2021 Top Five - Podcasts

Today I have my top five podcasts or podcast moments of 2021. As I say every year, it would be unfair to put the X Millenial Man on this list because that is the greatest podcast that has ever existed. RD and I do some great work, we have gotten better and I am enjoying the hell out of recording it. Seriously, if you are not listening to it yet, get on it. Now that that is out of the way, I listen to a ton of podcasts. I love the format. I love that it is mostly free. And I love content. Feed it to me through a tube if need be. I love listening to them when I am doing housework, running, driving to and from school, basically any time. I still listen to music, lots of it, but podcasts take about 50 percent of my time now. Let's get to the list.

At number five I have The Flagrant Ones, but to be even more specific, their offshoot pod, Carl Call His Cousin. The Flagrant Ones has been great this year. I love it. I love how they still talk hoops, but they are putting more and more jokes in there. Lately they have been reading team names for the new t-shirt they are going to make, and that has been a total riot. But this year I have fallen in love with Carl Call His Cousin. I am a big Carl Tart fan, and these recordings, which are about 30 minutes long, have been exceptional. Carl and his cousin talk about all manners of things. They touch on mostly comedic elements, but they talk about real life stuff too. I love it. My favorite thing they do is what they call "scenarios". Those segments leave me howling. I love it. It is the best. The Flagrant Ones know what they are doing, they are in their pocket and they are crushing it. And Carl Call His Cousin is just a wonderful added bonus.

Coming in at four I have the return of Heavyweight. Heavyweight is one of my favorite podcasts. I always love when a new season comes around. I am not a big fan of them switching to Spotify exclusively, but that is neither here nor there. This season, so far, has been really good. I am digging the two parters they have been doing this season. I love how it leaves me wanting more. That has been a nice touch. Johnathan Goldstein is bringing his usual greatness to hosting. I like how they are doing the show with the pandemic being here. Heavyweight is good stuff, and it may be Gimlet's best show.

Coming in at number three I have myself discovering This Is Important. This Is Important is hosted by the dudes that created "Workaholics", one of my all time favorite shows. And no it is not a rewatch of their old show. They get on mic and just talk about random nonsense, like I'd imagine four friends would when they are just shooting the breeze. It is hilarious, and it works so well because these guys have such a good rapport. Their friendship is so easy to believe because it is so palpable on the mic. I love the soundboard, the jokes, the inside Hollywood stories. I love it all. Even with Kyle Newachek having to opt out recently due to a busy work schedule, it works just as well with Anders, Blake and Adam. They crush it. I do like some of the rewatch pods, but I think there are too many. That is why I like This Is Important so much. They may touch on their older and newer roles, but it is just four dudes having a good time on mic.

At number two I have the introduction of CBB World. I love Comedy Bang Bang, more on that at number 1, and CBB World is just that, but with so many added and commercial free shows. All of Comedy Bang Bang is there, with no commercials. They have old shows from the early Earwolf days, all without commercials. It has been a blast to go back and listen to all of Mike Detective again. They have live CBB's on there. They have CBB Presents, which is always good. But my favorite thing about CBB World is all the Shaun Diston content. I am a fan of Diston's, and I love that he is all over CBB World. They have all of We Need to Stop Talking about TMNT on CBB on there, which is amazing. They also have Scott Hasn't Seen, which is a new pod where Sprague, one of Diston's best characters, and Scott watch movies that Scott Aukermann has not seen, and it is awesome. CBB World is one of a few paid content pods I do not mind paying for because it has so, so, so much awesome content. It is one of the best things to come out of the podcasting in a long, long time.

And at number one I have a specific episode of Comedy Bang Bang. It was a recent ep. Jimmy Pardo and Danielle Koenig were the main guests, and they were great. But when Suzi Barrett showed up, this ep went from good to amazing. Barrett played, quite simply, a potato. She was a sentient potato. It seems dumb, but oh my goodness did I find myself cracking up the whole time listening. I was actually laughing so hard at one point during a run that I had to stop and catch my breath. Barrett played the potato as a little kid. She would add b's and d's to words that didn't need them. Every time she talked about Farmer Hands, which also made me crack up, she would say "dambit" instead of "dammit". Again, silly but extremely hilarious. But every move that Barrett made as Uggams, they named the potato midway through the ep, worked to perfection. I assumed that it was going to be a joke that didn't land, but boy was I wrong. This worked. It worked so well that I have listened to the episode a few times since it first came out. I laugh as hard every time I listen. This character should not have worked. It should have been stupid, but it wasn't. This is why I love CBB so much. They let people take big swings, and when something hits, like Uggams, it is so memorable.

That is it for today. Come back tomorrow for my top sports moments of the year.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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2021 Top Five - Television

Today I am coming to you with my top five TV shows of 2021. This one was harder than movies for me. I watch a ton of TV. I watched a bunch prior to COVID, and since quarantine, I watch even more. There were so many shows at the start of the pandemic that I rushed through. Then I watched a bunch of crappy reality TV. I watched the end of one of my favorite series, "Brooklyn 99". All of that stuff could have made it, but I was able to finally pair it down to five shows that I felt really surpassed the rest. These shows have separated themselves from the rest of the pack.

At number five I have the newest season of "Curb Your Enthusiasm". The newest season has been a total gem. Every episode to this point has been better than the last. I also really like how they have dealt with the pandemic. They acknowledged it and moved on. Now it is as if the characters live in a post pandemic world. The guest stars have been top notch, especially Tracy Ullman. She has been a great addition. But I think what has been the best thing about this season, it is comforting. It is like it never left. Larry David and crew are simply the best at what they do, and when the newer seasons come out it is like they never left. I truly believe that "Curb" is the best written show of all time, and season 11 further proves that point.

At number four I have season two of "Dave". What Dave Burd has done with this show is nothing short of impressive. I assumed it would be joke after joke after joke. I assumed it would be filled with dick and fart jokes. I assumed it would be silly. While it has its silly moments, it is a damn impressive show with real life elements. "Dave" touches on real world issues. It shows us what the music industry is like. It shows the viewers different features of different people from different walks of life. Everything with Dave and his manager is wonderful and sad. The stuff with his parents and Dave's incessant need for love from his mom was great. The stuff with Dave's ex was amazing. The episode that may have had Rick Rubin was the high point of the season. But the stuff with GaTa took this show to a whole other level. GaTa is the star of this show now in my opinion. The way they have showcased him is simply perfect. I cannot wait to see where the show goes from here. And the way they ended season two was perfection.

At number three I have "WandaVision". This was the most innovative show of the year by a very wide margin. The way they chopped and screwed different eras of TV was great. I was super invested. I was also very intrigued at the end of every episode because they always gave it a very enticing button. There was always something odd lingering behind the scenes. As the show progressed it only got better and better. Elizabeth Olsen was already great as Wanda, and this show put her in the upper tier of superheroes. Paul Bettany was fantastic as Vision. I felt his pain and anger during the season. But Kathyrn Hahn stole the show. Hahn as Agatha was one of the best twists I have seen since "The Good Place" season one finale. I am super interested to see where they go with Wanda in the MCU now. They can really do a lot of things now because of how incredible "Wandavision" was. We do not get many new or cool ideas nowadays, so "Wandavision" was a very nice surprise.

At number two I have season two of "I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson". There is no better sketch comedy show on any platform right now. Every single sketch has something memorable in it. Be it Dan Flashes, changing lunch times, not knowing how to drive a car, going on a date and getting roasted by a sculpture on the wall, having your old professor eat your dinner, eating sloppy steaks and so many more, it is all quotable and funny as hell. I am stoked that Netflix is giving Tim Robinson an alley to do comedy his way. He never got that chance on "SNL". Comedy Central canceled "Detroiters" way too soon. But Netflix is really letting him stretch his comedy legs with "ITYSL". This show is so funny too. Everyone I talk to that watches this show agrees. There is something special brewing here, and this could become a classic that is talked about for years to come. It is weird, but it is also so well done and so well written. I love what Robinson, Zack Kanin and Sam Richardson are doing with "ITYSL". If you haven't been watching this show, go do it now. It is so worth your time.

At number one I have "Squid Game". Who thought I was going to try and put "Inside" here? Nope, it is a movie and soundtrack. "Squid Game" is easily the best show that came out this year. I remember my dad telling me about this wild show he was watching on Netflix before anyone else was raving about "Squid Game". He was raving about it. He mentioned it a few times while we were having coffee. And when I left his house he reminded me to watch it when I got home. I did, and boy was he correct. I was hooked immediately. This show is so interesting and brutal and innovative and cool and crazy and so well done. Everything about it is perfect. I would watch multiple episodes a night. I would constantly think about it when I wasn't watching. I would tell my friends about it. I gave my dad all the props in the world the next time I saw him. He was totally on the spot. He was there before it became this tremendous hit. I watched the show all the way through twice. Once by myself and once with my wife. She loved it too. So has everyone else that I know that has seen it. This is a once in a generation type show. I am so extremely excited for season two. I cannot wait to see what they do. I love everything about "Squid Game". It is the best show of 2021.

That is it for today. Come back for my top podcast/podcast episodes of 2021 tomorrow.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

2021 Top Five - Movies

Today I have my top five movies of 2021. This was hard for me to pair down. I have watched a ton of movies this year, both new and old. I also went back to the theater for the first time since the onset of the pandemic. I only went once, it was a work thing with my wife, and that movie, "F9" is not on my list. But I have loved having the ability to see movies in my home the same day they come out in theaters now. This has been a nice, and pleasant surprise of the pandemic. I feel much more comfortable in my home, and I do not need to see movies on a big screen in the theater. My TV at home is big enough and the sound is just fine. My wife and I also do quarantine date night every Friday where we alternate picking what we will watch. Needless to say, I have seen a ton of movies this year. I got it down to five, but this list could have easily been a top ten.

At number five I have "Bad Trip". I adore this movie. I think it needs more love from critics and social media. Eric Andre, who I am a big fan of, created something that was even better than "Jackass", which I used to watch all the time. "Bad Trip" was not a new idea, but Andre and his crew may have perfected the prank comedy. I was howling while watching this movie. So was my wife. The jokes, the jumps, the pranks, it all worked. Getting actors like Lil Rel Howery and Tiffany Haddish to buy in and go as hard as Andre, that was key. This movie worked on every level for me as a comedy. We were living with my folks while getting our home worked on at the time of watching, and my wife and I were laughing so much they asked us to keep it down. "Bad Trip" is a fun, fast moving comedy and it is available to stream on Netflix. I have watched it twice since my first viewing and I am sure I will watch it even more.

At number four I have "Dune". I know this movie has split reviews from many different people, but I loved every second of it. I watched it the night it came out on HBO Max and I was enthralled. It was never slow. I understood what was going on. It was beautiful to look at on my TV. The acting was superb. I am very excited for part two, whenever that comes out. I also like Denis Villenuve's direction. I loved "Blade Runner 2049", and having been a fan of "Dune" prior, I knew I was going to enjoy this movie. I also thought Timothee Chamelet did a superb job as the lead. I am not a big fan of his, but he crushed in "Dune". So did the rest of the cast. This version was everything I hoped and wanted. Again, I know it has many people talking, but I think that is a very good thing. That means a ton of people saw it and they thought about it long after it was over.

At number three I have "Shang Chi and the Legend of the 10 Rings". This was the most fun superhero movie since "Thor: Ragnarok". I laughed at this movie. I rooted for the good guys. I wanted Shang to win. I wanted his family to be safe. I was blown away at the effects. I wrote about it after I saw the movie, and I really appreciated the backstory because I knew nothing about this hero. I liked the dude from "Doctor Strange" in the movie. I thought it was as colorful as "Guardians of the Galaxy". That is a good thing. I adored Awkwafina in her role. It was nice to see her in the MCU. I did not know what to think about this movie due to my ignorance of the character. But the moment the fight scene on the bus occurred I was fully bought in. This movie really has everything I want out of a superhero movie, and I am stoked that they are making more and that Shang Chi is going to be part of the MCU moving forward.

At number two I have "The Green Knight". This is the wildest movie on my list. It is big and bold and beautifully shot and just weird. I am an A24 fan. I watch a ton of their movies. I think they make some of the best and most innovative movies. They take chances. They take big swings, and usually they hit. "The Green Knight", for me, was a grand slam. I knew nothing of the ages old story they told, but the way they went about telling it had me on the edge of my seat. I also love that A24 took a chance to make a "big" movie. This was not a cheap movie to make, but I am glad they finally bit the bullet and did it. Dev Patel was phenomenal in the lead role. He is such a good actor and this was a perfect role for him. He commanded the screen. Alicia Vikander played two roles and she was equally great at both. And the Green Knight character was so real looking and so well done. I was confused after watching the first time, but when I watched it again I felt like I understood it a bit more. This movie is a trip, but in the best possible way. The music also kicks ass. So does the scenery. I was hyped to see this movie, and when I did, it surpassed my wildest expectations. "The Green Knight" is a beautiful spectacle.

At number one I have "Inside". I told you all to get used to hearing me rave about this movie/special on these lists. There was no better telling of the pandemic than what Bo Burnham did with "Inside". When it starts it is like a comedy special. There are jokes. Burnham is doing his style of songs. But there is an edge. There is something different to it this time around. It is dark. And when he is doing bits in the first half, they are funny, but dark as well. I loved him doing the reaction to his song bit, but even that felt uneasy and stressful. Then, after performing "30", this movie turns dark. Burnham shows what anxiety and depression and fear and isolation can do to a person. There is a song, "All Time Low", where he talks about his poor mental health at that time, and when he sings he doesn't blink at all. It is unnerving. Before the camera cuts to "All Eyes on Me", he cannot even get a sentence out without breaking down and punching his leg. He openly weeps on camera. I do not know if it is real or a character he is playing, but I felt those emotions while watching. He made it seem real. Even when he is sitting amongst all his cords and covered with a blanket, it felt very real. I, like I said yesterday, fully believe people will look back on "Inside" and say that it is the quintessential viewing for what life was like during the pandemic. It is perfect. I have watched it multiple times. I have talked about it with everyone I know. "Inside" is, by a wide margin, the best movie to come out in 2021.

That is it for today. Come back tomorrow for my top TV shows/episodes of the 2021.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

2021 Top Five - Albums

This week starts my Best of 2021. I will do my top five for most of my lists. I will do music, movies, television, podcasts and sports. That is also the order I will proceed with starting today. Some of my lists were easy to get to five, others, not so much. Let's get to it.

Today I am going to do my top albums of 2021. This is one of my lists where I do not have five picks. Part of that is my lack of listening to new music and the other part is I do not know many of these new artists. I used to be cool and hip. I used to know a ton about new and underground music. I used to listen to all different kinds of music. But as I have gotten older plenty has changed. I am kind of stuck in my ways now. I like what I like. I have been introduced to "new" music for me, but it is older bands or musicians I have never really given thought to before. That is my "new" music. I have recently gotten into Prince, more Talking Heads, an indie band called Whitney and more old school hip hop. But I did find three albums that I really enjoyed that came out this year. They are three new albums too. They are by artists that I like, but again, these records did come out this year.

At number three I have Har Mar Superstar's "Roseville". I love this record. It is like a throwback to older soul and R&B. There are horns and back up singers and cool, retro guitar and all along the way we get Har Mar's great voice. I like this new direction Har Mar is going in with his music too. It is very fitting for his voice and his range. You can really tell on this record that he is in his pocket. I also feel like as he is getting older he is starting to pain gratitude to artists he grew up listening to. This record is like an homage to older soul music. And I am a sucker for horns. I just lose myself to the music whenever I hear a good horn section. Lyrically, this album is very poignant and timely. He talks about COVID and other things that are going on in and around his life. It is a good snapshot of what this past year has been like. "Roseville" is very solid and I'm kind of stunned that some of the bigger publications and websites have kind of just pushed this record to the side and do not talk about it.

At two I have Tyler, the Creator's "Call Me if You Get Lost". This record is like older Tyler with his new vibe attached. It is straightforward hip hop. Tyler's rapping is impeccable. He has gotten better and better every year. He is on the Mount Rushmore of current hip hop artists right now. I also love how most of the songs are less than three minutes long. Even the songs that go six to nine minutes have like three different songs built in. They don't linger too long. There is enough change that it feels different. Tyler, much like Har Mar, also touches on the pandemic, but does it his way. I also love the addition of a hype man on the record. It adds so much to hip hop albums. I also really enjoy the production on the record. It may be his second best production, behind only "IGOR". Tyler, the Creator is aging like a fine wine. He is consistently trying new things and it has all been really great as of late. Tyler is getting to that echelon of always doing wonderful and innovative things in music. He is the man.

My number one album of the year is "Inside". Get used to seeing this on my best of lists. This album is amazing. The fact that it was made in a year is astounding. Talk about being timely, this album is all about the pandemic, loneliness, anxiety and loss during COVID. It is truly a masterpiece. Bo Burnham has done something amazing and memorable. To make music like this, at this time in history, to make it this well and this astounding, I'm floored. The way the whole album kind of shifts after "30" is a real feat. It goes from kind of dark to super dark, in all the right ways. There are songs on this album that I feel like school kids should study. There is stuff on this album that will be talked about for decades. This is a true work of art. I adore songs like "How the World Works" or "Welcome to the Internet" that are instant classics. I mentioned "30", that is an exceptional song about growing old. "Problematic" is a great look at his past and how he has grown. "All Eyes on Me" is so twisted and dark and perfect. "That Funny Feeling" may be the best folk song of the year. "Content" is a perfect album starter. I could go on and on and on, and I will on some of my other lists, believe me. "Inside" is amazing. It is the best album of the year, and when we get to 2030, it may end up being the best album of the decade. It is really that good. You can go look at my year in review on Spotify and see how much I have devoured this album. "Inside" is, hands down, the best album of 2021.

That is it for today. Come back tomorrow for my top five movies of the year.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

EA College Football is Coming Back and So is my Excitement to Play It.

Yesterday while looking at the sports news, I happened upon a story that commented on the process of the new EA College Football game.

I have said on the podcast and the website how I am not much of a video game guy. I just do not get them or I get bored too easily by them. I am also not very good at most video games. I just do not have that part of my brain that helps you to be good at them. It is not my thing. But I do love the older EA College Football game. I was also pretty good at it. RD can attest to as much. I love college football anyway, so a video game is just another extension for me. It was cool to play as my all time favorite sports team, the Michigan Wolverines. To see their helmets and The Big House on my TV screen through a video game, even I have to admit, that was cool. So this was one video game that I took my time with. And I got good. I figured stuff out. I found plays that worked on offense and defense. I had dynasties that were unstoppable. I had the goods. So when it went away, I was bummed. I bought the last version they made, with Denard Robinson on the cover, and played it until it couldn't be played anymore. Then when I got a newer Xbox, I bought older versions of the game and played the hell out of those. I kept at it. But one day it was totally off the internet. It was no more. The game didn't exist. They had copycat versions, versions they tried to make like the real version, but none of them worked. I bought Doug Flutie's game, which was trash. I found some other college football adjacent games, those were trash. I tried Madden, that never changes, and is kind of trash. So I decided to switch to NBA 2k on my son's Switch. That game is cool, it is fun and easy to play, but it is not EA College Football. I even get bored with NBA 2k. So this news that they are targeting a summer release of a new version of the classic EA game, well I am ecstatic.

None of this would be possible without the NIL either. NIL is one of the best things to come out of college athletics in forever. It is letting these kids finally profit off their likeness, as they should have been able to forever. And without it, the EA College Football game would not even be a topic of discussion. Now it is. Now it seems real. Now it seems like I only have to wait about 18 months to play a game again. I cannot believe it. And with NIL that means we will get not only the real players' image, but their real names also. In the past the players kind of looked like the real version of themselves, but the names were auto generated. I could have gone in and put the real names in there, but that would have taken way too much time and effort. Now I won't have to. With the NIL, all of the players will have their real name in the game if they want. I also think that the college athletes are going to think it will be pretty cool to see themselves in a game. I know I would freak out if I was in their situation.

This all seems so real and so soon and so cool. I hope it comes to fruition. I hope nothing happens to screw this up. I don't want the NCAA to get their grubby hands on this video game. I really miss playing that game, and with it looking like it is going to come back, I simply cannot wait. This is good news for me and a lot of other college football fans. Now we just have to wait a little bit longer. Hopefully.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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"Home Sweet Home Alone" is A Perfectly Fine Kids Movie

As I mentioned yesterday, my family watched "Home Sweet Home Alone" on Disney + last night. This is the time of year where we all cozy up, have some hot chocolate and watch movies. We did "Home Alone" two nights ago, I am sure we will watch "Elf" soon, my wife will for sure be watching "White Christmas", so we decided to all sit down for "Home Sweet Home Alone". Let’s discuss.

I went into this movie differently than I did when I first watched "Home Alone". "Home Alone" came out when I was 8 years old. I decided I wanted to watch "Home Sweet Home Alone" through my kids eyes. They are 9 and 6, so the age is pretty perfect considering when I first saw "Home Alone". Right off the bat, the cynical side of me, the almost 39 year old side of me, did not think this was all that good a movie. It felt clunky and oddly edited and weirdly put together. There were no real bad guys. The story felt too forced. And I was bummed that the only original character they got was Buzz, and he was barely in the movie. Not my personal favorite.

If I wanted to be a jerk, I would continue to destroy this movie. But I am trying to be less cynical. COVID has made me appreciate things in life more, and to be a little less brutal to stuff I may not like or agree with. So removing that part of my brain, and watching it with my kids, that was a delight. It reminded me a lot of when I watched "Space Jam 2: A New Legacy". "Home Sweet Home Alone" was not made for me. Sure they had nods to the movie I loved as a kid, but this is for a new audience. This movie was made for kids. It is supposed to be weird and goofy. It is like a cartoon come to life. The first "Home Alone" was crazy enough, and this reimagining takes it up a few notches. My kids were both laughing as hard at the scenes when the "bad guys" got hit in the face, head and body. The young boy in the movie, he was in "Jojo Rabbit", was very charming and fun to watch. He wasn't the main character, but he was around enough to really steal the show. I found him very funny too. He is a good actor. The main characters, I guess, were the mom and dad trying to get their doll back. They were played by Ellie Kemper and Rob Delaney, two actors I enjoy. They played their characters way over the top, but I have to assume that was the direction that was given. They are both solid actors, and they rolled with the material the best they could. I liked that in some of the minor parts they got solid comedic character actors. Pete Holmes was fine as the brother of the family that leaves their kid home alone. Timothy Simons and All Maki were both very funny. Chris Parnell had only one scene, but it was nice to see him in this movie. Andy Daly was misused, but that happens to him all the time. Max's mom, played by Aisling Bea, was very good, she was just hardly in the movie. Kenan Thompson was solid as the realtor. Esther Povitsky and Jordan Carlos, two comedic actors I really like, did a good job with their one scene. Even Jim Rash did okay. The actors they got were recognizable for me, and I like when I see people getting a chance to be in a bigger movie. And when I really sit back and think about the movie, the plot of the original is ridiculous, and they just went further on this one.

Again, the adult in me, the cynic in me, the critic in me would have found a ton of stuff to complain about. But when you separate that part from yourself, this is a fine, kind of charming and harmless kids movie. I promise you, even if you do not enjoy it, your kids will love it. I know it will be playing on repeat in the playroom at my house. That's for sure. Show this to your kids and let them have a good time with it. That was how I enjoyed this movie.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

Come and support Ty and the podcast on Patreon.

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SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Uncle Frank in "Home Alone" is the Worst

Yesterday we watched "Home Alone" with our kids. This has become our thing for the past couple of years around our house, and I assume many other houses with younger kids. My son ate it up last year. He loved it. He was quoting it, asking questions, and watched it a few more times, it was great. My daughter turned six in October so we decided she was ready to watch. She watches all kinds of shows with us anyway, so we figured last night was as good a time as any to show her "Home Alone". She was not as much into the movie as my son, but she still found it funny, especially when Kevin gets the Wet Bandits, and she said she liked it. I was relieved. My wife and I were pleased with the results, so we are going to watch the new one, "Home Sweet Home Alone" tonight.

What I want to talk about today is who I think the real villain of the original movie truly is. I am sure other people have had this thought, but I stumbled upon it last night, I have a platform and I want to tell everyone why I think Uncle Frank, played by Gerry Bamman, is the true bad guy in this movie. I understand he is not in as many scenes as other actors, that he only has a few lines and that he was just portraying what many people considered to be the "mean uncle", but this guy was a total dickhead. All props to Bamman for making me feel this way. I did not know who he was when I was a kid, but I disliked Uncle Frank then, and 31 years later I still dislike Uncle Frank. Bamman has been in many movies and TV shows, but after looking at his credits, "Home Alone" has to be his most memorable.

The reason this all started for me, why I think he is the villain is right at the start of the movie. When the McAllister's house is going crazy before dinner, and all the kids are making noise, when the pizza guy shows up and when they finally sit down to dinner, it is Uncle Frank who calls Kevin a jerk. In front of the entire family. As we all know, Kevin loves his cheese pizza. He is understandably upset when it is revealed that there is no more cheese pizza. Sure he acts about it like a baby, but he is eight years old. We all acted like babies when we were 8. So when Kevin decides he is going to stand up for himself, he knocks Buzz over and spills milk and soda everywhere. It is a humongous mess. During the cleanup process this is when Uncle Frank looks Kevin directly in the eyes, again in front of the whole family, and exclaims, "Look what you've done you big jerk". I was astounded. My wife said that if any of our kids' Uncle's said that to them she would ask the kids to leave the room so she could "take care of business". No one says a word to Frank. It is almost like they are afraid of him. Maybe he has some secrets about the family that no one wants to be revealed. You know, like a villain would have.

Uncle Frank only gets worse from here. When they leave in the morning he only cares about himself, and the fact that he may miss his flight to Paris. He is constantly fighting with his brother, and is always pessimistic. When they get on the plane, they make it on time by the way Frank doesn't give his brother credit or thanks the drivers of the vans, he is too excited to get his free champagne and take his seat in first class. He then goads his wife into taking the silverware from the plane. He then makes the flight attendant fill his champagne glass all the way to the top very rudely, and he doesn't thank her either. When Kevin's mom realizes that they left Kevin at home, Frank tries to make her feel better by saying he left his reading glasses at a hotel room or some shit. He is comparing his glasses to her son. What a dick. And when they get to France, and everyone has a job to try and track Kevin down, he is too busy raiding the refrigerator in the hotel and handing out snacks to everyone. I mean, it is clear he could give a shit about Kevin, or his kids or his brother and his wife or anyone but himself.

I get it that there are the Wet Bandits, and that they are criminals, but they have a job that they are doing. And they get their comeuppance. The Old Man is painted as a villain at first, but he is an okay dude. And he saves Kevin. The police are incompetent, much like real life, throughout this whole movie. The police are always a villain. Even the shop boy that chases Kevin is simply doing his job. And Kevin did steal a toothbrush. But Uncle Frank, he is just a rotten dude through and through. He only cares about himself. He only cares about what will benefit him. He only wants material things. He tries to make every situation involve himself somehow.

Uncle Frank stinks. He is the bad guy. He is the meanest person in this movie. My mind is made up and will not be changed. Uncle Frank is the jerk. Not Kevin. Uncle Frank is the true villain of "Home Alone".

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Some Love for My Memphis Grizzlies

I want to talk about another team that I am a fan of today.

I love the NBA as you all know. When I was a kid I was a big time Seattle SuperSonics fan. Kemp and Payton were my guys. I loved that team as much as I loved the Fab Five. The Sonics were a blast to watch, they were good and Kemp was the man. He is the best in game dunker ever. End of conversation. When they unexpectedly, and unfairly, moved to OKC, I followed them there. They had drafted KD, they weren’t great but had potential and I just wanted to stay put. They then got awesome. They drafted James Harden and Russell Westbrook. They made a push to the Finals. They looked like the team of the future. Then they traded Harden. Then KD left. I was done. I still rooted for Russ because I liked his game, and when they traded for Paul George I thought they was a tremendous move. But in the meantime I needed a new team. The Sonics didn’t exist, the Thunder were down to bare bones and I was in no man’s land as an NBA fan.

I looked around the teams and kept checking teams off I didn’t want to root for. No Texas teams because I don’t like teams from there. No LA teams because that’s just front running. The same could be said about the Celtics. Golden State was a no go to because they were the ones that lured away KD. I kicked around Toronto, but they were too bland for me. I decided to go with Phoenix because I liked Devin Booker, but I abandoned them pretty quick. It came down to two teams due to location. I live in Saint Louis, and the two closest teams are Chicago and Memphis. It was an easy choice for Memphis because I had been to a few games there, I like the city and they had just drafted Ja Morant, who I adored coming out of college. So three years ago I decided to ride with the Grizzlies.

Since drafting Ja, Memphis been on an upward trajectory. They weren’t very good his rookie year, but you could see the potential. You have Ja, Jaren Jackson Jr and Dillon Brooks. That’s a star, a stretch big and a great perimeter defender. They also had/have a great, and deep bench. I was excited to be a fan of an up and coming young team. Then last season they burst onto the scene. They made the play in. They beat Golden State in Golden State to make the playoffs. They took a game off the Jazz in round one. I was pumped. I expected, and still do, bigger and better things this year. They started slower than I hoped, but Ja didn’t. He came out of the gates on fire. He was doing it all and finally getting some much due credit. But then he got hurt. I was bummed. The Grizz sat at 9-10 when he got hurt, and I was nervous. Ja has missed a week already, with about 2-4 more before he gets back. I figured that this season may be a wash now. Without their star I just assume they’d struggle to keep afloat.

Well that hasn’t happened. The Grizzlies are currently on a five game win streak. They have pushed their record to 14-10. They have played remarkable defense and have been dynamite on offense. All of this without Ja. I was pleasantly stunned by this. I still am. But I saw a stat last night after they beat Miami that blew me away. During this win streak, again without Ja, and Kyle Anderson I should also add, the Grizzlies have not trailed for one second. All of the past five games, no team has held a lead against Memphis. That is unheard of. I mean, I’d expect a team to lead 4-2 or 2-0. Hell, I wouldn’t have been surprised if a team held a lead in the second half. But no team has. I was astounding. I was baffled. But most of all, I was so happy. My team has not only survived an injury to their star player, they’ve thrived. They’ve won five in a row. One of those wins was by 73 points. That’s the biggest margin of victory in NBA history. I was watching that game on my phone amazed. I assumed the Heat were going to beat them last night, but it was a wire to wire 15 point win. I know this will end, most likely soon, but it’s been so awesome to see my favorite NBA team do what they’ve done this past week. This is an accomplishment. This is a big deal. And it’s shown me that I cannot count this team out no matter what. They have a very good squad, with lots of depth and they are well coached.

I cannot wait to see, in person, the Grizzlies play next month. I can’t wait until Ja comes back. And I can’t wait to see how they finish up the season. I’m fully back on them as a top 6 seed in the West, and I could see them winning a round. I’m glad I went with the Grizz three years ago, and this win streak has more than paid off on my newfound fandom. Go Grizz, and let’s keep this win streak as long as we can.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing, the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast, and the greatest basketball writer on the internet.

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It Feels Good to be a Michigan Football Fan Today

Michigan won the Big Ten title for the first time in seventeen years Saturday night.

Writing that sentence has me in disbelief and joy. I did not think they were going to get back to where they got this year. I have had them pegged as a middle of the road Big 10 team. They would get my hopes up year in and year out and then they'd get their butts whipped by the university of Ohio State. Or they would lose a mid season game to a team like Iowa. They would have complete meltdowns on the road playing Penn State. They would blow an early season game to Notre Dame. Hell, even this year they got beat by Michigan State after holding a 16 point third quarter lead. I had gotten accustomed to this team letting me down. And before this season started I had them pegged as a middle tier team. I picked them to finish 7-5, with the ceiling being 9 wins and the floor being 5 wins. I thought the schedule was going to be really tough, they had some inexperience, they had some guys returning from serious injuries and they lost a good amount of players to the transfer portal. And Jim Harbaugh totally restructured his contract and he hired an almost entirely new staff, all of which were 45 or younger. I was very low on this team.

Then the season started, and they looked okay. They beat up on a solid Western Michigan team. They destroyed Washington in a night game in Ann Arbor. They beat the snot out of Northern Illinois. But I still wasn't buying in. Western Michigan and Northern Illinois are MAC teams, no disrespect, and Washington was not as good as some preseason pollsters predicted. But the first Big 10 game was going to be my barometer, I told myself. They had Rutgers at home. Rutgers is not good yet, but they are getting better. Michigan should have wiped the floor with them, but they only won by seven, scoring only three points in the second half. My nerves were shocked again. Then they went to Camp Randall, where they hadn't won in forever, and beat up on the Badgers pretty easily. They won by 21. Wisconsin was reeling, but Michigan had won a game they usually found a way to lose in recent seasons. They were 5-0 at this point, but I was still a little leery. The schedule wasn't looking as tough as I previously thought. Then they barely got by Nebraska in Lincoln. They needed an Adrian Martinez fumble to get them in field goal range late to win that game. And there is no world where I accept Nebraska as the "best 3-9 team ever" like some pundits tried to push. They then crushed a very bad Northwestern team. They were now 7-0 and facing MSU. We all know what happened, and any faith I had kind of disappeared. I figured this was the same old Michigan I have been watching for the past ten seasons. But they bounced back. They crushed an injury depleted Indiana team. Penn State made it tough, but Erick All had a beautiful run and catch for a TD to secure that win. And they went to Maryland and trounced them by 41.

By this time I was kind of back, but the all important university of Ohio State game was next, and they were coming off a bludgeoning of MSU. I had no hopes. Then the game happened and I was fully in. Michigan won that game pretty soundly. They out toughed them, controlled the line of scrimmage, Aidan Hutchinson and David Ojabo spent the whole game in the backfield and Hasan Haskins ran for 160 plus yards and five touchdowns. I was euphoric. I kid you not. I walked around my house exclaiming, "FINALLY!!!!!!!" over and over and over again. I was bought in. This team rebounded from a loss that could have ruined their year and won every game since, including finally beating the university of Ohio State. I was nervous for the Big Ten title game, but any fears during that game were easily put away in the second half when Michigan went to a different level and couldn't be stopped. They won the Big Ten title game 42-3. They crushed Iowa. They pummeled them into submission. They ran trick plays and played freshman and did whatever they wanted. I was sitting with my dad watching that game and saying, "I can't believe it", "what a season", "there is no way I expected them to win twelve games", and, "I am so pumped they are in the playoff". These are things I thought were never going to happen again. Like I said earlier, I assumed their best days were in the past. But they did it. They won the Big Ten title. Jim Harbaugh did all the right things this offseason, and it paid off. Aidan Hutchinson is the best defensive player in the country and could be the number one overall pick in the 22 NFL draft. David Ojabo went from unknown to potential first round pick. Josh Ross came back and has played like a leader all year. Cade McNamara has been a sufficient, if at times inconsistent, game manager. Blake Corum has all the speed and moves in the world. Donovan Edwards has an extremely bright future. And Hasan Haskins is the heart and soul of the team. Oh, and both the D and O lines are really, really good.

This team has surprised me in all the right ways this season. I have not had this much fun as a Michigan fan in a very long time. I am proud to walk around in all my Michigan gear. I don't have to preface or make excuses for anything. They proved it on the field. I am very excited for the matchup against Georgia. I still believe Georgia is the best team in the country, but maybe, just maybe Michigan can hang with them. I do not ever pick the Wolverines to win anything because I just do not want that pain of being wrong. But this team could be different. I want them to win the title, which I do every year. But the fact that they made it, the fact that all the pundits that usually mock them are saying nice things about them, the fact that they are the number two team in the country, the fact that they have a shot at a national title again, I am very proud to say I am a devout Michigan fan and I love this team. I'm extremely pleased with this season, this team, this staff, I have nothing but nice things to say about them. I will be rooting extra hard for them on New Years Eve because I do not want this magical season to end. But whatever happens, Michigan football had a great year, a great season and I will remember this year for the rest of my life. Go Blue.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" Season 15 Premier

Last night my wife and I watched the season 15 premiere of "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia". There were two new episodes in fact. And it was as great as I hoped. The show hasn't been on in awhile, but it felt like they never left with the first two eps of this season. Let’s discuss.

The first one was all about their characters 2020 in review. They posed it as a government official coming in to ask about personal PPP loans, but it was really just a platform for them to do what they do best, make super tasteless, super funny jokes. The fact that they all claimed to have something to do with the 2020 election was pretty great, and kind of scary because of how truthful some of the stuff they did. I could have easily seen people as vile and brutal as their characters doing the same. And to end it with "their guy" being Kanye West, it was simply genius.

The second episode was all about them making "Lethal Weapon 7". For fans of the show, we all know the gang's love for the "Lethal Weapon" series. But this time they wanted to be more sensitive. Again, it was so funny. The pimp Pepperjack, that actor was amazing. All the stuff with Frank was hilarious. Dee's arc, oh man that was some "Always Sunny" at the top of its game. And Dennis explaining how he has changed, it was too perfect.

The premiere was great. Seriously, go watch. But what I want to talk about today is how great "Always Sunny" really is. It has staying power, it is still great, it is one of the funniest shows on tv, it has a "Curb" like appeal of never having a bad episode. The show works so well. It was also nice to have it back. I have found during this pandemic, seeing older shows, returning shows, classic shows coming back for record breaking seasons or in reruns, it makes me forget about how tough the past two years have been. The shows let me escape. Even with the gang talking about the pandemic, hearing them say COVID, seeing extras wearing masks, it did not take me back to how hard the past two years have been. The creators and actors are so good at their jobs that they let me escape into their world. They let me forget what is going on outside for 30 minutes. I really appreciate that. And to have a show like "Always Sunny", that is so great, back on TV, that rules. These people know what they are doing. They know what works. They know how to craft perfect jokes for their characters. It is truly a great thing to see genius people doing genius work. I know a lot of people say that "Always Sunny" is my generation's "Seinfeld". I used to balk at that because I always felt like both shows are so different and so great. But when you sit down and think of it, they are right. "Always Sunny" is a millennials version of "Seinfeld". Both shows have no redeemable characters, but they know that and they roll with it. "Always Sunny" just goes a bit further with their jokes. The shows are also so brilliantly written that it is easy to see the comparison. Very funny, very smart comedic minds coming together to create something classic, that is a thing of beauty.

"Always Sunny" is a classic, and it is a classic for a reason. And again, it is comforting to have it back on TV. I love this show and I cannot be more excited to see where they go from here.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "This is Pop"

Recently I found a new show on Netflix that I have really enjoyed. The show is called "This is Pop". The pure nuts and bolts of the show is how pop music has changed, mixed with genres, tells stories and made its way into our lives for good. There are eight episodes that each focus on a different topic.

I was skeptical of the show at first because I have always said I am not a fan of modern pop music. There are a few bands and singers I like, but for the most part, it is not for me. I was not a fan of boy bands. I did not buy into the bubble gum aspect of Brittany Spears. Pop music was not for me. I like hip hop, rock, blues and folk. Those are my preferred genres, with hip hop being my favorite. But I have got to say, this show has changed my mind on pop music in general.

The first episode was all about Boys 2 Men. I knew of them of course. They were super popular when I was a younger kid. I loved their first single when I was little. But then they went away. What this episode did was show me their process. It showed me how hard they worked and how great a group of singers they were and still are. It also showed me that they were the first true boy band that existed. I also liked learning about them being able to crossover to many different fans. It was fascinating.

The second episode was all about auto tune. This has been my favorite episode. It was so interesting to hear about the auto tune phenomenon and why it is so hated by fans but beloved but some musicians. T-Pain comes off wonderful. I am a fan of his personality for sure. I also really liked how they showed the comedic use of auto tune. It was great.

The third episode is all about how some of the most famous pop songs ever written and recorded come from Stockholm, Sweden. I had no idea that pretty much all of Brittany Spears, The Backstreet Boys and N'Sync's songs were written and produced in Sweden. I also had no idea how hard the Swedes work, and how humble they are about their fame. The people involved in this episode, the people we never see or hear from, have been a part of some of the biggest pop songs ever. "Hit Me Baby", "I Want it That Way", "Bye Bye Bye", all of those songs were written and produced by the Swedes. We also got Roxette and Ace of Base from Sweden. Some of Pink's biggest songs were written by Swedes. It was incredibly informative.

Episode four talks about country music shifting to pop. For a person that is not a country music fan at all, this ep was really cool. I did not realize all the crossover and how stodgy old school country musicians are. Also, Dolly Parton rules. She is the best.

Episode five dove into Britpop. This one was cool because they mostly focused on the "fight" between Oasis and Blur. I am personally a Blur fan, but it was cool to see all the different people talking about why they liked each band. I found it very interesting that Oasis was more the working class band. The episode also made me appreciate Damon Albarn all the more. He is truly a musical genius. This was a good one.

Episode six was all about festivals. This one gave me the heebie jeebies. There were too many people. Too much stuff going on. Festivals were never my thing. This was probably the one ep I would skip if I were to watch this series again.

Episode seven was the most powerful. It was called "What Can a Song Do", and it was all about the power of music. They went from Woody Guthire to Billy Bragg, to Public Enemy to music in the Me Too movement and Riot Grrl stuff. I found this episode to be incredibly important. It was truly wonderful and powerful to see the strength that music has, to see the change that music can create. Hozier was a wonderful narrator for this episode. I am still thinking about everything they said today. It was moving and tremendous.

The final episode is all about the Brill Building in New York and how some of the most famous pop songs were made in this one building. Again, a fascinating event that I have never thought about before. Also, Neil Sedaka seems like a delightful human being. I have not fully finished the episode yet, but I will today.

I think this show is very well done. It tells very good stories about people and events that music fans may take for granted. Each episode is about 40 minutes long, so it is not a total grabber of your time. You can do what I did and watch 2 episodes before bed. Check this show out. It is very good and very informative.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Better Never Than Late on "Venom 2: Let There Be Carnage"

This past Saturday my wife and I did our weekly date night. It was her turn to pick the movie and she went with "Venom 2: Let There Be Carnage". We actually bought it on Amazon. There was no other option. And it was not as expensive as going to an actual theater. So we now own this movie. Take that any way you'd like to.

I remember watching the first "Venom" movie and thinking it was not good, but it was fun. It was a fun bad movie. There is a difference between a bad movie and a fun bad movie. Fun bad movies are goofy and enjoyable and you can make fun of them while watching and talk to other people who feel the same way. A bad movie is just bad. There is no joy. No fun. No goofing on it with people. Bad movies are tedious and blah. If you'd like an example, "The Room" is a fun bad movie. "Indiana Jones: The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull" is simply a bad movie. Unfortunately "Venom 2" is a bad movie.

I really tried with "this movie. As I said, I found the first one semi enjoyable. But this one, it tried too hard to be cheesy. They leaned into the "friendship" between Venom and Eddie Brock far too much. In the first "Venom" it was crazy when they started acting friendly and having legitimate conversations with one another. In this sequel it seems as if they forced the friendship. The first scene with Brock and Venom was crazy. Brock is talking to a detective and when he doesn't get the assignment he wants, Venom pops out of his back and attempts to eat the detective. Brock pulls himself into a bathroom and he and Venom have a full on conversation about their set of "rules". Brock goes as far as to grab part of Venom's tentacles like hands to calm him down. It was insane. And it only got crazier from there. The way Venom and Brock live is nuts. The apartment is a mess. Brock complains all the time. So does Venom. Apparently Venom is sick and tired of eating chocolate and chicken brains. Venom wants human brains. Brock is not on board with this.

Also you have to remember, this movie has Academy Award nominated and winning actors. Tom Hardy is Brock and the voice of Venom. He tries, but he does not do well. Michelle Williams is the former fiance who has moved on, but she is barely in the movie. And when she is, she is a cliche superhero's ex. She says some of the corniest written lines. Woody Harrelson plays Carnage, and it is cool to see him play a bad guy, a villain, but he chews so much scenery. It is too much. If he had toned down the wackiness by 1/4 it could have been great. But he went too far and did too much. And they hardly used the Shriek character in this movie. She could have added great depth, but they kept her on the sideline, and that was a bummer. Also, Andy Serkis' direction was kind of clunky. There were odd cuts. I already mentioned the misuse of Williams and hardly using Shriek. And he let Harrelson and Hardy riff and go too far over the edge. It seemed like he wanted to make a comedy or a drama. He couldn’t pick one or the other. It was frustrating.

I really wanted to enjoy "Venom 2" like I did with "Venom". I went in expecting it to not be good, but to be fun bad. Unfortunately for me it was just bad. If you want to watch it, or you have an urge to watch every MCU or DC or any superhero movie, watch it. Maybe there are things I missed because I have never read the comics. But for me, "Venom 2" was a total misfire. That bummed me out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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I Have No Idea Why Brian Kelly Left for LSU

Just when I thought it couldn't get any wilder, LSU goes out and hires Brian Kelly to be their new head coach. I thought Lincoln Riley to USC was wild, but this is a whole other level of nuts. I am still kind of in shock. I was going to write about the movie I watched this weekend, but this is so crazy that I have to designate another blog for another coaching change. Let’s do it?

I have never, in my lifetime of watching college football, seen a coaching carousel like this. We are talking about big name coaches going to big time programs. Like I said before, this one is nutso. I have been thinking about this move, talking to my dad about it, reading other articles about it, and I am still at a total loss. I despise Brian Kelly. I loathe him. He is a slimy snake oil salesman. I have not liked him since he left Cincinnati to take the head job at Notre Dame. He is arrogant and selfish and a total asshole. But he has proven to be a capable college football coach. Notre Dame is relevant again. He coached them to the BCS title game and has made the CFP. He has had a Heisman finalist. Notre Dame is perennially ranked inside the top 25 every year. While I dislike him and that team, they are good. I cannot lie about that. And Kelly has the Irish on the cusp of the playoff this year. If things break their way this weekend they can find themselves back this season. But Kelly just up and left. He took the LSU job without telling any of his staff according to the reports

I have read. He moved on because he wanted to. He didn't care about his team, his staff, the university, the AD, this was all about Brian Kelly getting paid and taking on a new challenge that only he wanted to do. And like I said with Riley, take the money when you can get it. I do not bemoan that at all. But I do not like the way either coach went about the business of getting paid. This was a first for Riley, but this seems to be the move for Kelly. He left Central Michigan for Cincinnati without informing most of the people around him. Then after building Cincinnati into a contender, he had them in the Sugar Bowl, he left without even coaching them in that game. He was gone. One day he was there, and the next, he's a ghost. Now he has done the same thing at Notre Dame. He took this LSU job seemingly in the middle of the night. And he just accepted it. He told no one. He took it and made some half hearted statements to his former players and changed all of his social media bios to inform everyone he was the new coach for LSU.

I was, and still am, astonished. But maybe I shouldn't be. This is his move. This is what he does. He is selfish. He only cares about Brian Kelly, and what is best for Brian Kelly. He is an egomaniac. But unlike Riley at USC, I think it is going to be real tough sledding for Kelly at USC. He had a cherry gig at Notre Dame. They are an independent program and they get to pick all twelve teams they play every year. They have no conference title game. They have no built in teams they play every year. They get to pick who they want to play, when they want to play them and where they want to play them. For people to call USC or Stanford or Michigan a "rival" for Notre Dame, I don't buy that. They do not play those teams every season. The university of Ohio State and Michigan play every year. USC and UCLA play every year. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State play every year. Notre Dame gets to pick when they want to play their "rivals". They also have their very own television network that funnels in millions of dollars to the program. Again, a cherry gig. LSU does not have those same things. They play in the SEC. They play Alabama, Georgia, Auburn, Ole Miss, year in and year out. They also recruit against those teams every year. The stadiums are massive and filled every weekend and have rowdy super fanatics. Brian Kelly is in for a world of pain the first time he has to travel to Bryant Denny Stadium or The Swamp or Georgia. Sure, LSU has Death Valley, but Clemson's Death Valley is much more intimidating. And SEC fans are way more passionate than Notre Dame fans. They don't want to wait for a title contender. They won't deal with a random 4-8 or 6-6 season. They want gratification every year. Ed Orgeron, who is also an ass, won a title two years ago. He was fired this year after two, I say again, two less than better seasons. Who is to say that their fanbase and alumni won't do the same if Kelly doesn't yield instant results? I wouldn't put it past them.

Again, this is still very wild. This is very out there. This one makes way less sense to me than what Lincoln Riley did. If anything, all it proved to me is how truly selfish Brian Kelly the person really is. I do not know if this will work out, but he does have 15 million reasons to fall back on if it doesn't. I am still stunned.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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I Know Exactly Why Lincoln Riley Left for USC

Michigan finally beat the university of Ohio State on Saturday after almost a ten year drought. It was glorious and wonderful and they punched them in the mouth and I just kept putting my hands up in the air while saying, louder each time, "FINALLY!". This was the first time that either one of my children have seen Michigan win The Game. But I already expressed all my joy with my family and friends that are fans as well. We all shared that experience together. It was a great day to be a Wolverines fan. They still have work to do, but that win on Saturday was pretty great.

The big win is not the main point of my piece today. While basking in the glow, the college football world was hit with some big time news yesterday. And yes, I am still in a good mood today from the win. But Lincoln Riley, after getting beat in Bedlam, decided to leave Oklahoma for USC. When I first saw that he was a candidate I pushed it aside. But no more than about an hour later he was accepted the head coaching job at USC. He told his team, told the university and was on his way out the door of Oklahoma.

Again, I was stunned. He had something special going on at OU I thought. He has coached two Heisman winners. He has been to the CFP three times. He, until this season, has owned the Big 12. He is an ace recruiter and was luring some top level talent to come to Norman. But just like that, he is gone for what some consider greener pastures at USC.

California is a recruiting hot bed, that is for sure. The Pac 12 has an easier path to the CFP. No one other than Oregon has much top level talent. Riley is young and now about to live in LA. And apparently he is going to get PAID. I read that Oklahoma could not match what USC was offering, and that was one of the main reasons he decided to take the job. But still I have questions. I am a bit confused.

I do not understand why he would make what I consider a lateral move. The NFL seemed like the next step for him. But I have actually thought a lot about it today. I have had some time while I was grocery shopping and doing some chores to think about Riley's decision. First, the money thing is real. I know OU fans will call him all kinds of names, but any one of them would take a much higher paying job if they had the chance. That is human nature. I used to get mad at athletes and coaches when they would leave one job for another because it was paying them 2-5 million more dollars. Now I have no problem with it. Get paid. Take the money and run. If someone is going to give you all that guaranteed money, take it.

Then we have the Pac 12. That is an easier path to the playoff for sure. Who, outside of Oregon, is going to really challenge them? UCLA was better this year, but with Riley at USC, and his recruiting and offensive coaching prowess, they do not really stand a chance. Arizona State is okay, but they have some off field issues, and I could see Herm Edwards leaving sooner rather than later. Arizona has one win in their last 20 plus games. Washington was really down this year and they need to find a new head coach. Washington State had a decent year for them at 7-5. Oregon State is better, but they are still years away from truly competing. Stanford really took a nosedive this season. They will be better, but not at USC or Oregon's level. Colorado has been down for a few years. Utah is solid and could contend, but they are not very good offensively. And Cal is stuck in neutral. The move to the Pac 12 makes sense.

Riley also gets to live in LA now. No disrespect to Norman, Oklahoma, but LA is a lot of people's dream destination. It isn't for me, but I am in the minority. The weather is beautiful and it never really gets cold there.

I think the biggest reason for the move, something I forgot until a ton of people brought it up yesterday, Oklahoma is about to move to the SEC. If Riley thought the Big 12 was tough, he was in for a rude awakening in the SEC. He was going to have to compete for recruits, and on the field, with teams like Texas A&M, Alabama, LSU, Auburn, Kentucky, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Ole Miss, Arkansas, Mississippi State, and on and on. That is no joke. I may not be a fan of the SEC, and the sports media is totally biased for the SEC, but that is one hell of a battle on and off the field. The Big 12 was easy, but the Pac 12 is even easier. I do think Riley saw the writing on the wall, especially after a "letdown" of a year for him at Oklahoma. They went 10-2. They will not be a playoff team. They had to switch QB's midway through the season. I was way off on that team. They had so many problems, and I think Riley figured, if they cannot win the Big 12 this season, how on Earth was he going to compete at the highest level in the SEC. The Pac 12 was much more intriguing to him. I think that is the main reason why he chose USC over LSU or staying at Oklahoma. He did not want to fight to compete in the SEC. It was too daunting a task for him. I agree with him taking the money and living in LA, but I also think he was very afraid of having to face tough competition week in and week out, and on the recruiting trail. That is why he picked USC.

I will be interested to see how many more changes come, but this one was a big, big deal. This changes a lot of things in college football, and I am very curious to see how Riley does in a new conference with a storied program.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Booches Burgers are the Best

Today my family is in Columbia visiting my extended family. We come up every year, except last year for obvious reasons, for Thanksgiving dinner. I get to see two of my brothers, my nieces, my sister in law and my mom and dad, they travel up for lunch. But after eating three straight turkey meals we are all ready to have something different for lunch. Today we chose burgers. Let me tell the tale.

We decided to go to a local joint called Booches. People may have heard of this place. It has won awards and it was mentioned by Sports Illustrated as the best college town restaurant recently. The place is a dive, but damn is the food, mainly the burgers, really tasty. They do have fries or salads or anything like that. But they do have chili, chips, hot dogs and burgers. I got the burgers today, as I always do. But today they hit different. They were extra juicy. They were nice and greasy. The onions and pickles were crunchy. The bun was fantastic. I have to assume it was because my brother was manning the flat top today. He knows his way around a kitchen. And the burgers were something special. I mentioned all the fixings and the juiciness, but the taste was incredible. It was nice and meaty. It was cooked to a great medium temperature. The cheese was gooey and melted. The fixings adding the perfect taste that you want from fixings. It was the perfect burger. I really like Krazy Jim’s Blimpy Burger in Ann Arbor. Bailey’s Range in STL is great. I love Steak N Shake as far as chain restaurants go. But Booches has the best burgers I’ve ever had. I realized that this afternoon. The burgers were that incredible.

I highly recommend people take a trip to have a Booches burger. Get it with everything on it to get the full grasp of how good it really tastes. They really are worth it. Booches is great.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Happy Thanksgiving

As I do every Thanksgiving, today I am going to give my own personal thanks. This year has been something. It is nowhere near as crazy as 2020 was, but 2021 has definitely had its moments. I will save science and doctors for the end because that is what I am the most grateful for this year.

As I say every year, I am thankful for my wife and kids. While my kids drive me nuts, I love them very much and they have had quite the year. My daughter started kindergarten. My son is in fourth grade. They are both excellent students and have made a plethora of new and old friends since returning to in person learning. My wife continues to be the best person in the whole world. She is kicking ass at work, she is still putting up with my nonsense and she just gets better and better every day. She is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I'm thankful that my mom and dad are still here and still healthy. We had a scare with my mom at the start of the year, but she is fully healthy again, and she continues to crush life. My dad and I have gotten even closer since he retired and our coffee days are my favorite day of the week. My in-laws still continue to be very supportive and completely wonderful.

It has been oddly nice to see full stadiums this fall in college football and the NFL. I am not going to go to any games, but it has been oddly comforting to have the return of fans. It does add to the watching experience from my home. I am thankful that I get to coach a semi-normal basketball season this year. My son is super into hoops, and he is on two teams and we started practice two weeks ago, and so far so good. I am also extremely thankful for running and the community involved. Running has changed my life. I did my first marathon this year. Running is the absolute best.

What I am most thankful for, what I alluded to at the beginning, I am thankful most for doctors and science. We have a COVID vaccine now. I have gotten my two shots and my booster. So has my wife. So has pretty much everyone I spend any extended time around. And my kids got their first dose over two weeks ago. In fact, they get their second dose next Tuesday. I cannot wait. The things I mentioned above, the full stadiums, gathering with more than ten people, playing and coaching basketball, none of that, and so much more, would not be available without the countless hours that scientists and doctors put into creating the vaccine. Of course we have people that are making the vaccine political, but I have chosen to not listen to those individuals, and to get them out of my life. It has made me a much happier person.

When you gather with your family this year, when you sit around the table and think back to last year and not being able to get together, please think of all the people much smarter than me, and a lot of you, that made this possible. Without all the doctors, scientists, Moderna, Johnson and Johnsons, Pfizer, and so many more people and companies, we would all still be socially distancing and not being able to gather as families. We can now because they all did something historic and life changing. So thank you doctors and scientists. You have all made me the most thankful I have been in quite some time.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone. Don't eat too much food.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Why in the Hell Would Anyone Want to Play Doggie Doo

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I have a tale to tell.

My kids started their break from school today for turkey day. We went over to my folks house for brunch because they wanted to see the kids. They see them all the time, at least once a week, but now that both are in full time school, they do not see each of them at the same time as much as they used to. So we took the first day of break to hang out with them all morning and into the afternoon. We went out for brunch, one of my few times going to an actual restaurant during the pandemic, we went to an Italian grocer, my dad and I got coffee and got my mom and the kids some fancy drinks and we headed back to their house to hang for a bit before coming home.

Pretty good day so far.

When we got back to my folks house we watched the TV for a bit. My parents put it on Nickelodeon and "Paw Patrol" was on. I'm not a fan of that show, and to be honest, my kids do not really watch it anymore, but we were going to be leaving soon. But I am not here to talk about "Paw Patrol" today. I am here to talk about a commercial I saw for what I think might be the grossest kids game I have ever seen created.

The game is called Doggie Doo. If you cannot tell by the name, the game is all about collecting dog poo. That is how you win the game. I am not joking you. The more dog poop you collect the better off you are in the end. While watching the commercial they showed the game being played. It is a simple dice game, and when you roll, the number you get is how many times you squeeze the dog bone in the dog's mouth. So a 3 gives you 3three squeezes, 2, 2 two squeezes, and so on and so forth. The more squeezes, the more of a chance you have that the dog will go poop. And when it showed the dog going to the bathroom it made this gross slimy sound and a fake piece of dog poop popped out of the dog's butt.

My dad and I both looked at each other with disgust and dismay. We could not believe our eyes. I am not opposed to gross things, and I fully understand that everyone poops, it is human nature, but to make a game for kids that you win by collecting dog turds, that is foul. I simply don't know who this game is marketed for. I am truly at a loss. Kids like gross stuff, but my kids refuse to pick up after our dog. I am sure my nieces and nephew are the same with their dogs. I have to imagine most other kids in the world are not begging their parents to pick up after their dogs. I do not like picking up after my dog. I do it because I have to and because it is rude and gross to not pick up after your dog. But I can assure you that I am not angling to play a game where the objective is to collect the most poop. I have to imagine that the person that pitched this idea is either a psychopath, or they pitched it as a total joke not expecting it to get made. But here we are, in November of 2021, and this game called Doggie Doo is being sold in stores. It is clearly on at this time because Hasbro wants to see as many of these as they can for the upcoming gift giving holidays. They would not put a commercial for this game on national TV if they did not have intentions of selling as many of the game as they possibly can. But I say again, I do not get it. At all. I do not know anyone that is really pushing to get this game. I can't think of many parents rushing to the store to buy this game. Sure, there have been games with boogers in them, I'm sure someone has made a game with fake vomit, but this Doggie Doo game takes the cake for me as the grossest kids game to ever be made.

I promise you my kids will not have this game, and I would not be surprised if Doggie Doo ends up in the deep clearance bin by the time the new year rolls around. What a horrible and disgusting idea.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Ty Watches "Kevin Garnett: Anything is Possible"

Yesterday I was able to watch the Showtime documentary "Kevin Garnett: Anything is Possible". I am a very, very big fan of Garnett's. I have been since I was a kid. I watched him in the McDonald's All American game when I was 15, I so badly wanted him to go to Michigan, I was stoked when decided to go to the draft and I followed his career all the way to the end when he finished back where it started. I guess you could say that I’m a fan.

This movie did a good job of going over most of that, but it was all from the perspective of the man himself. This was a hard and fast documentary. This was as much a documentary as "Blackfish" or "Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room". The only difference, and I do love both of those movies, the subject of this one was something that I am extremely interested in. I love basketball, I love inside scoop and I adore KG. This had it all. I loved how this movie flowed too. They started right off the bat with him playing in his hometown of South Carolina. They mentioned how he had to keep it secret from his mom, how she found out and supported it and the unintentional mess that he got involved in. I also dug how they did not go super deep into that whole incident because KG did not really do anything wrong. They mentioned the incident and moved on. They then shifted to Farragut Academy in Chicago where his star really started to shine. It was cool to learn about that school, about their historic past and about the team that KG was on. I also really enjoyed the coach and really like that guy a lot. He is who shaped KG the basketball player. He let him shine. He let him yell and scream and play with emotion. He brought out exactly what Garnett needed at that time in his life. I also liked the story of Ronnie Fields, his teammate at Farragut. That dude could have been a star, but he got into a bad car wreck at 18. He is still alive, and to hear him talk about his life now, that was uplifting. He is a good dude.

From Farragut is where we shift to his decision to go pro from high school. I did not realize he was the first high school player in twenty years to go straight to the NBA. That was a cool new thing I learned about one of my favorite players. I also really liked how they talked about how he was the first to really start the prep to pros thing. Like I said, there were players before KG, but KG really set it off. I also liked the story of KG and his buddies going to a gym that the Bulls were practicing in, and Jordan invited KG in to play. And he held his own. And meeting Isaiah Thomas that day was the main reason he decided to go pro. Thomas told him he was ready, so KG made the leap. I really liked the stuff with KG being a rookie in Minnesota. I enjoyed hearing how much Flip Saunders liked him. I liked that he had to prove himself to teammates, and when he earned their trust, they knew who was going to be the face of the team. The stuff with him and Stephon Marbury was very eye opening. As was the stuff with his big contract, and how that changed the face of the NBA and the league instituting the max salary. The owners are shady, shady people. The trade to Boston was pretty compelling too. I am not a Celtics fan, but hearing KG talk about why he went there, it all made sense. It was his best shot at a title. And he got that ring. I loved seeing the interaction between KG and Bill Russell. That was amazing stuff. I also loved seeing KG interact with Snoop Dogg. That was awesome as well.

I found this movie to be compelling and informative and fun and eye opening and good. It was a great portrayal of one of the best NBA players to ever play. And I loved how they ended it with his Hall of Fame enshrinement. "Kevin Garnett: Anything is Possible" is a must watch for NBA fans and fans of KG in general. This was a great movie. I highly recommend checking it out.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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It is Time for the College Football Playoff to give Cincinnati Some Love

Tonight is the eve of, I believe, the penultimate College Football Playoff rankings.

Right off the bat I want to say that I fully understand that this is a TV show. Up until they do their final vote, none of this matters. The committee is going to do things to get people talking about why they have certain teams where they have them. I also think rankings are extremely pointless until the end of the season. I loathe preseason rankings. I think ranking teams after three weeks is baseless. Some teams start off hot and cool way down, see UCLA. Other teams have a slip up, the university of Ohio State, and now look like one of the best teams in the country. Rankings are useless, to me, until the end of the season. For example, in the preseason poll, Clemson was second. They are currently unranked. Iowa State was fifth. They are also unranked. Iowa was tenth and they are in the 20's now. LSU was eleven, they are below .500. Miami was twelve, they are right at .500. UNC was fourteen, they need a win this week to become bowl eligible. Indiana was sixteen. They have had a ruthless season full of injuries and have won two games. Florida was seventeen. They just lost to Mizzou and fired their head coach. Texas was eighteen. They are not going to a bowl game this year. And Washington and USC were twenty-two and twenty-four, and they have both fired their head coaches.

On the other hand we have Michigan, who was unranked, sitting at six. Michigan State was a "projected bottom finisher in the Big Ten, they are twelfth. Oklahoma State is currently at 7 seven ahead of Oklahoma. BYU is thirteen. Utah is sixteen. UTSA, Texas San Antonio for those that may not know, is fifteen. Houston is sitting at nineteen. Wake Forest is twenty-one. San Diego State is twenty-two. And the Ragin Cajuns of Louisiana are twenty-three.

What I'm saying is, more than half of the preseason top 25 is gone, and there are teams that were outside of preseason top 50's and 60's that are ranked inside the top 25. Rankings are pointless in college sports.

With all of that being said, if the committee is too scared, if all they want is eyeballs and complaints, if they are so egotistical to not have Cincinnati in the top four tomorrow night, they are clearly trying with all of their power to not have a non power five team in the playoff. Cincinnati did their job last Saturday, and then some. SMU was supposed to really push them. They were going to be their biggest test in the conference. They were going to prove how good the Bearcats really are this season. Cincinnati won by 34 points. That is five touchdowns. They torched them. They held SMU, who has a good offense, to 14 points. It was a blowout. It was not on the level that the university of Ohio State laid on MSU, but a blowout nonetheless. Cincinnati more then proved their worth. And we have to bring up the win over Notre Dame, in South Bend, by two scores. I do not care what Lee Corso has to say about why Notre Dame belongs in the playoff over Cincinnati. Cincinnati beat them at their home by double figures. They are a better team. They have proven as much. I heard some folks on ESPN say that they think Michigan has a chance to be ranked ahead of Cincinnati. That is asinine. And as you all know, my fandom for Michigan football knows no bounds. I love that football team, but they are not a playoff team. They do not have any signature wins. Sure they beat Wisconsin in Madison, but that was week four. Wisconsin is a much better team now. And they did just win in Happy Valley for only the second time in fifteen years, but Penn State is 7-4. And they blew a 16 point 3rd quarter lead against MSU. Michigan is a better team than I thought they would be, but I do honestly think Cincinnati is a better team right now. And with Oregon getting the doors blown off of them by Utah, that totally opens the door for Cincinnati to slide into the 3 or 4 spot. I still think they should be 2. They are one of three teams in the top 25 that are undefeated. The other two are Georgia and UTSA. UTSA is too far down to make a play for the playoff, and Georgia is all but assured a spot. So why is it not written in pen that Cincinnati should be in the top 4?

When I look at the rankings, and if I were a member of the committee, I would have, from 1 to 4, Georgia, Cincinnati, the university of Ohio State and Alabama. When the rankings come out tomorrow night, I think the committee, if they do what is right, will have Georgia, the university of Ohio State, Alabama and Cincinnati. I do not like it, but that seems like the direction they should go in. What I think they will do is have Georgia, Alabama, the university of Ohio State and Michigan, with Notre Dame jumping Cinci. That would be absurd. But remember when I said it was a tv show until the last week of the season? When you look at the big games this weekend, the committee can see, as we all know, that the university of Ohio State is traveling to Ann Arbor to play Michigan this Saturday. The winner of that game is going to the Big Ten championship game. The winner of that game has a very real shot of getting the two seed in the final CFP poll. So they will one hundred percent make it a matchup of top four teams, thus screwing Cinci yet again. As for Notre Dame jumping them, the committee has shown they do not care about head to head when they slotted Michigan ahead of MSU a few weeks back.

The committee is hoping that they do not have to be put in a situation where they have to put Cinci in the top four. They want them to get beat. They want the winner of the university of Ohio State and Michigan game to get a big enough victory where they do not have to justify ranking one of them ahead of an undefeated Cinicinnati. They want Notre Dame to finish out the year with impressive wins. They want a team like Oklahoma State to win out and beat up on Oklahoma in the Big 12 title game so they can consider them. They would love it if Alabama were to beat Georgia in the SEC title game so they could easily have two SEC teams in the playoff. They want all the chaos so they do not have to put Cincinnati in the playoff. I think they are going to be forced to put them in the top four though. I think Cinci will easily win out. I think Georgia will as well. I am not confident at all in Michigan this weekend, so the university of Ohio State will almost be assured a spot. I think Cinci can push their way to third, especially if Alabama gets beat by Georgia in the SEC title game. That would give them two losses, and I already said that I think Cincinnati is going to win out.

Again, none of the rankings tomorrow night have any basis in what will happen two weeks from now, but I would not be surprised if the committee goes yet another week screwing Cincinnati over before their hand is forced. Rankings are stupid, and so is the CFP committee. Cinci should have already been a playoff team. Hopefully they get the proper respect they deserve by the end of the season. We will see.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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Even Kids Love the Spork

Every Friday I let my kids buy their lunch at school. It is a special treat for them. They bring their lunch every other day, but I like to let them have a little fun closing out the week.

They love it.

They always get in my car and excitedly tell me what they had that day when I pick them up. It is usually pizza, pretty standard, but they like to tell me about the sides they get as well. And when they do not have pizza, they are almost more excited to tell me what they had on those days. It varies between chicken nuggets and some kind of pasta. But they love it no matter what it is, probably because it isn't some lame sandwich that their dad made for them. My son is a little less stoked about it lately because he is a fourth grader now, and acts like a teenager. He is too cool for school. He likes to act like he is above being excited. It is adorable. But my daughter, who is in kindergarten now, LOVES to fill me in on all the details, no matter how big or small. She will go to great lengths to tell me each and every thing about lunch on the days she buys.

Recently she has really gotten into a certain utensil that the lunch people have given her. She has been extra interested in the spork. She is quite obsessed with them in fact. The first day they gave her one you would have thought it was the greatest invention in the history of inventing. She got in the car with extra giddy up in her step. She started to talk before I even buckled her into her seat. She was so amped that I had to tell her to take a breath and slowly explain to me what she was talking about. When she calmed down that was when she went into the greatest of details about the spork. She told me that it is this great thing to eat food because it is a spoon, but on top of the spoon they had prongs like a fork. She also told me about the handle and why that makes it even better. She let me know that she could easily go from spooning fruit to eating corn one niblet at a time. She also liked how it made it easier for her to eat pudding. I don't know how it made it easier, but she sure as hell thought it did. She also liked the fact that she could mix foods together using the spork. She was completely and utterly blown away by this utensil. When I told her that, not only did I know what a spork was, but that I have used them many times, her head exploded. She was talking super fast and asking millions of questions again. She was almost angry at me for not telling her about the spork sooner. She was flabbergasted and amazed. I loved it.

I wish there was something in my life that could surprise me the way the spork surprised my daughter. Now that I am older and more cynical, that happens less and less. But my daughter is only six. I love it when she discovers something new. I love it even more when she really likes the new thing she has found out about. I was so happy to hear her excitement when she first used the spork. I love it, in fact. It is pretty cool that kids can still find something as simple as the spork to be one of the greatest things ever invented. It is also nice that it isn't an internet thing or a video or some kind of thing that is on a screen. I love my kids, and I love how excited they are by the littlest things in life. It is truly a sight to behold.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast.

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