Sand Dollar Thursday Rundown

Posted on August 17, 2023 by brent

The Thursday Rundown is back! You didn’t receive five topics from me last week because I was on vacation but this week is a different story. Let’s get right to it…

2023 Crop Mural – I worked on the WSU Pullman campus today so I had the opportunity to see this year’s crop mural. The 2023 design was recently completed on the hilly wheat field that is visible as you approach the entrance to Pullman. A feeling of Coug Pride always manifests inside of me when I pass the depiction. The latest design features Butch with a megaphone and a speech balloon that spells out “Win the Day.” Thanks to the talented artists for creating it and BECU for sponsoring it (to see the design in greater detail instead of from the window of my car, click here).

This is the 2023 WSU crop mural presented by BECU. I was able to take a photo before any traffic pulled up behind me.

Sand Dollars – I mentioned in our vacation recap that a highlight of my time in Seabrook was waking up early to hunt for sand dollars with Sloan. It was so rewarding to hit the jackpot after being unsuccessful at finding an intact one the previous three days. I thought I would share a photo of our loot—22 sand dollars! They aren’t all dazzling white but Sloan could care less; to her, they are treasure.

A look at the sand dollars we collected. This photo was taken on the porch of our cabin.

Happy 42nd – I want to congratulate my parents on celebrating their 42nd wedding anniversary yesterday. On Sunday, August 16, 1981, my parents entered into the sacrament of holy matrimony inside St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Walla Walla, WA. Their marriage is something that my siblings and I try to emulate with our own spouses and it is something that I draw on when counseling engaged couples. Thanks for the example and inspiration, mom and dad!

My parents celebrated their 42nd wedding anniversary yesterday.

Our Lady of the Olympics – One of the things I enjoy most about vacation is the chance to visit different Catholic churches. When we were in Seabrook, there was no parish in the town so we had to travel 40 minutes to a small community called Amanda Park. It was there that we attended mass at Our Lady of the Olympics. It probably grabbed the honor of the tiniest Catholic church (excluding college and hospital chapels) that I have worshipped in. A humble nave with 64 portable chairs is where we sat as we listened to Fr. Navy Kumar Thomas deliver the gospel about Jesus walking on water. He then preached a homily about the need to “just listen” during prayer. The church was probably 50% full but as is often the case with small parishes like that, the faith of those present was strong.

My family attended mass at Our Lady of the Olympics Catholic Church in Amanda Park. The church was small but the faith of the congregation was not.

Stream of Week – Sidney recently chose “Fatale” from Netflix’s Top 10 movies. It was just background noise for me at first but later that night I decided to give it more of my attention. I became engaged with the psychological chess match and the carnage that was being done to a hot shot sports agent by a corrupt cop (played by Hilary Swank). If you have 90 minutes to spend on a film that will keep your attention and deliver a pretty solid soundtrack, you might appreciate “Fatale.”

“Fatale” had some twists and turns.

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Thanks for reading! If your area is experiencing oppressive heat, please make smart decisions and stay cool. Don’t Blink.

Arcade Agony

Posted on August 16, 2023 by brent

A couple years ago, Sloan played hard at Chuck E. Cheese all summer long. We bought her a summer pass that allowed her to play unlimited games for 30 minutes each week. For as much as we all love to hate on Chuck E. Cheese, I sure yearn for the “all-you-can-play in a set amount of time” arcade model.

Chuck E. Cheese provided a good value with its “unlimited play” option.

I think one of the most anxiety-inducing experiences for a parent is taking a young child(ren) to an arcade. During last week’s vacation we paid visits to two different arcades and both experiences made me scream internally.

Never mind that just from my own personal perspective I really dislike the direction arcades are going. The “point” price system for games really rubs me the wrong way. Oh, this game takes 16 points to play? Great, now can you translate how much that actually is going to cost me in actual U.S. dollars? I just find it so deceptive and disingenuous. When it comes down to it, the arcade games are priced so outrageously that they have to disguise the true cost with “points.”

So if as an adult I am having a tough time figuring out how to decipher the point system, how is a 6-year-old supposed to understand it? That is where the first big headache originates. When Sloan and Beau run wild in an arcade and I have loaded their cards with $10 each, I have to convey to them that they have to budget their funds accordingly. Of course they immediately gravitate to the games that cost 20 points and I have to “advise” them that if they want to stay at the arcade for more than five minutes, they should probably play something else. Then comes the back-and-forth of whether they can play the 20-point game “just once” and what their balance will be after they play it (to which I respond “I don’t know”).

Adding to the agony of this predicament is that many of these expensive games are too advanced for my kids. Beau tried a shooting game last week and in addition to difficulty he had of just holding the gun he didn’t understand the concept of shooting off-screen to reload. Sometimes my kids can’t even get through the long instruction tutorials many of these games have at the beginning.

These VR games are just too advanced and expensive for my kids.

Then there is just the scam-like nature of the “skill games” that young kids can’t fully grasp. All the claw games for cheap crap like jewelry, stuffed animals, and toys are virtually impossible to win for even a well-coordinated adult but yet my daughter has the confidence that she is going to clean out the machine of every glitzy bracelet it has. I then watch as Sloan deploys the claw on the plastic partition, never even touching the prizes. Sure Sloan, try again.

After much negotiation, frustration, and suggesting, the visit ends with a trip to the ticket counter for a dream-crushing ordeal. Low ticket counts of my kids combined with the deeply inflated ticket costs of the prizes isn’t an ideal combination. I find myself deflecting their gazes from the cornhole boards and repeating, “No, you can only choose between these three bins” (which usually consist of Tootise Rolls, hair ties, and mini erasers).

Last week at the Seabrook arcade, Sloan took a moment away from the scams and overpriced games to play some pinball.

The days are gone when my kids would be happy “playing” the games when they really wouldn’t be playing them. It is all pay-to-play for the Resers now. Unfortunately, at this point in their lives, that price just isn’t worth it. But don’t tell Sloan and Beau that 😉 Don’t Blink.

8 Reasons Why Attending A Seattle Mariners Game Is A Good Value

Posted on August 15, 2023 by brent

When our family went on vacation last week, we kicked off the fun with a day in Seattle. The main event of that particular Tuesday was a Mariners game later in the evening. As I mentioned in a previous blog post, it was the first time I had watched a Mariners game in-person in nine years (at Camden Yards) and the first time I had caught a game in T-Mobile Park in such a long time that I didn’t even know how many years it had been.

Needless to say, attending an MLB game with children is a little different from the days when I would order numerous beers and stroll around the ballpark at my leisure. For this blog post I thought I would list eight ways that our family maximized the value of our time in T-Mobile Park.

Beau and the rest of us had a fantastic time at the Seattle Mariners game.

Convenient Transportation – We bypassed the headache of finding parking and then forking over an astronomical amount of money to pay for it. Our hotel offered a shuttle that took us to SeaTac. Once there we hopped on the light rail that took us to T-Mobile Park. After the Mariners shut out the Padres, we got back on the light rail and jumped off at SeaTac where our hotel shuttle picked us up. Round trip ride on the light rail for an adult was $3 and kids were free. So…yeah…we paid a total of $6 for transportation to/from the game.

Sidney and Beau ride the Seattle light rail to T-Mobile Park.

Value Seats – For every Tuesday home game, the Mariners offer highly discounted tickets. We were able to score $20 seats in the lower sections. We sat in 114 and had a clear and spectacular view of the action.

A view from our seats. Not bad for $20 each.

Affordable Eats – The Mariners now offer a value food menu (and value beer menu 😎) where you can get items for under $5. We loved the value popcorn.

Beau and Sloan enjoying their stadium food.

Unlimited Soda – Our family loves a good souvenir cup! We purchased a $9 Mariners plastic cup that came with unlimited refills! Self-serve soda kiosks are all over the T-Mobile Park concourse so we had no problem filling up our cup whenever we felt the inclination to do so. Let’s just say this…we definitely got our $9 worth.

Cheap Entertainment – This might come as a surprise to you, but Sloan likes attention. The T-Mobile Park video board provided plenty of entertainment as my daughter would dance her heart out between innings in hopes that the camera would spot her and she would get up on the board. Although Sloan didn’t make it up there, she had fun showing off her moves to those around us. We all enjoyed the sponsored games (i.e. hat trick, boat race, etc) and player features that also appeared on the video board.

Sloan had a blast in (and out of) her seat.

First Game Certificate – Thanks to a tip from my friend Shauna, we knew to take the kids to Guest Services so they could get their own certificate printed out that commemorated their first Mariners game at T-Mobile Park.

Beau and Sloan each got a certificate for attending their first Mariners game.

Play Structure – The Seattle Children’s Hospital sponsors a play area in center field that is FREE for kids to play on. When Beau was getting a little restless in the later innings, we took him over there. He played his heart out while Sloan and I watched the ninth inning from behind the center field wall. Beau didn’t want to leave the play area even well after the game was over!

Beau and Sloan ate Dippin’ Dots by the center field fountain before entering the play structure (you can see some of it if you look in the top right corner).

$5 Beer – As I mentioned above, T-Mobile Park now offers a value beer menu with select 12 oz. cans selling for $5. The popcorn was a bit salty so I needed something to drink so I hit the adult beverage stand. I was all set at the counter with my two cans of beer when the worker asked to see my I.D. Unfortunately I didn’t have it with me as I handed it off to Sid when we checked in at the hotel. Oh well.

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I was pleasantly surprised with the overall value of attending a baseball game as a family at T-Mobile Park. With discounted tickets, affordable food, and many free entertainment options, I would recommend an afternoon or evening at the ballpark with the Seattle Mariners. Just remember to bring your driver’s license. Don’t Blink.

Family Seabrook Vacation

Posted on August 14, 2023 by brent

For the first true time as a family of four, we went on a vacation together. Last week, Sidney, Sloan, Beau, and I headed to the west side of Washington for several days of summer fun. In the past, I have commemorated trips by utilizing different writing methods for my Don’t Blink recaps. After giving it some thought, I figured I would write this summary by recounting the main events of each day while also reflecting on a special moment as well. To be honest, my biggest objective with this post is to have something for Sloan and Beau to look back on from this vacation. With that said, here is a glimpse at a very special week for the Resers…

Tuesday, August 8 – With excitement at record levels for the four of us, we departed Spokane early in the morning. We arrived in Seattle around 11 a.m. and played at a 100-year-old park called Wallingford Playfield. After stretching our legs at Wallingford we visited Woodland Park Zoo. The kids loved the otters but I was partial to the sloth bears. We checked into our hotel and then took the light rail to T-Mobile Park for the Seattle Mariners vs. San Diego Padres game. On a gorgeous night we ate way too much ballpark food, enthusiastically participated in all the between innings video board games/cheers, and passionately cheered for the home team as the Mariners blanked the Padres 2-0.

The four of us at the Seattle Mariners vs. San Diego Padres game on Aug. 8. 2023.

A Special Moment – Since it was the first-ever Mariners game for Sloan and Beau, they were both celebrated by the stadium staff as they were presented with certificates memorializing the event.

Some of the photos and moments from our first day of vacation.

Wednesday, August 9 – After eating breakfast as a family in the hotel lobby, we swam in the hotel’s pool. We checked out and drove 30 seconds to the family fun center located right next door. Called Bullwinkle’s, the kids played arcade games and exerted energy in the play structure before eating lunch at the Cheesecake Factory. We then drove 2.5 hours to Seabrook where we checked into our cabin and walked down to the beach for a quick taste of what was to come.

When we arrived in Seabrook on Wednesday night we took the kids to the ocean. Didn’t take them long to warm up to it.

A Special Moment – We stopped in Aberdeen to shop at Walmart before entering Seabrook. While there, Sloan was adamant that I take her over to a homeless woman who was asking for money. I honored my daughter’s request and she gave the lady some of her own vacation allowance.

Some of the photos and moments from our Wednesday of vacation.

Thursday, August 10 – We hit our first full day in Seabrook hard. After baking cinnamon rolls for breakfast in our cabin we swam in the town’s indoor pool. By the time we finished there the sun had made its appearance so we ventured to the outdoor pool and luxurious hot tub. After lunch we would spend most of the afternoon at the beach. What fun it was to dig in the sand and make castles with the kids! We ate tacos for dinner and then made s’mores in the fire pit of our cabin’s back yard. We then headed back to the outdoor pool for a majestic round of night swimming.

Thursday was full of trips to the pools, ocean, and more.

A Special Moment – Sid and I set up beach chairs about 30 yards from where Sloan and Beau played on the shore. When I returned to our chairs after helping Beau with something, my wife had written “Sid ♥’s Brent” in the sand.

Some of the photos and moments from our Thursday at Seabrook.

Friday, August 11 – The morning started with the four of us walking over to the shuffleboard courts. Sid and I split two games against each other while Sloan and Beau played their own game on the neighboring court with new friends they made. We fit in a beach trip and pool visit before the morning was done. During lunch we watched “Big Brother” and put Beau down for a nap. Sloan and I then went to the arcade and candy store. A bit later on, we all went over to Seabrook’s green space where a fun cover band performed a free concert. I took Beau to the playground while Sid made dinner and by the time we returned a delicious pot of chicken bog was waiting to be served up. We capped the night by making s’mores again.

Making s’mores was one of our favorite activities while in Seabrook.

A Special Moment – Sloan had the guts to run up to the stage in-between songs during the concert and request a track. Sid put her up to it and encouraged her to ask for “Bad Moon Rising.” Even though the True Romans were a little caught off by the request they played it!

Some of the photos and moments from Friday of our vacation.

Saturday, August 12 – The alarm clock went off early as Sloan and I awoke at 5 a.m. to hunt for sand dollars. Except for a man and his dog, we were the only ones on the coast as we found 22 intact “sand bucks” (as Sloan calls them). Later that morning the four of us traveled 40 miles to a place called Amanda Park so we could attend mass at Our Lady of the Olympics. After eating brunch at the town’s local diner we traveled back to Seabrook and browsed the community’s farmer’s market. The afternoon was spent swimming in the indoor pool. We then had our “nice” out-to-eat dinner of the vacation as we dined at the Rising Tide Tavern. The four of us all had a really nice time at dinner and afterwards the kids played games on the downtown streets (i.e. Jenga, cornhole, sidewalk chalk). We then walked to the ice cream shop for dessert. The day ended with an encore trip to the outdoor pool and one final s’mores session.

What a fantastic vacation it was. We took our photo at Seabrook’s signature oversized chair.

A Special Moment – Watching Sloan’s face light up when we found whole sand dollars was pretty cool. We had looked for intact dollars the previous two days but couldn’t find any. Sloan was rewarded for getting up early and browsing the beach at the time in which sand dollars were plentiful.

Some of the photos and moments from our Saturday in Seabrook.

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Sunday was spent making the nearly seven-hour drive back to Spokane. This time we didn’t have a Seattle excursion to break things up but the kids did awesome (all things considering). We sure had a lot to reminisce about from the vacation and we all agreed that we can’t wait to return to Seabrook again. Having six days to spend exclusively with my wife and kids was a blessing beyond words and I will always cherish the memories we made. Don’t Blink.

Homeowners

Posted on August 7, 2023 by brent

We bought a house!

After seven years of nomadic living, we decided to establish some roots and secure something a little more long term. The Resers are now the owners of a four bedroom/three bathroom house in the Spokane Valley.

This is our new home by D.R. Horton.

Because of our careers and family on both coasts, renting made sense for us. In fact, I have nothing bad to say about renting—I loved the flexibility! But after living in four different houses since we tied the knot coupled with what we have established here in Spokane, making the big investment seemed like the right thing to do at this point.

We landed in a brand new development in the southern part of Spokane Valley. We are one of the first families to move into a neighborhood that currently has about 20 completed houses built but will eventually boast more than 300! To be one of the “originals” is kind of cool.

The “location, location, location” real estate cliché proved true for me. Sid made sure that we were taken care of house-wise while I focused on where exactly the foundation would sit. I wanted to live in a bustling neighborhood near school, church, and work. We checked the boxes on all three of those items. Sloan and Beau will each attend St. Mary this fall and instead of a nearly 20-minute drive, it won’t even be a 10-minute drive. We confirmed that yesterday when we drove to mass and realized how “early” (relatively speaking) we were when our car entered the parking lot. I also now have easy access to the highway that will lead me to Pullman on those days I work on campus.

All credit for our new status as homeowners goes directly to Sidney. She had the drive to buy our own place while I continued to sing the praises of renting. My wife flipped me and then took the lead to find our dream home. Many of you know that purchasing a home is a wild roller coaster and Sidney was in that front seat navigating the whole ride.

We can’t wait to start inviting our family and friends over as we begin the process of making memories under this roof. What an opportunity! Don’t Blink.

Morning Thursday Rundown

Posted on August 3, 2023 by brent

It is with enthusiasm that I wish you a happy Friday Eve! Hopefully your August is off to a fantastic start and you have fun weekend plans on the horizon. Let’s get started with the latest rundown…

Froyo Combo – I always enjoy sharing the froyo combinations of my children because, well, kids have different tastes than adults. Sloan and I walked to Didier’s, a classic north Spokane frozen yogurt shop that came way before self-serve “froyo,” from my parents’ house over the weekend. I think Sloan picked solid flavors (island coconut and vanilla) but her choice of Sour Patch watermelon pieces and Nerds was a little questionable. Oh well, she liked it.

Cotton Candy Soda – How dare I poke a little fun at Sloan for eating like a kid when I am over here drinking like a kid. I found this cotton candy soda four-pack at the Dollar Tree and couldn’t help myself. I brought it home and gave it a try. For someone like myself who is pretty easy to please, this cotton candy stuff might be some of the worst soda I have ever tried. It maybe tasted like cotton candy for one second before it got bitter and then ended with an aftertaste that seemed very similar to what smoke bombs might taste like. It does pour as a vibrant blue liquid so it has that going for it but the taste itself is pretty bad.

This was the cotton candy soda that I bought. Just not very good.

Mariner Drought About to End – On this date nine years ago, Sidney and I were in Baltimore to watch the Mariners play the Orioles. Little did I know that it would be more than 3,285 days before I saw the M’s play again as that streak will end next week…but more on that down the road. Camden Yards was a sweet ballpark with my favorite feature being the mini monuments in the outfield seating area that mark where noteworthy home run balls landed.

Sidney and I in Baltimore at Camden Yards in 2014. It was the last time I saw the Mariners play in-person.

Happy Birthday, Mom! – My mom celebrated her 66th birthday yesterday. I don’t know what our family of four would do without her. She embraces her mom, mother-in-law, and grandma roles with such selflessness, dedication, and enthusiasm. But her role as a party animal might be diminishing a bit. Yesterday, my dad took her to a bar and the bartender told my mom that she was entitled to a free birthday shot. My mom turned him down and ordered an iced tea instead. Cheers, mom!

Happy Birthday, mom.

National Watermelon Day – Today is National Watermelon Day and I celebrate it with some sadness because I haven’t ate any excellent watermelon this summer. Despite trying a decent amount, I haven’t found a melon that is crisp, juicy and flavorful…yet. Hopefully something will come around this month. Speaking of watermelons, I will never forget when my sister made a watermelon cake for my nephew’s birthday and paired it with chocolate chunk watermelon ice cream 😂

A look at the watermelon cake my sister made along with how it looked when paired with the ice cream.

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Thanks for your time today. I am always humbled by those who don’t mind my ramblings. Let’s pray for those souls who have recently left this earthly world and for their grieving families still here. Don’t Blink.

Big Things In August

Posted on August 1, 2023 by brent

August is here and I have strong feelings about this month. In fact, a year ago on this date I wrote an ode of sorts to the eighth month of the year. I explained that for so long August was a transitional month for me—leisure and summer the first half and then back to business and autumn the second half. It doesn’t hurt my feelings that over the past few years the month of August is no longer split between the two extremes but rather a complete extension of summer.

Stock up on your ice cream this month and savor every scoop!

Boy, I sure am glad that the “extension of summer” August will once again be in effect this year. Why? Because it is safe to say that this month will be unlike any other August I have ever experienced. In fact, the month will forever be immortalized starting TODAY. More on the event that will shape this August like no other in a future blog post (sorry for the tease). But besides the “big” event, our family has so much to look forward to this month including a wedding, baseball, vacation, and much more.

But enough about my August. I want to encourage all of you to enjoy this month as much as possible. I understand that for many, as my father-in-law would say, “the party is over” this month. If that is the case for you, I hope you can enjoy the remaining days of leisure before your responsibilities heat up. Savor these sweet days of summer, my friends!

In closing, I do want to extend heartfelt sympathy to all the children I know in South Carolina and other states who must return to school in the coming weeks (yuck). But as I have already alluded to in this post, don’t find yourself dreading the beginning of the school year so much that you can’t enjoy what you have left. Happy August to everyone—make it memorable! Don’t Blink.

Not So Awkward Moments

Posted on July 31, 2023 by brent

I am working out at a new gym this week and I received quite the surprise this morning. As I was about to march off to the cardio section of this particular north Spokane gym, I heard someone call out my name.

“Hey, Brent Reser?”

My direction turned to the man who said my name. We had entered the gym around the same time and I had definitely noticed him but didn’t think there was any connection as he was wearing a hat and we were both focused on our workouts. But as I gazed over at him with a slightly puzzled look, he ended the mystery by quickly identifying himself. It was my high school assistant principal!

We took just a couple minutes to catch up but it was really nice to see him after so many years. It also helped that he told me I didn’t look much older since the day I graduated high school (yeah right! 😂).

Since moving back to my hometown three years ago, I can say that it has been such a joy re-connecting with people from my childhood and teen years. To be honest, when I returned to Spokane in 2020 after 15 years away, I thought it might be awkward to see people who I last saw a decade and a half ago. However, I couldn’t have been more wrong.

Over the past few years, I have run into old friends and acquaintances at the store, community events, and the park. I have also bumped into blasts from the past under more unique circumstances. For example, on Halloween when I was passing out candy at my parents’ house, an old classmate brought his child to the door. Last weekend at the wedding I attended, the photographer was an old elementary school friend. And then of course this morning I chatted with my high school principal as we pumped iron.

Each time I have engaged with someone after not seeing them for 15 years or more, I have walked away feeling energized. It hasn’t been weird or uncomfortable but rather interesting and a little inspiring. No matter how small the role we had played in each other’s lives, we were able to recognize that history and celebrate it.

I didn’t attend my 10-year high school reunion because I was living on the east coast at the time. But even if geographic limitations didn’t factor into my absence, I don’t know if I would have attended. With my 20-year reunion just a couple years away, I am actually looking forward to it.

I feel fortunate to live in the area where I grew up and I have appreciated re-uniting with some of those people who I knew from my original/first stint in Spokane. It is important to embrace, not avoid, these opportunities. Don’t Blink.

For Par Thursday Rundown

Posted on July 27, 2023 by brent

The time has come for my latest Thursday Rundown and the final one of July. Let’s get this party started with five topics…

Froyo Date – Back in June, I wrote about a list Sloan made for school that detailed her summer plans. An item on that list indicated she wanted to “Eat at Froyo Earth on 7-3-23 at 10:20.” Although we were over three weeks late, Sloan finally had her froyo with Robbie, the classmate she made the intention with. It was awesome to get the two together and see the plans they made actually materialize!

Robbie and Sloan at the froyo outing they organized.

Golf Night – On Friday evening I dusted off the golf clubs. My childhood best friend asked me to play a round after work at Deer Park Golf Club. With a 6:30 p.m. tee time, the course was pretty quiet by the time we got on it. We had a fantastic time catching up and swinging the sticks. As for my golf game? Terrible!

It was a lot of fun to play golf with John at Deer Park Golf Club.

Crazy Price Difference – When picking up a certain over the counter medicine (sorry for TMI) at our neighborhood grocery store, I couldn’t believe the price difference between the premium and generic products. Now granted the Imodium had more caplets than the generic but that price gap of $13.80 was pretty intense. I will always buy generic name brand medication over premium but unfortunately it wasn’t an option this time. Evidently everyone else had already made the sane decision to pass on a $15.19 product in favor of a $1.39 one.

The price difference is just bonkers.

Stream of Week: Bling Ring – Way back at the beginning of our relationship, Sidney and I watched the movie “Bling Ring.” It was based on the true life events of Los Angeles teenagers who broke into the homes of multiple Hollywood celebrities and stole their stuff. Fast forward nearly a decade since we watched the movie and we recently finished up Netflix’s “The Real Bling Ring” docuseries. Over the course of three episodes, two of the actual perpetrators are brutally honest about their crimes. Although they are now repentant, you will be knocked off your feet by the audacity, entitlement, and thirst for fame they had while committing the crimes.

It was interesting to hear Alexis and Nick tell their stories.

Pet Rock – I was today years old when I learned that “pet rocks” used to be a thing. I guess in 1975 a guy came up with the concept when after his friends complained about the significant commitment of owning a pet. This entrepreneur wanted to find a “pet” that didn’t require such strenuous care. The dude sold 1.5 million pet rocks in a short period of time before the fad slowed down. Sidney and Sloan keep asking for a pet…I wonder if a rock will pacify them?

This guy became a millionaire because he sold pet rocks.

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Huge weekend for our family coming up but more on that later. I hope everyone is able to enjoy these last remaining July days. Don’t Blink.

The X-Pulsion of Twitter

Posted on July 25, 2023 by brent

To be honest, I was a little angry.

Over the course of nine months, I observed an ego maniac cripple a social media giant with bad decision after bad decision. I watched this guy treat his employees like garbage, strive to create deliberate division, and chase whatever impulse he felt entitled to even if it was to the detriment of his company. I cheered when this toxic “leader” supposedly removed himself from day-to-day operations of Twitter by announcing a new CEO.

So after all the turmoil and damage that Elon Musk caused, I was happy when Twitter seemingly scored a big win. This past weekend, engagement numbers for the new social media platform that was supposed to send Twitter to its grave were released…and they weren’t good.

Forbes reported that the daily active user count for Threads plummeted from 44 million on July 7 to 13 million this past weekend. Even worse, the average daily time spent on the app tanked from 19 minutes in early July to four minutes as of July 21. Compare that to Twitter’s 200 million active users and average daily time spent on app of 30 minutes and you would think that new bird boss Linda Yaccarino and her crew would be toasting champagne. After so many months of crummy developments, Twitter notched a victory by standing strong against its latest (and what was supposed to be its “greatest”) direct competitor.

Leave it to Elon to sabotage the positive momentum.

I wasn’t impressed by Elon Musk’s name/logo change (graphic courtesy of The Mirror).

Twitter Deserved Better

I am disappointed in the rushed and Mickey Mouse-esque way in which Twitter was “re-branded” to X. Even as a digital marketing professional who knows the greatest constant of social media is change, what happened in this case was an impulsive shit show. A platform that has meant so much to millions of users over the span of 17 years deserved better than to be ousted overnight and replaced by a single letter with a logo that looked like it was created on Kids Pix.

Sorry to sound cranky, but I am also irked from a professional standpoint. The haphazard “re-brand” means our WSU team needs to swap out countless Twitter depictions found in areas such as our website, residence hall posters, online social media directories, and even my analytics reporting spreadsheets. But even more frustrating than swapping a bird for an X is that I have been answering for Elon to my WSU colleagues for nine months now. I have given him way too much leeway while advising my fellow Cougs to stay the course. But when is enough truly enough?

X Isn’t Going Anywhere

Well, enough is still not enough…at least not for now. Despite Musk’s latest and most extreme stunt, the sun still rose for the platform now known as X. On Monday morning, my favorites like CNN, Darren Rovell and the Seattle Mariners were all still twe—I mean Xing? Despite the hideous new logo, the app is still essentially the same microblogging platform it was before Sunday. We shook our fists at Elon and mocked the rollout but it was still business as usual in terms of content deployment on the platform formerly known as Twitter.

So, yes, once again I advise not to pause/delete your X presence. The vast majority of accounts will continue to exist and engage on the platform and the stakes may be too high not to participate. If Twi—sorry, X—has proven one thing over the past nine months it’s that it is stronger and more resilient than a man who seems hellbent on destroying it.

Elon’s Motives Aren’t Mine

Perhaps I shouldn’t be so appalled at Elon Musk’s quest to dismantle what we knew as Twitter. After all, it is his company and his priorities aren’t mine. I look at the changes happening through the lens of a social media strategist who wants to preserve X as the social media powerhouse it once was. That’s not Elon’s vision. He wants to make X an enterprise that people depend on for fulfilling the most pressing tasks of life. With a goal like that, I guess I can see why posting updates about what you ate for breakfast might not be his primary concern.

But based on Musk’s decision making, maybe I am giving him too much credit. Although I can see why he would buy a platform with millions of users to springboard his lofty goals, I don’t think the way he treats people nor the prideful esteem he holds himself in will translate to the glory he is seeking.