Salma Hayek Is Off To A Fast Start In 2022, Big Ben's Farewell & I-95 In Virginia Is A Complete Mess
It feels like today is a monumental day in this household
My youngest son, Will, is celebrating his 5th birthday today and it really hit me this morning that we're officially done with the toddler stuff that has been around the house for so many years. The rocking chair in his room is no longer used. The toys that got two toddlers through boring winter days are old news and have been replaced with foam swords and Nerf dart guns.
Dare I say they grow up so fast? You old vets are going to tell me "don't blink" and I'm going to laugh because it's such a Facebook cliché used by suburban moms when they don't know what to write in the comments on friends' photos, but it's really hitting me.
Don't blink is happening in real-time around here. I've been blinking and the undersized boy who can barely keep 4-year-old sized pants on his waist is now "a whole hand" as he likes to tell us. I'm starting to think I've been BLINKING TOO MUCH. In fact, I'm going to have a self-imposed intervention (after the in-laws leave) with my wife to find out if she's been blinking and if she noticed I've been BLINKING TOO MUCH.
Is there some sort of blinking chart out there with things I have to accomplish with the boys before I can start blinking? Is there a Don't Blink To-Do List?
Will is our character. He's going to be the one who keeps the party going. He likes fart jokes and ripping his shirt off at parties. No joke, the shirt comes off all the time. Our 9-year-old is the one who won't mind having his little brother around because he's going to ramp up the fun.
I'd love to hear your advice on how not to blink. Moms, how do you do it? Dads? Let me know Don't Blink strategies.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com
• Indy Daryl writes:
Congrats on the huge Bengals win this past Sunday! Burrow to Chase seems like the real deal and will be really fun to watch in the coming years.
Curious, as a fan of a team perpetually looking in on the playoffs, do you have any rules on whom you end up cheering for during said playoffs? The Broncos will miss the playoffs for the fifth consecutive year, and generally I have just cheered for the underdog and then the AFC in the SB (unless Brady is playing….). Given that I live in Indianapolis (10 years now), I have also adopted the Colts as a second team and root for them, which has worked out well but was interested in your, and the rest of screencaps nations, thoughts.
Do you have a system? Do you just cheer for good football to be played? What have you done in past years?
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Here's how I watch the playoffs when the Bengals aren't in it:
• Brian M. from Fayetteville, Arkansas wants to hit on a few topics this morning:
I am a big fan of Screencaps as it has become a daily read for me now. While I am not a part of the TNML, I am joining the TNGL and would like to see that t-shirt ... as well as "Patio Beers" and "Garage Beers."
Nonetheless, my favorite part is the community aspect and learning. I am a big "outdoor bar/kitchen" fan as well as "Man Cave" fan. I am reaching out specifically to ask if you could share the picture of your basement again. I really liked the "drink rail" you are instituting as your bar and want to learn more about it. I know you mentioned where you found it, but I cannot recall.
I am more than happy to share pictures of our outdoor kitchen/living room if it helps people in improving/building/enjoying their patios and outdoor areas. I'd also love to see others. We are in need of shade. I have looked into shade sails, but I would like to find one that is retractable. Even if I have to use my elbow juice, that is fine. We just need some shade.
I am a Chicago transplant. After 35 in the midwest, I am quickly warming up to warmer winters down here, and the ability to enjoy the patio 10+ months a year. The humidity is so rough here in July/August, I prefer November patio days more than during the dog days.
Finally, congrats on your Bengals! As a lifelong Cubs fan, I can relate. Thanks for what you have built and continue to grow. Screencaps is phenomenal.
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First of all, I love to hear from those who enjoy the patio and garage beer lifestyle. You guys understand that sometimes you just need to get out of the house and into a different environment to suck down beers.
As for the drink rail, here you go, Brian. It's a cherry tree limb that we purchased from a local lumber company that handled the edge work while my father-in-law finished and sealed the board. He also customized the piping legs and foot rail. If you have specific questions about the process, he'd love to answer them for you. He's retired and loves to create detailed email responses.
Fire away and I'll forward them on:
joekinsey@gmail.com
• Monday, Mike C. wondered if Screencaps readers put out Christmas trains for the holiday season. Doug from Papillion/Omaha Nebraska was all over this topic:
I have been putting a Christmas train around my tree for years. My kids love it and Christmas wouldn't be the same without it. I put my Christmas decorations away already today, otherwise I would have taken a pic of the train.
So here are some screenshots I grabbed off the web. It is a New Bright Holiday Express G Scale fully electric train. The controls are simple and have a few noise buttons to make Santa say, "Ho, Ho, Ho, Merry Christmas" and ring the train bell or blow the train whistle. The train has lights and some animation with the elves. Always a highlight every year when the train comes out of storage and gets setup around the tree.
This question brought another one to mind. I love going to a restaurant that has a train around the restaurant. Any good restaurants with cool train displays? We have been to Fritz's in KC, where the train actually delivers your food to your table. It was fun, but I don't remember the food being anything that blew us away. I did take my wife out to Industrial Revolution Restaurant in Valparaiso, IN on our Mackinac Island trip back in Oct and that restaurant had a cool model train that went around the restaurant and we really enjoyed the food and ambiance of this retro eatery.
Happy New Year, Joe and Screencaps Readers!
• RE: Christmas tree burnings....Guy G. writes:
Our tree burning happens later in January, as my wife likes to leave our tree up through next week. We gather our tree, friends trees, and usually pick 10-12 up off the side of the road. Make a nice little party out of it. With good snow, we’ll also have everyone over early, for a cross country ski/beer tasting around the property. Heck of a way to kick off the new year.
• This Guy G. guy is starting to grow on me. Not only is he a Buffalo guy, but he's a guy who heats his place with wood (12 cords a winter!), he has multiple grills on his patio and always seems to have something interesting going on.
Now he tells me about his Christmas tree burning party that sounds like a blast. Keep this stuff coming. I can't get enough of how you guys keep busy during all the seasons.
• And let's finish by saying I hope people figure out a way to get off of I-95 southbound at some point today. There are photos and videos below to give you a better idea of what's going on in Virginia. As someone who used to drive I-80 across Pennsylvania during the winter, let me say that car always had blankets and supplies. I was caught one year near Snow Shoe, PA where the highway was closed for hours in the middle of a bad snowstorm. That's not an area where you want to be stuck. Luckily, the jackknifed semi was removed and I didn't have to go through a full I-95 situation.
I've been slacking in the emergency supply department, but that all ends this week. I-95 was a wake-up call.
Have a great day and stay safe out there.
Email: joekinsey@gmail.com