Paige VanZant Has Big News, Billie Jean King Sends Best Wishes To Zelenskyy Through Pelosi & A Knight-Keady Summit
Hey Russian hackers, you don't actually want my Instagram account
There I was this morning trying to put the finishing touches on this edition of Screencaps when suddenly I was locked out of my Instagram account, which means I couldn't put the finishing touches on this post because I wasn't done embedding Paige VanZant photos. More on her later this morning. She made big news overnight with a new job opportunity that came along.
So I had to sit there and go through the process of getting my account back...blah, blah, blah. Look, you hackers really need to know that there's not much in that account besides guys tagging me with fried chicken and mowing videos. It has to be theee most Middle America white guy Instagram account known to man. Food, Instagram models, weather anchor bookmarks, and sports.
Oh, and videos of boats trying to make it through Haulover Inlet down in Miami. I love those videos.
Hack all you want, you freaks, you're not exposing any dark secrets from me!
Anyway, let's get down to March Madness business. It turns out you guys do want a Screencaps bracket challenge. The emails were passionate. They were straight to the point. You guys want action and bragging rights within the Screencaps community.
• Mig writes:
Screen Caps bracket would be good. I used to do give aways for a big corp. You can do something small but gives folks some privilege. You can set an entry fee for 2-5 dollars. Everyone that enters gets a Screen Caps coin.
Cost of the coin will be less than a buck. They can use it as a ball mark golfing, something their buddies don't have. Sweet 16, great 8 and final 4 prizes are also purchased with the initial money from the coin buy in. You can do the entire give away with no money out of pocket for the company yet everyone got a coin and the winners get some bragging rights with some cheap swag the losers didn't get.
####
A first issue Screencaps coin -- with inflation -- could send a few of you guys over the top and into retirement. Maybe a lawn mower on one side and a Busch Light tallboy on the other?
• Brent P. writes:
I’m in. How much $?
####
There's a man who wants his commemorative Screencaps Bracket Challenge coin!
• Ron L. in Georgia writes:
I'm all in doing a SC bracket. I remember being in HS and being the person taking money and updating the bracket at PHS. Mind you, this was in the 90s and teachers and admin got involved and nobody cared. Here in the south though, it's considered "gambling" and highly frowed upon, even now. So anytime I can get into one, I'm in!
By the way, got the first mow in last weekend when it close to 80, this weekend it'll be lucky to hit 40. Talk about March Madness...
https://twitter.com/espn/status/1501746443521978370
On trying to hook up with an old love, but it's just not there
• Mark in Indiana writes:
Joe,
I appreciate the work you put in every day. It is entertaining and a great way to start the day with a lot less seriousness than the news is providing. Very much appreciated a reference you made to chicken and noodles over mash potatoes. I grew up in Indiana and that was a staple; especially with homemade noodles!
On to my question.......I am in my mid 50s and have totally given up on the NBA. Like i said i grew up in Indiana and played HS and college ball in a state that worships the game. I was a big Pacer fan from watching Bob Netolicky play in the fairgrounds to Rick Smitz and Reggie in Market Square and even Oladipo in Bankers Life; enjoyed it all.
No longer interested though as it became a game I do not recognize nor enjoy; being played by players that are in it for the money and the show and for any other reason than playing basketball and enjoying the game. Starting to look at college basketball the same way. (full disclosure ; i am an IU fan and we have sucked for a long time so part of my disinterest may be related to that!!).
I used to love Sunday night and the brackets and watching all the games I could. Now, not so much. I see the college game starting to lean heavily towards the NBA. It is about the entertainment and posing and NIL and how i can get as much TV exposure as I can and when you add the transfer rules and really not sure who is on my team from year to year; it is becoming too much.
I think it is turning into the NBA and I am certain that even with a competitive IU team my interest is still going away. I have no interest in watching a mid year Duke/North Carolina match up nor Kentucky/Louisville anymore, nor any non-IU Big Ten games. I barely have interest in IU.
Is this the way its headed for all basketball fans or am I screaming "get off my lawn"?????
####
Let's start with the chicken and noodles over mashed potatoes. That's sounding good for this weekend. Thanks for reminding me. Now I need to make it since Saturday is going to be below freezing.
Next, let's start with the NBA. I get your frustration. I've had a rule for about the last decade or so where I start to watch the NBA in mid-May, just in time for the Conference Finals. Don't watch the pregame nonsense. Try the games and see if that helps.
As for March Madness, I need you to refocus your energy away from Indiana and put it on the stories like Bellarmine U. winning a conference tournament even though they can't go to the Tournament. Focus on the small-timers who have this one moment in life before graduating and moving on to jobs and rec basketball on Wednesday nights after 12 hours at the law firm.
I also suggest engaging in filling out brackets with children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews.
Last year, I bought a mini-basketball hoop for the back of the basement door for my kids to shoot on and we taped up our brackets on the door. The kids pick ridiculous upsets and we laugh about it. We shoot the mini-basketball, it bounces off things that makes my wife cringe and we have a great time horsing around.
Pick brackets against your wife. Ex-wife. Side pieces. The neighbor. The garage beer crew. Your parents.
Screw IU. Jump on the Wright State bandwagon.
I still feel like there are nuggets of fun out there associated with March Madness. We just have to keep that flame alive in our own little ways.
https://twitter.com/espn/status/1501768837359976451
On spring fever
• Guy G. in western New York where winter's clearly not finished, writes:
This morning’s post got me thinking about my spring work. Since grass isn’t growing, and seems like forever before I get on the lawn, I’ve got a ton of work to do.
Not only is trout opening on 4/1, but turkey opens up on 5/1. A lot needs to be done by then. We had a couple of big wind storms this winter, that brought down a ton of trees in the woods. Finally got a new chainsaw, and started cleaning up trails last night. Add to all of this, a new side by side needs space to drive, so new trails need to be cut for the family. Two new bridges are being planned now to replace at ac couple creek crossings, and a new sand bocce court is set to be built by the swimming pond. (kids think its for them)
Saturday morning, I’ll be out early, with the tractor tiller to reclaim my garden and food plots. A total of 6 acres to be tilled up this year, in time for planting food for my family and the deer. Thanks to your postings, we got our fertilizer and nitrogen, months ago, and are set for this season.
Mowing is forever away, but the work that needs to be done never ends. 10 cords or so of free wood from storms this year should free up time later in the summer.
On Memphis trips and where to eat
• Wednesday, Rann R. mentioned how he's heading to Memphis and the gas prices aren't about to scare him out of going to see his grandkids.
LaMont J., who provides many great Instagram food links, writes:
Joe have this reader go to these places in Memphis:
Gibson’ Donuts-get there early as the selection dwindles down. Glazed and powdered are spectacular. Blueberry as well.
Uncle Lou’s Fried Chicken-in the good but some of the best chicken in the country
Memphis BBQ Company or BBQ Shop
On Joro spiders taking over Georgia and empty truck beds
• Jeremy P. writes:
Hey Joe,
Greetings from the Alpharetta, GA chapter of TNML. I just read your article on the joro spider. We are lousy with them here in GA. They are monsters but are harmless. If you have some infest your patio like I did last summer you don’t have to kill them but ant killer does the trick in .5 seconds. I had to off a few because I didn’t want my daughter running into their webs.
Just a thought on guys driving trucks with perpetually empty beds. I grew up on a farm in south GA and had a 1990 Chevy Scottsdale in high school. She was my baby. I washed her every week whether she needed it or not. I also used her for farm work. As much as I loved that truck it was 2WD and I always dreamed of getting a Z71. Fast forward 20+ years and I live just outside of Atlanta and work for a software company but when I finally needed a new vehicle last November I went looking for a truck instead of another car.
I know I don’t need one but that 17 year old inside me still loves the Z71 and I can finally afford one. So I pulled the trigger and got one. She’s a beaut Clark! I know my my dad would laugh at me for getting one if he were still here but I get a thrill every time I crank it up and hear that growl. To me it's a pay off for accomplishing all the hard things I did to earn it. So while folks may shake their heads at us suburbanites driving trucks with empty beds, it’s ok. We love ‘em. Keep up the great work. Love your columns.
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Jeremy, at least promise me you'll put some lumber in the truck bed and let it hang over the tailgate. I'd even go as far as buying 3 or 4 2x4s and let those bad boys sit in there for a couple of weeks like the people who cruise around town with their kayaks on their roof racks to make it look like they're always looking for a body of water to float on.
On living through March Madness
• Jason D., who grew up not far from where I was raised, writes:
I was at the Wright St. game in Indianapolis last night to watch that crazy comeback and lock up a ticket to the dance. I was ecstatic to open up Screencaps this morning and see it was the first thing mentioned!
I graduated from Wright St. in 2005 and following their basketball program has taken over as my #1 sports passion, surpassing Ohio State football by a wide margin. I was able to start helping out at the scorer's table a few years ago for all of their home games and for me that's the highlight of my year.
Getting to interact a little with the players and having a front row seat for all of the ups and downs of the season makes it that much sweeter. My wife gave me a jealous look when she saw a tear in my eye as the final horn sounded. There's something about pouring your heart into a team year after year and having no guarantees of sniffing postseason play when you are from a one bid league.
This was the 6th league championship game they have played in the last 10 years and the win last night was only their 2nd in that span. We are overshadowed by UD and looked at as the little brother in town, but there is a good chance Wright St will play in the First Four in Dayton. I hope Dayton can rally around this team, it means a lot to us little guys. Thanks for all you do for us regular folks.
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Let me put this in perspective when Jason mentions Wright State being a First Four team that would play at the University of Dayton Arena. Despite being separated by like 10 miles, Wright State hasn't played at UD Arena since 1997 when the Raiders lost by 31 and the crosstown series that was played seven times during the 1990s was over.
The University of Dayton, with all of its history, has zero interest in elevating Wright State when it comes to basketball.
While some teams hate the thought of being sent to Dayton for the First Four, Wright State is begging for it. They want to pack that arena. It's something to watch for next week.
And with that, let's close it down for Thursday. Get out there and have a great day. Enjoy those 11:30 a.m. tipoffs and the 500 basketball games that are on throughout the day.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
Numbers from :
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