The Deck at 260 Part 13

It was extra cool on The Deck to close out summer. That didn't stop the discussions from happening 

-Cracker Barrel (continued)

- Micah Parson trade

- Why Are Men really friends with women? 

- Labor Day weekend

The Cracker Barrel discussion stirred up quite the hornets nest. From hilarious memes to conversations against the "woke media" even what Cracker Barrel actually stands for. I honestly didn't know the elderly man on the logo was Uncle Herschel, the founder's Uncle. Welp after all of the backlash against the CEO, the original logo is being restored. Personally I'm glad and it gives inspiration to other groups of people. When you form together as one and take action, you can accomplish great things. 

Dallas Cowboys fans have began their whining two weeks before their season kicks off. Their star wide receiver, Micah Parsons, has been trading to Green Bay after the Boys didn't wish to pay him what he earned for his contract. It's time for Dallas to see that Jerry Jones truly is the problem and has bottlenecked Dallas for 3 decades. 

Ok as "cuffing" season is upon us why are "men" truly friends with women? We know women will stay friends with a man for 50 years but do all heterosexual men just stay friends with a woman waiting for their opportunity? I will say as a hetero male that's pushing 50 there are women I am friends with and I leave that door open. However I need to have that total connection and openness with any woman before I choose to connect with them physically. It's not that I don't find them attractive, it becomes different. After a while they become one of the guys. I'm wrestling with that right now but I think we will stay friends especially since I went through a heartbreak a month ago. 

Ok Labor Day weekend is here. How many of you know the true meaning of Labor Day? Also how many of you know that "no wearing white after Labor Day" was something that the elite and well off came up with decades ago, in short it's ok to wear all white after Labor Day. 

See you next time out on the Deck!

The Deck at 260 Part 12

This is perhaps the coolest August ever as The Deck is officially christened. My cat Mosey has claimed it as her lair. We have some things to chop up out here. 

- Cracker Barrel logo rebrand

- End of minor league baseball season specials

- Klay Thompson's favorite dinner from Megan Thee Stallion

- Viral Schoolteachers

Ok the big topic before we even get to Friday is about Cracker Barrel. Let's get down to it. DEI is gone, right? However, Cracker Barrel apparently watch Target lose all of those billions and have slowly been rebranding their image. So far the stock is dropping and it could be another fumble ala Bud Light or even the new Coke from the 80s. Who asked for this logo? I know I didn't. Cracker Barrel didn't offend me. Personally I love their breakfast (unsure why my uncle and I haven't been here yet) and their lunch/dinner is honestly bland, basic food. Cracker Barrel needs another rebrand to save sales before the 4th quarter. 

Minor league baseball around the country is ending as the major leagues ramp up before the October playoffs. There are tons of specials to basically see games cheap or get plenty of food. Nevermind the theme nights going on. I remember last year my aforementioned uncle went to a Gastonia game, paid one price for doubleheader and ate unlimited hot dogs. This year the Spartanburgers in Spartanburg have $5 seats and other promotions ongoing. This is of course to salvage the rest of the season and compete with football in the South. I didn't know until last season tickets to see the Atlanta Braves are around $10 in September. 

Some of you have heard the Southern "wives tale" that some women will contaminate spaghetti with blood from their period to trap a man. Meg Thee Stallion has now been accused by the Internet community of doing that to her boyfriend, NBA superstar Klay Thompson. She has been cooking Klay spaghetti, meatballs and fried fish. Klay claims this is the best meal he's ever had. Personally I will need more evidence that Klay is trapped. I do think they are in love. Trust me, I've been there. When that happens, most things taste good because of who made them (not bubbrnt pancakes but that's a story for another day). 

Ok I've seen more schoolteachers this year go viral for wearing tight dresses and skirts than ever before. Going back to DEI, apparently that hasn't hit our public education system since all of these women are Black. I'm not seeing anything wrong. Do they want these curvaceous women to wear moo-moos or robes? I've seen 4 of these photos and there's nothing wrong with the attire. I truly think we as a society have reached our limit on what is truly offensive. I ask you all this: is it a body thing or a race thing? I'll wait. 

Good discussion on the Deck. Let's see what we have as we wrap up Summer.

The Deck at 260 Part 11

We're chilling on the Deck with my cat Mosey who has claimed this (and my Blackstone grill) as her home. Good thing I have a nice cover. 

We're going to talk about these topics out on the deck 

-Hurricane season 

- What to do now that kids are back in school.

- High school football coming

- College move-in.

We have had enough rain the past two weeks and now we have another Category 5 hurricane on the Atlantic coast. Those of us still affected by Hurricane Helene are triggered but slightly more prepared. We'll take rain but we don't want nor need any power outages. 

There's lots of stuff people do when the kids are back in school. Some include even volunteering up at the school and even cleaning. My mom used to say you get the most cleaning done when no one is home and I agree with that. 

High school football is basically back and that's always a good thing. Blacksburg is young but bigger than I thought. Gaffney is Gaffney except having a Black head coach. History will be made next Friday at the Reservation and weather pending, I don't want to miss it.

This weekend is college move-in. I think back to my freshman college move-in and how unprepared we were. I also remembered how much I missed my family and home. Prayers for all of the students and parents. Labor Day weekend and Family Weekend will be here soon! 

Hurricane Erin will definitely be among the topics to discuss out on the deck next week. 

The Deck at 260 Part 10

We're full into August now on The Deck and it's cooled down enough for me to hang out there. Speaking of this cooler weather,...

-Mercury Retrograde

-All of this rain

-Shedeur Sanders

-Jet2Holidays

-Back to School

Mercury has truly been in retrograde with the False Fall currently happening and the strange behaviors of many out there. Crime has been on the rise, people are more edgy for many reasons. I hope with the current moon out we can get some normalcy. 

This rain is annoying. I know it's good for so many other purposes. However, can we get some more sun? Before yesterday evening, I literally didn't see any sun since Saturday I think. That's a huge Vitamin D deficit. 

I'm so glad Shedeur Sanders came out in his preseason NFL debut and performed well. My hope is he continues to perform well and prove doubters wrong even if the NFL uses it as a storyline or narrative. 

These Jet2Holidays that have went viral have been wild! I'm writing in my

The Deck at 260 Part 9

Ok getting back into normalcy full force out on the Deck. Here's what we're talking about

-Cooler August Temps

-Shannon Sharpe

-Tracee Ellis Ross

-Movies Out

-Football is back

I'm definitely excited that it's cooler outside. As I get older, I can't quite handle 100 degree temps as I used to. I only wish the sun were out longer. 

Shannon Sharpe has been officially fired from ESPN. It shows we should have better judgment and discernment regarding who we deal with (good #imjustdrew topic also). 

Tracee Ellis Ross has gone viral for her donk photos. Are they real or is it AI? Tracee is a very lovely woman to be in her early 50s and stays fit. I think she needs to go Live and address this. Unless she loves the attention. 

Two good movies out, Happy Gilmore 2 and the New Fantastic 4. I expected Happy Gilmore 2 to be good as it captured the OG Adam Sandler films and feels. Fantastic Four was a little bit of a surprise that has you looking back at the comics. 

Despite that it's preseason it's good to see football back. Not long now until Fall! 

Stay tuned for next week!

The Deck at 260 Part 8

We're back out on the deck after a month! Joined now with my cat Mosey and my Jack Russell, Spud. 

Ok a lot has been happening besides my 47th birthday. 

Slew of celebrity deaths

Atlanta Braves woes

Schoolteacher wishlists/budgeting 

All-Star weekend in Gaffney

Many celebrities have passed on this week along. Malcolm Jamal-Warner, Ozzy Osbourne, and now Hulk Hogan and Chuck Mangione. I feel like my childhood has been compromised from the grief standpoint. Mercury is already in retrograde again. 

My Atlanta Braves are just going through it. We have 5 pitchers on the DL, bats are cold and just keep losing. Question now is should the head manager go now?

I caught some heat on last week regarding the schoolteacher wishlists that some teachers post. I made the comment about teachers not budgeting properly and whew doggies social media came after me! Listen now and read with understanding: I have given to these wishlists, I'm actually given a bushel of used books to a schoolteacher tomorrow. I also actively participate in bookbag and school supplies giveaways. I don't judge at day's end. However tenured educators know this is their thin season. I'm ok with them having fun and unwinding. It's the classic case of buying champagne on a beer budget. 

This weekend is one of those out the year that is like a holiday weekend or WU Homecoming to me: the All-Star alumni basketball games in Gaffney. It's a full slate of basketball, fun, food trucks, games, giveaways, etc. I'm coming off of one of our busy seasons to work and I cannot wait. 

Stay tuned next week when we hang out on the deck after my work trip to the ATL!

The Deck at 260 Part 7

Ok this may be our last installment out on the deck for a couple of weeks due to a busy July. It's really hot also so we're on the deck in the evenings. 

This week we discuss: 

NBA Finals

Kevin Durant

Swimming

10 years with Amazon

Welp the OKC Thunder won the NBA championship, youngest team to do it. The series got stretched out despite the Achilles curse hampering Tyrese Halliburton. Kevin Durant is now going to Houston at also 40 years old. Unless he's the OG in the room ala Haslem, unsure what the Rockets expect to get out of him. 

I realize why I got out of swimming: self conscious about both my weight and my toe when it was ingrown. I'm getting back into it now as it's part of my fitness regimen. I will be eating cleaner also between work and social functions. You will see me more in pools and creeks far and wide. 

Today marks 10 years since I've been employed by Amazon. I'm very blessed to still be employed, employed with the same company and achieve the heights that I have. I look forward to more growth and opportunities. 

Whenever I do get back on the deck I'm going to talk about grilling, the July holidays, dog days of summer and my countdown to Fall.