days later, we welcomed our daughter into our lives. We used to have this large sectional sofa in our living room. One day shortly after our daughter was born, Sandy and I were sitting on opposite ends of this sectional. My wife was feeding our daughter and neither one of us were getting much attention anymore.
Sandy looked and me and I at her. She stood up, walked the length of the sofa and snuggled up right next to me. From that day forward, her and I have been inseparable. How much do I love this dog? My LinkedIn picture is of both of us. She doesn’t hunt or do tricks. But she is the best companion our family could ever ask for.
• Daniel N. shares a message of appreciation for Rob W.'s incredible email that ran Thursday morning:
You were dead-on in saying that Rob W.’s email would rock me, cause I was sitting there tearing up while reading it with my dog Macie curled up next to me. Having unexpectedly lost my first dog around the age Macie is at now, I made sure to hug her extra tight after that email, cause I just want to cherish every moment I have with her as long as she lives.
I’m sure lots of people say this about their dog, and I know there are plenty of incredible dogs out there, but I know that she is the sweetest thing you could ever meet. She puts a smile on the face of everyone who meets her, and every person who gets to know her says she is hands down the sweetest dog they have ever met. In fact, I guarantee that if you put her in a room with any of those blue checkmarks, within 20 minutes they’ll forget that Trump was ever president or that Covid even exists, they’ll just be so warmed by her presence that they’ll forget all about their bitterness and fear.
P.S. I absolutely love that you’ve asked about people’s dogs (and other pets), and I can’t wait to read what others have to say. Attached are some pictures of Macie so feel free to share.
• Will T. writes:
Good morning Joe from your neighbor here in Pennsyltucky, longtime reader first time emailer. Thanks for doing something to make our work days shorter here in the land of the lost as the big Js would put it. Here is my dog Lola:
• Mark in Frisco wants to share his dog, Teddy:
Good morning Joe. Definitely enjoyed the run-up to the Super Bowl, and congratulations on getting there. I know it's hard to separate the pain of losing the big game from the enjoyment of getting there, but keep in mind you were one of 2 teams who were still relevant up until Valentine’s Day.
My neighbor is a Lions fan, so he got to watch his former QB win a championship. That fan base is still back where you were afraid Bengals fans would always be. I grew up a Cowboys fan, and that fan base is tortured by on-field and off-field performance.
You hit a soft spot on dogs. I think God gave us a wonderful gift with these animals. I’m sharing a pic of my current “co-worker”, Teddy. She’s a 12-year-old goldendoodle, and is the sweetest animal on the planet.
But reading Rob W’s story of his dogs hit home. Back when my wife and I first got married, we agreed to get a dog as a stop-gap until we had kids. We went to the SPCA in Dallas to find one. I was looking at 2 puppies in one of the cages when a dog in the adjacent cage licked my hand. Milo came home with us that day(named after the bar where my wife and I met), and lived for 15 wonderful years.
She was a chow-mix, and a beautiful soul. She was in terrible pain at the end, and we took her to the vet to put her down. The doc gave her a sedative, and went to get the “shot”. I was petting her and telling her what a good dog she was. She nuzzled my hand, and I swear she smiled. She closed her eyes and was gone. She didn’t get the “shot”, she just let me know she’d had a good life and let go. I thank God that I was able to experience that feeling, even though I tear up thinking about it even after 14 years. Dogs are the best.
• Laura L. checks in:
I'm a little late on the dog pictures. I know you have been pretty devastated about your Bengals. If only a bone and a blanket could cure your blues! Anyway, this is Grrr. He is blind but goes through life with a great appreciation for patches of sunlight and the love of his family. I hope you will find comfort in the same during the coming weeks!
Thanks for all you do!
• Al W. in Lansing, MI writes:
I just read Screencaps for today and read the stories of people and their dogs. I could not pass up the chance to write about our dog Spanky who we found at the side of the road when she was about 6 weeks old. Even though she had a lot of health issues through the years she gave us hours of love, joy and all-around goofiness.
After a night of significant seizures we had to make the heartbreaking decision to put her down around sunrise of December 31, 2020. My wife held her as she passed from this world. I never cried so hard and have never grieved as I have for her. My wife and I still tear up when we talk about her at times. The point is they never leave you. I have come to the conclusion that dogs are an everyday reminder of God’s unconditional love for us.
On pigs & sheep:
Guy G. in western New York writes:
I love my dogs, but they don’t need more attention. My wife would argue otherwise, but she’s not writing you.
Elwood and Sean though… These are her pets, and she pampers them. They have their own shed, complete with heated water bowls, salt licks and food areas. We stockpile hay and straw, because “it’s really cold out there!” They’re made to be out there!! I digress. They are great animals, and take care of all our food scraps and scare delivery people.
They’ve been seen in TNML photos, as they have full reign of the property. Sean is our 4 horned sheep, and Elwood the Pig gets regular summer massages and beers.
Here they are, as common pets are going to get all the attention.
On Mexican food:
• Look, at this point I'm numb to the food pics that Mike T. & Cindy T. send each night after they crush another amazing Mexican dinner, but one thing in these photos that gets me every single time is the limes, jalapenos and the sauce options at each table. FIVE sauce options....are you kidding me? And those limes...those sweet limes. I would take my time with those tacos. I would use every last lime. Each bite would feature a different sauce. I'd be there for two hours working my way through the menu.
Mike T. writes:
Greetings from breezy and cool (75) Mazatlan Mexico. Went off the beaten path today to a barrios we’ve never been too, the effort was rewarded!
Super Tacos La Carreta is a neighborhood taco place that only does beef, the whole cow, if you get my drift!
We stuck with the basics, el pastor and quesadillas! Unbelievably delicious and flavorful. Topped with cilantro and onions. Choices of salsas and picos!
6 pieces, $7. You might notice no beer. They don’t sell it and you can’t bring it in. I’ll be damned if I’ll drink a Coke with those delicious tacos!
Hasta Manana amigo
On vintage figures in sports history:
• Beau in Toledo writes:
Idea: background stories on National Sports Folk from NWO… suggested:
Jerry Glanville, born not far from You, former head coach of the Houston Oilers & Atlanta Falcons, owner/driver of the Glanville MotorSports #81 ARCA Car(not a stellar career, but he got to go fast!), and for a short time while he was there, tutored by The Man Himself…
I was told he also coached the BG high school team… … and he worked at General Mills in Toledo w my Pops…
Stories there…
Pops told me he used to drag race Jerry on the still-being-built I-75 from toledo to bg to hit a bar after they finished working 2nd shift… Pops had a '64&1/2 Mustang, Glanville had a '62 Vette… heard about those stories when I took Pops to Toledo Speedway when Jerry ran the #81 there…
I dug out the autographed Starter Jacket from that weekend for a pic…
It'd be a fun project to catch up with that guy…
If You do, tell Him Rocky(my Pops) says hello…
####
It's interesting that Beau in Toledo mentioned Jerry Glanville. I actually heard an interesting story about Jerry a couple of weeks ago. The story, as it was told to me, goes that Jerry and a buddy were interested in this house a guy I know, Dan, is selling, but Jerry's buddy found it first, so Jerry, being a good man, didn't run up the bid on his friend.
Jerry's such a good guy that he went over to Dan's house to personally handle the inspection. There's 80-year-old Jerry, the NFL legend, knocking on Dan's door to do a walk-through before his buddy writes a check.
Dan's just sitting there, fully aware of Jerry's credentials, telling Deion's old coach to come on in.
So if you were wondering what Jerry Glanville's up to these days, he's in my town, where he grew up, looking to buy a house and help out his friends.
Have a great weekend. Yes, there will be Saturday Screencaps.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com