Posting daily at 1pm central about all kinds of things. One day it's dating, the next it's TV commercials. I hope you're entertained. Professional photos on SmugMug – https://benwilder.smugmug.com
I’ve written a lot about TV commercials in 2023 because there have been some great ones. Check out a full list of the good, the bad, and the ugly here. The likes of Publix, Chevrolet, and Amazon created ads that touch the heart. On the flip side, there have been some terrible spots, too. I don’t know if any will be worse than last year’s Sprite Christmas commercial but I’ve put together a list of my 5 least favorite commercials from 2023. If I’m wrong about any of these, leave a comment below and tell me why!
I’ve seen a few embarrassing moments in college football, which has basically been ruined by the playoff committee, NIL deals, and the transfer portal. This weekend featured bowl games, bowl games that weren’t called bowl games (New Year’s 6 which I’ve never heard of till this year), and top teams losing in games that don’t matter.
I’m thinking of Ohio State, a team that, when ranked #2 in the country, lost to the #3 team and somehow dropped out of playoff contention (perplexing when the #8 team somehow jumps into the top 4 just for beating Georgia). If anyone can make that make sense, leave a comment below. So Ohio State played Missouri in the Cotton Bowl (sounds like a bowl game?) and lost, but again, what difference did a win make anyway?
Florida State got blown out by Georgia in another bowl game that, except for having the record for biggest point difference in Orange Bowl history, will be forgotten about in short time. Georgia’s 1st string beat Florida State’s freshman 3rd string team. OK. What did Georgia gain by winning? Nothing. What did FSU lose by losing. Nothing.
But the most embarrassing thing I saw was from Clemson. A game with less interest than finding sand at a beach. The only thing I can gather from what I’m about to show you is that maybe Dabo Swinney’s job was on the line? That can be the only explanation for his dramatic reaction to their field goal kicker making a field goal towards the end of the game that might win the game (it wasn’t made with the clock going to zero, they still had about a minute left in the game).
Clemson did end up winning and after the game the head coach and this other coach were caught on camera showing the excitement you’d normally see when two 3rd grade girls see each other at recess. It was weird.
Portrait of a man who’s probably already updated his resume on LinkedIn.
As 2023 wraps up, I thought it would be fitting to make a list of the top posts I’ve written this year about commercials. Whether these ads are good or not, well that’s up to you. Actually, whether my posts are good or not is up to you, too, but I enjoyed writing about each of these for various reasons whether it was the music, the actors, or working out more of my pet peeves (yes, I’m referring to the Peloton commercial at #8). In the list below there’s a dead lizard, a big furry dog, a big hairless man (chest hair, at least), sports stars, cute kids, a couple of llamas, and a woman with a Freddie Mercury mustache. Wow, 2023 sounds kinda wild now that I write it all down. So here are the top 10 commercial posts from 2023!
I’ve never been more unsure of a music video being an official music video as when I found this one from Zach Bryan and Kacey Musgraves. I know I’m a little late to the game since the song came out a few months ago but I just heard it for the first time on the radio earlier this week so… cut me some slack alright!! ALRIGHT!??? Thank you. Also forgive me for not being a huge Kacey Musgraves fan, but this duet with Zach has got to be one of the best in country music in a long time. If you can name a better one in the last 10 or 15 years, leave a comment below. OK, about that video that may or may not be official…
The song packs some power, huh? It will punch you in the gut, too, if you’re not careful. So be careful, alright? ALRIGHT!??? Good. Good job making wise decisions. This isn’t the first song by Zach I’ve written about. Check out a break down of the video for his song “Oklahoma Smokeshow” here.
The low tide at St. Teresa Beach this week has been super low. The water is more clear than usual. Lots of water birds swimming around, dolphin sightings and an eagle flying overhead. Winters at this beach are a lot different than summers.
Out of the Wilderness 