Christina Aguilera Celebrates 25th Anniversary, Bucs Rookies Make Us All Feel Old & Meet Viral Hippo Moo Deng
I did it, y'all. I ran the half marathon that I signed up for just a week ago.
To be fair, I've been training hard as a member of Team Screencaps for the Ragnar Relay (which is just 10 days away now), so it's not like I just went into a 13.1-mile run cold turkey.
But, friends, that was a rough one. According to my Strava app (God, I'm one of those insufferable runner people now, aren't I?), it was 991 feet of elevation gain. Plus, it was 91 degrees and about 400% humidity in Nashville, so believe me when I tell you that I was fighting for my life for the last couple of miles. I couldn't even enjoy the Jell-O shots that some kind and supportive strangers were passing out at the mile-12 marker.
I did it, though! And I averaged a respectable 10:08 mile — which isn't bad for someone whose cardio usually just consists of hiking through the woods or picking up barbells faster.
But now, it's all eyes on the Ragnar Relay. I'll spend the next 10 days tapering off my training, fueling, recovering and preparing to give my all for Team Screencaps! Be sure to stay tuned to Morning Screencaps, though (not that you wouldn't anyway), as I'm told Joe will be introducing the members of our elite racing squad in the coming week.
I, obviously, deserve a beer after that, and so do you. Grab one. It's Nightcaps time!
Bucs Rookies Just Called You Old
If you were born in the 21st century, this particular story is not for you.
The rest of you grandma and grandpas, prepare to feel old. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers' social team had some fun with a few of their newest players by seeing if they could correctly identify ancient historical artifacts (from the 1990s).
While I'm happy to report that all of them were familiar with the Mighty Morphin Power Rangers, the young guns struggled with VHS tapes, cassette tapes and floppy disks.
The "He's like 24, he's basically a ‘90s baby" comment nearly took me out, y’all.
I remember in grade school, when we'd get our school supply list for the year, it always included a few 3 ½ floppy disks. On the first day of school, we'd put our names on them and leave them in the computer lab to save our Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and typing worksheets or whatever else we were learning how to do on the ancient computer machines.
I honestly feel like I hit the sweet spot when it comes to modern technology. I was born in 1989, so I was young enough to benefit from the convenience of computers and the Internet throughout school — but old enough to graduate before smartphones and social media took over.
Some more nostalgia that these rotten kids today will never understand:
I'm joking about the "rotten" part. But it is remarkable to me how Gen Z looks at us Millennials like we are dinosaurs.
For example, I was getting my pre-race IV drip on Saturday, and the nurse administering my IV was very young. Early 20s, probably just out of nursing school. She asked me if I run a lot of half marathons, and I told her no. In fact, my last one was 10 years ago.
"Turns out, training for a race at 35 feels quite a bit different than it did at 25," I told her, as I sat there with compression sleeves on my legs.
She looked at me, flabbergasted.
"You're 35?" she questioned. "But you still look great!"
While I appreciated the compliment, it certainly made me laugh. You would have thought I just told her I was 80 years old by the way she looked at me — dumbfounded that I hadn't yet morphed into a raggedy old hag in my elderly mid-30s.
Just wait 10 years, 20-somethings. You are going to be thrilled to find out that your 30s won't be spent in a nursing home. But don't be surprised when NFL rookies in 2035 don't know what an iPad is.
And while we're all already feeling old…
Christina Aguilera Celebrates 25th Anniversary
Yes, millennial pop co-queen Christina Aguilera is celebrating the 25th anniversary of her debut album. (She shares that title with Britney Spears, of course. Feel free to argue among yourselves about who reigns supreme.)
You remember it. That's the 1999 album that gave us the iconic hits "Genie in a Bottle" and "What a Girl Wants."
And just in case you were wondering, 43-year-old Xtina does not look like a raggedy old hag, either.
Yesterday, Christina released a 25th anniversary album on Spotify, which contains new, live versions of songs from the debut album.
The "What a Girl Wants" track features Sabrina Carpenter. It's a slowed-down, more chill version of the song, and both women sound phenomenal.
But here's what's crazy: Sabrina Carpenter was born on May 11, 1999 — THE EXACT DAY that "Genie in a Bottle" was released. Wild, right?
We love to see the new generation paying tribute to their elders.
Hopefully, Christina signed a commemorative 25th anniversary cassette tape for Sabrina to take home.
Meet Moo Deng — The Internet's Most Viral Hippo
I understand that moving from Christina Aguilera and Sabrina Carpenter to a wet pygmy hippo is a jarring transition, and for that I apologize.
But if you've been on the Internet over the past week, you've undoubtedly been inundated with images and memes of Moo Deng, a two-month-old hippo from Thailand. I'll be honest, I had kind of glazed over it until I saw this post from ESPN this morning:
OK FINE! I'll investigate.
So I scoured the Internet for information on this ugly (but popular) little f*cker so that you don't have to.
- Moo Deng, whose name translates to "bouncy pork," lives in Khao Kheow Open Zoo in Thailand.
- After Moo Deng was born, the zoo posted videos of the new baby hippo on TikTok, and the videos blew up.
- The zoo now has almost 3 million followers on TikTok and is booming on X and Facebook as well.
"It was beyond expectation," Moo Deng's zookeeper Atthapon Nundee told the Associated Press. "I wanted people to know her. I wanted a lot of people to visit her, or watch her online, or leave fun comments."
And it worked. Moo Deng has become somewhat of a timeline cleanse for people who are tired of seeing nothing but doom and gloom all over the Internet. She has also become a popular meme, with various brands trying to cash in on her viral fame.
And now for the educational portion of Nightcaps: Pygmy hippos are an endangered species. While they have been bred successfully in zoos (as evidenced by Moo Deng), there are only an estimated 2,000 pygmy hippos left in the wild. Pygmy hippos are much smaller and less aquatic than common hippos.
They're also much nicer and less aggressive than ordinary hippos, who are certifiable jerks. As the world's deadliest land mammal, hippos kill about 500 people per year.
Moo Deng just kills 'em with cuteness. She thinks she's tough, though.
Anyway, that's about all the information I have to offer on the viral baby hippo. But just for fun, here's one more Moo Deng montage… with none other than Sabrina Carpenter as the soundtrack.
One More Thing: The S̶o̶u̶t̶h̶ Pop Tarts Mascot Will Rise Again
Now that I'm officially allowed to be excited for Fall without catching the ire of Joe Kinsey, it's time to start planning for Halloween.
And just in case you'll be attending a party with the special someone in your life, I'm currently compiling a list of couples Halloween costumes that aren't stupid and lame. Please email me your suggestions at Amber.Harding@outkick.com, and look for the full list in a future edition of Womansplaining.
We already have an early favorite for costume of the year:
If you rock this look, though, just watch out for giant toasters and the entire Kansas State football team.
OutKick Nightcaps is a daily column set to run Monday through Friday at 4 p.m.
Follow me on X / Twitter at @TheAmberHarding or email me at Amber.Harding@OutKick.com.