The Cavinder Twins Had A Big Weekend Celebrating Independence In Bikinis, Blue Jays Fans Fighting & Lobster!
PLUS: Buy a John Lennon suit and impress all your friends.
Why did I spend Sunday putting the pool safety fence in the attic when it was 95-degrees outside and probably 115 in the attic when I absolutely hate going into the attic?
Because the car search is officially over and the garage needed to be cleared and cleaned for the arrival of Mrs. Screencaps' new grocery getter, a 2023 Honda Odyssey.
As I promised right here in this column Saturday morning, we went out with the intention of getting an idea of the market. The plan was to start off looking at Honda Pilots. The very first one we looked at was beat to hell — and very expensive for how beat to hell it was.
After years of living the van life, Mrs. Screencaps didn't like how the Pilot felt like an absolute tank.
The young kid sales guy dialed up a 2023 Honda Odyssey for us to test drive and Mrs. Screencaps had found her sweet spot, but this Odyssey was also beat up and the miles were high. Neither of the cars we test drove had been detailed. Just vacuumed.
Hey car dealers, that's a major turn-off. Are you serious about selling cars?
So we moved up the highway and to another dealership that had an Odyssey.
"It's always cool to buy a car with AC," the new salesman, who was clearly well-seasoned in the business, told us as he led us to his desk to figure out what we were looking for.
Sales guy's initials are AC.
Trust me, the minute he said that signature line, I wasn't sold on buying from him, but the content is content side of my brain appreciated the icebreaker. I was intrigued.
10 minutes later, we were test-driving a beautifully detailed Odyssey EX-L with an impeccable service history that was serviced in Bowling Green, OH which told me that the van wasn't driven much on Toledo's shitty roads.
I drove it down the highway and parked it in a Kohl's lot for inspection. I told Mrs. Screencaps that the wear and tear in the trunk area would tell me quite a bit.
I get out, go back to take a look and the plastic trunk lining around the door closure was perfect.
This van, like our Toyota Camry, had been babied and well-taken care of. We don't think a kid ever sat in the back of that van. It felt like a couple of 80-year-old grandparents had tinkered around in the van on Sunday drives.
The miles were fine. The price was higher than what we planned on spending, but at the end of the day, Mrs. Screencaps got the certified vehicle she's comfortable in, and it's a cash deal, so we don't have to sweat an interest rate.
After pointing out a couple of items we wanted taken care of, AC came back and asked if we had a deal.
Yes, we do, AC.
Stress-free.
And the Honda-certified warranty goes all the way out to 2030.
And just like that, the Great Car Search of 2025 was over, and we were back in the pool a couple of hours later.
Quick-hitter observations from the car search:
- The second Honda dealer was BUSY. Our sales guy, AC, was handling our deal and two other deals at the same time when it was 95-degrees outside. BLAZING HOT. But, people were out shopping.
- I liked the first Honda sales guy we dealt with. He was probably 25 years old and looked like a character in a modern Weekend at Bernie's remake. He just didn't have the vehicles I would even consider buying.
- Weekend at Bernie's sales guy didn't even make us show an ID before test-driving. He just pulled up the Pilot and told us to go for it.
- I don't know how Honda can sell a certified vehicle and not have it detailed BEFORE a test drive. It's unacceptable.
- It was inspirational to hear from so many of you who wrote passionately about Kia and how they're no longer complete shitboxes, but I couldn't be swayed. I'm going to stick with Honda engines and take my chances.
- We've reached that stage of life with our kids where we didn't even think about buying the higher trim package with the drop-down screen for movies. That saved us money. Grab your phones and tablets, kids.
Speaking of AC, what's with all the air conditioners that are going out?
Just this weekend, my in-laws had their practically brand new AC unit go out. The service guy said they had cottonwood build-up that had clogged the condenser or something like that. I'm not an AC guy.
The unit needs fixed.
Then, Mrs. Screencaps' best friend had her AC unit go out on a six-year-old house. The service guy told her that the AC unit was installed wrong and there's a fire hazard that needs to be fixed.
Six-year-old house. SMH.
Then, my step-brother's AC unit went out. I'm not sure what's going on there, but the house isn't very old.
Are AC units not built the way they used to be built?
Email: joe.kinsey@outkick.com
4th of July weekend reports
— Travel Ball Hardo Chris B. in Houston writes:
Not great pictures, but our resort hosted fireworks on Saturday featuring the self-proclaimed kings of yacht rock, the Thurston Howell Band. They even sold captain’s caps with their logo, which you definitely need for the porch:
https://www.beechmountainresort.com/event/independence-day-celebration-with-thurston-howell-band/
— Charles T. checks in from Oak Island, NC:
— Steve B. in Grand Junction, CO writes:
No, we don't get sick of hearing about life in Ohio. Except when I get jealous of seeing that you have a pool. Did you put that in, or did it come with the house?
I thought about one of those $500 above-ground pools from Wal-Mart, but I don't have electrical where I'd want the pool, and running extension cords to the pump seems even a little too white trash for me.
My July 4th in Western Colorado was spent playing nine at our local executive course with my daughter.
Maybe it doesn't match up to the gorgeous landscaping of Gary M's round at The Cardinal near Detroit, but it's cheap, and on one tee box, there was a mom in a bikini setting up lunch on her patio. Golf course beauty comes in many forms.
I found the two best things about having a teen daughter with a learner's permit on the high school golf team:
She doesn't have to pay green fees.
I have a designated driver after the 19th hole.
Kinsey:
Our pool is 40 years old. We liked the house and it came with the pool. It definitely wasn't on our list 15 years ago, but here we are. It has warts, but the kids love it and it doesn't drive me too crazy to work on it, which is a plus.
‘Is this your house?’
— Travel Ball Hardo Chris B. also sent in this one after hearing about how rabbits build nests in Mrs. Screencaps' landscaping even though we have a Doodle ready to chase rabbits:
Kinsey:
I've told Mrs. Screencaps that Daisy doesn't want to kill the rabbits, she just wants to play with them. This video illustrates my stance.
Tesla RWD vs. AWD
— Gen X. Warren writes:
Thanks for all you do and SeanJo, as well. Screencaps and OutKick are such a big part of my evening when I get caught up on the day.
Anyway, my wife and I wanted to get a Tesla way back in early 2019, but waited for the Y to ship (and inadvertently waited longer). We finally leased one in March and love it. A rear wheel drive should be fine in South Florida but we did AWD.
I understand the reader today said RWD and while I never drove in snow (been Floridian too long), my wife from Michigan thinks AWD would be better. I’d suggest the reader take advantage of the 2 day test drive and do some research on Tesla Model Y’s in the snowy conditions, rear wheel vs all-wheel drive.
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That is it this Monday morning as America gets back to work. I know it's hard, but some of us have to buckle down and make this country run again after a grueling holiday weekend.
Go dominate those meetings before your next vacation.
Take care.
Email: joe.kinsey@outkick.com