My wife comes from a modern orthodox family and got her dress from Kleinfeld’s when it was in Bay Ridge. She didn’t go the modest route, but after a few years of watching the dress collect dust in the attic she donated it to a gemach in Israel - we got married in December and her dress had long sleeves with a low…

You forgot to add this to your equipment list (indispensible, when I brewed years ago and I assume still essential:

Don’t call the referee “the Sir.” That’s a pet peeve of mine: the referee is a refereee, who typically gets addressed as Sir as a term of respect. By and large, female refs are also addressed as “Sir,” probably out of force of habit. Incidentally, there were four female referees at the tournament all of whom refereed…

Ball is out when it’s out: clear of the bodies or off the ground in the scrumhalf’s hands. Hands on is NOT out!

I was part of the officiating crew at this tournament. I wasn’t on this match but was watching from about 20 meters or so from the incident. The ref, Leah Berard (google her), had indeed blown a penalty against Cal for not releasing, and did so pretty quickly. The Kutztown player stood up while the Cal player stayed…

My Welsh friends always give me the stink-eye when I ask them if they’d like to buy a vowel.

My obvious response is that they should get rid of the “break the plane” nonsense and have the players actually have to touch the ball dow to be awarded a “Touchdown,” then the extra point must be kicked in a line from where the ball was touched down. And while we’re at it, let’s add 4 players to each side, abolish…

As a parent of a child with behavioral issues, I take a nuanced view of this. I think the situation was handled poorly not just by the airline but also by the parent. From what I can tell, the parent failed to anticipate her child - who she herself describes as a “picky eater” - might become hungry during a long,…

Totally valid.

And this:

Probably shouldn’t feed the trolls, but I know plenty of gay guys (and women) who play sports and enjoy watching them on TV. I even played rugby with a team that was predominantly gay. Also, U’ll point out that there are several sports bars here in NYC that cater to a gay audience. The way to respond to negative gamer…

The old chestnut is that football players spend 90 minutes pretending they are hurt while rugby players spend 80 minutes pretending they're not hurt. It's pretty much accurate.

“Bless her heart” is the epitome of Southern shade.

Most of the time, you’re right. I get nothing but courtest from the players and coaches. There are a few sad exception here in the US, where coaches and parents are too steeped in a sporting culture where berating the officials is part of the spectacle.

International and professional level rugby has a “brain bin” concussion protocol that allows temporary substitution for 15 minute (akin to the blood bin substitution rules) to administer tests. Not perfect (see, e.g., George North), but it’s a step in the right direction. Soccer should consider a similar protocol.

Not to condone strikes to the face, but this looks like what we might, in rugby, refer to as “handbags.” I don’t disagree with the non-call.

Obligatory.

^^This. The better weather down south means firmer pitches that support the fast, wide open game they prefer in SANZAR. Plus, the officiating down there has evolved to facilitate that type of game. In Europe, you’re more likely to have muddy, sloppy pitches that hamper speed and lend themselves to a more…

On that note, obligatory:

I drive an 01.5 B5 A4 an love the little hooptie. Looks great, was cheap as hell to buy, and the CEL twnds to illuminate only once every other month, which puts me ahead of the game. Just replaced the central locking pump the other day because the wheel well where it’s located tends to have water intrusion and shorted…