Kelsi Taylor Gets Engaged To Dane Cook, North Wilkesboro Is Back & Danica Patrick Catches Huge Halibut
It's true, OutKick went through a redesign & some of you have questions I'll try to answer, but remember I'm just a blogger...I don't run this place
If there's one thing I know after nearly 15 years of working on the Internet, you guys hate change, especially when a website goes through a redesign. You open the phone, hit OutKick, and there it is, CHANGE! Or you open the laptop at work, type in OutKick, and there it is, CHANGE!
Have the corporate warlords taken over? Will they CHANGE the way things used to operate? Has Screencaps been compromised?
Let's dive into the questions:
Answer: Well, I was off Monday and haulin' ass south out of northern Michigan when OutKick flipped the switch on the redesign. Then I was cleaning out the wife's van and our travel cooler. It wasn't like I had my finger on some magic switch. My days flipping switches on redesigns are history.
And you guys have to remember I'm just a blogger on this site. Some might call me a writer. I prefer the old-school term blogger because writers are supposed to be buttoned up and proper all the time.
Not me.
Tuesday morning I was busy pumping out Screencaps to analyze the full changes. Yes, I was aware that changes were coming. No, it wasn't my spot to send out alerts that change was coming. Yes, we'll get through the CHANGE together.
Question:
Harvey D. in NW Ohio writes:
Please give me some insight to the Outkick website. You go on a hiatus to that state up north and now the format has changed! Is it some evil master plan from the corporate overlords? The only contributors I look up are you and whoever has some Insta model who will never drown on the, I think it's called a thumbnail?
What will become of the TNML?
I just ordered a striping kit and am awaiting the fall monsoons to put the verde back into my clover/ creeping Charlie! Please help out a brother Miami Valley cornfield dweller who has transplanted to the Great Black Swamp!
Answer: Nothing changes with TNML. Nothing changes with Screencaps other than it now has an amazing desktop placement on the homepage sidebar.
That speaks to the power of the column and the readers that continue to visit on a daily basis, making Screencaps America's Best Dailly Column, as named by the readers.
I wasn't told by corporate suits to take a day off so they could flip the switch without me. There was no master plan to throw off your routine.
Guys, I'm on a contract here. There's no need to be concerned. I'm here. Things are going to be great.
Question:
Jon U. in Dahlonega, GA writes:
Is there any significance to the fact that you are the #2 person just to the right of Clay on the list of contributors at the bottom of the new Outkick layout? That seems pretty important.
Answer: The only significance I can think of is seniority around here. It's a battle between Bobby B. and myself as we both started June 1, 2020 when Clay rebooted the OutKick project.
I haven't been on a Zoom call where the contributor list was analyzed and I 100% didn't push to be next to Clay and that intimidating hair.
Conclusion: OutKick was modernized for the upcoming football season. Guys, there's a scoreboard on the site! You're going to get football scores. You're going to get live betting odds right there on the LIVE scoreboard pages. Going back two years when I started, readers said the site needed a scoreboard so they didn't need to go to ESPN.
Done.
And it's clean!
And I'm told a homepage live video function is coming so you guys will have a dedicated spot to watch OutKick 360, Dakich, and Clay's OutKick show.
Here's where you guys come in. Give me suggestions on other functions you'd like to see. I'll fire away at the scary Fox News Corp. corporate overlords and the OutKick redesign tech team of Will McM. and Ryan F.
By the way, these two guys are great. I have a long history of butting heads with pain-in-the-ass copy editors and IT personnel. These guys are Team Screencaps. Trust me.
Let's title these emails: "OutKick redesign suggestion(s)."
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
Florida beach advice needed!
• Michael J. in Chicago, who ran the Gauntlet league I played in last season, writes:
Alright, I'm reaching out for some tips here. Driving from Illinois to Florida this weekend for the family vacation. 18+ hours will fly by I'm sure. So I'm looking for recommendations on the best beach to take the family.
We want to do the Gulf of Mexico one day and the ocean another day. We're staying near Orlando. So we can reach either side easily.
Dad needs help explaining baseball trades to his toddler
• Louisville Lobbyist Tony C. writes:
How do you explain to your child that a player(s) on the team we root for has been traded?
She may only be 3, but my daughter knows to proclaim "Bang, zoom, another Curly W in the books" out loud when the game ends and the number next to the Nationals is bigger than the number next to the other team. She also knows that Juan Soto wears #22 and Josh Bell wears #19. WORE, that is, after today's blockbuster trade. Fortunately, she'll be too young to remember rooting for and losing a generational talent at this point, but what do parents with older kids recommend for dealing with this issue? I need to start planning ahead for 5 years from now when all of these newly acquired prospects get dealt away, too...
Answer: Be honest with your daughter, Tony. It's time to explain the rebuilding process and how she's about to go through the Dark Ages for approximately 3-4 years until the young guys produce a wild card only to be dealt away as the Nats begin a new rebuild.
As a Reds fan, I haven't bothered trying to make rooting for the Reds a priority in their lives. Screw it. That said, they're now 19 games under .500 and in 3rd place. What an accomplishment.
Speaking of having to explain things to kids, try being a Browns fan
• Kevin S. spotted this ride out and about in Solon, OH. It's going to be so great to have football back.
Rediscovering the Real America
• Patrick C. in Perrysburg writes:
Good to hear you and family can get away and enjoy the splendors of northern Michigan, especially on the sunrise side of the state! Too often northern Michigan is highlighted by trips to Traverse City, Petoskey, and Charlevoix, while towns like East Tawas, Alpena, Oscoda, Standish, and even Caseville get forgotten.
Those towns used to be the norm of going up north to the “cabin” vs the McMansions that have taken over the west side of the state. I still consider myself a Michigander even though I’ve lived in Ohio for nearly 20 years, albeit a stone throw from the state line. I love how the state changes as you travel north on I-75 and get past Saginaw.
You really begin to see how beautiful Michigan is.
Stay well, Joe!
• Jon U. in Dahlonega, GA wrote on two topics. Here's the second part of his email:
Today you were writing about small-town America. In that regard, our town of Dahlonega is pretty nice. The site of a major gold rush in 1829 (which unfortunately helped begin the Trail of Tears Cherokee displacement to the Oklahoma territory), Dahlonega now has a very nice town square, is home to the University of North Georgia, has some very good restaurants, and several wineries. In fact, the area has been designated as the Dahlonega Plateau A.V.A. (American Viticulture Area), which is a designation for areas that meet certain criteria for growing grapes and wine production.
We are in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains and the southern terminus of the Appalachian Trail is just a few miles outside of Dahlonega. The AT runs basically the entire northern border of our county. There are two rivers on which you can kayak or tube float, and Lake Lanier is just a few miles away. If you like college football, Athens, GA is currently the home of the National Champion University of Georgia and is about 90 minutes away.
Response: This looks amazing. Views for the wife. A floating river for the kids to go nuts. Bars for dads to sit there and look at each other as they use non-verbal communication to let other dads know they're getting through life.
Put it on the travel list.
Indy Daryl on disconnecting
• It's been a while since we've heard from Mr. Do Hard Things and it turns out he was off doing hard things:
Joe!
Greetings on this lovely Sunday night. I am writing on the other side of 8 days off, spent in the north woods of Wisconsin, where the birch trees are glorious and work was nonexistent. I honestly essentially put my phone away for a whole week. Didn’t read emails, sports news, political news, or even, as much as it pains me to say it, screencaps for the entirety of our trip. I must say it was a wonderful break. I finished a book, then started and finished another, chopped fired wood, swam in the lake, played with my kids, hung out with family, boated, and so much more. It was incredibly refreshing!
It confirmed once again that life is lived in front of me, with the people around me, and cherishing those moments. My job may require a ton of screen time, but I certainly don’t have to let it invade my relationships or family time as well.
On a different note, we woke up Saturday after driving 10 hours on Friday and decided “welp, let’s not be tired and do everything else this weekend too.” So on top of the post-vacation laundry, getting settled, unpacking and of course mowing (will be back on league night this week hopefully), we finally stained our deck! Dannnnnng staining spindles takes forever……. Thought they would
Hope all is well in Ohio and look forward to SC this week. Have a great night!
Here come the robots
• Beau in Toledo writes:
Saw this City of Toledo employee Monday cutting grass with a remote-controlled mower.
Response: My assumption here is that the mower will eventually run on AI and will understand where to mow and Jeff the City Worker will no longer need to stand out there with his remote. Welcome to the future.
And with that, let's get out there with our remote controls and hammer away at the first Wednesday in August. Those of you on vacation, hopefully, you turn off the phone after reading Screencaps. Go enjoy America or the world and send dispatches. Let your fellow readers know what's out there and how the world is operating.
Have a great day across this incredible country.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com