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The concept of possessions isn’t rare across the animal kingdom. Anyone who has ever had a dog knows they have their favorite bones or chew toys they like to hide so no one steals them. Chimpanzees are known to craft tools for specific uses and keep them together in a kit.

But man is probably the only creature on Earth that dares to think they own a tree—an organism that’s usually a lot taller and lives much longer than the average homo sapiens.

That’s why the story of a tree in Athens, Georgia, is so touching. In the 19th century, a colonel loved a white oak so much that he liberated it from human possession and declared that it owns itself. The tree sits in downtown Athens on the corner of Dearning and Finley Streets.

Colonel William H. Jackson, the son of former Georgia Governor James Jackson, had fond childhood memories of a white oak on his family’s property. So he wrote up a will that gave it self-ownership. The will read, in part:

I, W. H. Jackson, of the county of Clarke, of the one part, and the oak tree … of the county of Clarke, of the other part: Witnesseth, That the said W. H. Jackson for and in consideration of the great affection which he bears said tree, and his great desire to see it protected has conveyed, and by these presents do convey unto the said oak tree entire possession of itself and of all land within eight feet [2.4 m] of it on all sides.

The first printed reports of the tree owning itself were published in a local newspaper on August 12, 1890. The article stated that Col. Jackson deeded possession of the tree to itself as well as the land within 8 feet of its trunk.

The tree is adorned with a famous plaque that reads:

FOR AND IN CONSIDERATION

OF THE GREAT LOVE I BEAR

THIS TREE AND THE GREAT DESIRE

I HAVE FOR ITS PROTECTION

FOR ALL TIME, I CONVEY ENTIRE

POSSESSION OF ITSELF AND

ALL LAND WITHIN EIGHT FEET

OF THE TREE ON ALL SIDES

– WILLIAM H. JACKSON (c. 1832)

Sadly, in 1942, the tree fell over in a windstorm. To keep the tradition alive, members of the Junior Ladies Garden Club of Athens planted acorns from the original tree and began growing a second-generation white oak.

On December 4, 1946, the Junior Ladies Garden Club of Athens planted the sapling, which is often referred to as the Son of the Tree That Owns Itself. Today, it stands as tall as its father, rising 70 feet tall, and according to local tradition, it also owns itself.

u201cThe story behind the Tree That Owns Itself in Athens, Georgia: https://t.co/fDskRNbAzqu201d

— Garden & Gun (@Garden & Gun)
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However, according to U.S. law, the tree has no legal rights.

“Trees have not been recognized as having legal rights in the U.S.,” Mari Margil, associate director for Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund (CELDF) told How Stuff Works. “Some (trees) may have a certain level of protection that is different from other tree species, but that is not the same as having a legal right.”

But that hasn’t stopped the Athens community from caring for the Son of the Tree That Owns Itself.

“We … like our quirky objects,” says Steven Brown of the Athens Historical Society. “I think most Athenians genuinely love their city and love anything that stands out as symbolizing it.”

Garth Hudson, 85, made a name for himself being a quiet presence in a raucous band … The Band, that is. Hudson played organ, accordion, and the occasional saxophone in an outfit initially known as The Hawks, which became known as The Band after backing Bob Dylan in the mid-’60s when he controversially went electric.

The Band would also back Dylan on his famous “Basement Tapes” sessions in 1967 that were eventually released in 1975.

After being introduced to the world through Dylan, The Band made a name for itself as one of the most talented ensembles in rock history, recording classic songs including “The Weight,” “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down,” and “Up on Cripple Creek.”

Hudson changed rock history by being one of the first few to play a Hammond organ on stage. He was known as the “mad scientist” in the band who joined only if he could give music lessons to fellow members Levon Helm, Rick Danko, Richard Manuel and Robbie Robertson.

u201cOn this day in 1976, The Band played their final concert at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco. It was filmed by Martin Scorsese for The Last Waltz, including this phenomenal version of The Weight with The Staple Singersu201d

— Birmingham 81 (@Birmingham 81)
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Hudson also composed music that appeared in Martin Scorsese’s masterpieces “Raging Bull” and “The King of Comedy.”

Today, Hudson lives in an assisted living facility, and recently fans started an online campaign to show appreciation by sending him cards. But even though Hudson is in the last chapter of his life, he recently revealed that he’s far from finished. On Sunday, April 16, he surprised the rock world by performing at a house show hosted by musician Sarah Perrotta in Kingston, New York.

He performed Duke Ellington’s “Sophisticated Lady” on piano during the show. The footage shows that although Hudson is frail, the music in him is still as strong as ever.

u201cGarth Hudson played a surprise set last night at a house concert in Kingston, NY, hosted by the musician Sarah Perrotta. It was his first public performance in many years, and Perrotta has kindly shared the video. Beautiful.u201d

— HarryHew (@HarryHew)
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There are few people who don’t remember the tragedy of Sandy Hook, an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut, that lost 20 children and six adults to a school shooter. The school name has become synonymous with the shooting in 2012, but some of the survivors are growing up and hoping to work towards a bright future.

Isaiah Márquez-Greene is one of those students. He was 8 years old at the time of the shooting and lost his younger sister who was 6. Now at the age of 18, Márquez-Greene has dreams of going off to college to become a lawyer, and that dream just got a little bit closer.

While the teen was attending a hockey game for the Rangers, he was expecting the opportunity to get one of his favorite players’ jerseys. What happened next floored him.

Márquez-Greene stood on the ice at Madison Square Garden holding a sign that read “Trouba 8,” which is the last name and number of team captain Jacob Trouba. After the announcer said his name, Trouba skated over to the teen who was wearing a purple Rangers jersey and introduced himself before taking the jersey off of his back to give to Márquez-Greene.

The future lawyer told Trouba that he’d been a fan for a while before the hockey player asked him to come to the bench with him so he could sign the jersey. But when they got to the bench, Trouba asked Márquez-Greene to sit down.

“Take a seat. I gotta talk to ya,” Trouba said. “I know your story, I feel for you. You’re an amazing human.”

Trouba then pulled out a folder with a scholarship from the Garden of Dreams Foundation to help cover the tuition at the University of Connecticut’s Special Program in Law, where Márquez-Greene will be attending this fall, according to CBS News.

The entire moment between Trouba and Márquez-Greene can be seen below:

u201cIsaiah: Youu2019re our inspiration. nnWe canu2019t wait to see you right back here after Troubs watches you graduate law school.u201d

— New York Rangers (@New York Rangers)
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After taunting Ron DeSantis with an ad featuring his alleged predilection for eating pudding with his fingers, the team behind Donald Trump‘s 2024 campaign is reportedly engaged in full-blown psychological warfare with the Florida governor.

On Tuesday, Team Trump unveiled a series of key endorsements in DeSantis’ own state in an effort to drive him out of the Republican primary. There was reportedly heavy debate over when to reveal the endorsements, which would undermine DeSantis in the eyes of the Florida GOP, and at one point Trump was personally overseeing the rollout in a gleeful effort to stick it to the governor.

Via Rolling Stone:

Previously, the idea was to release the endorsements at once, likely Thursday or Friday of this week. However, by the weekend, plans had changed: It was decided that the Trump campaign would drip them out at different points in the coming days — including on Tuesday when DeSantis would be on the ground in Washington, D.C., trying to lock down his own endorsements from the Florida delegation. The ploy was part of a deliberate effort to, in the words of one of the sources familiar with the matter, “embarrass and mindf*ck DeSantis” as much as possible, via a steady drip.

To add insult to injury, the Trump endorsements arrived on the heels of Disney firing another successful shot at DeSantis in their ongoing war. After DeSantis threatened to build a state prison next to Walt Disney World on Monday, the House of Mouse announced a massive Pride event hours later in a sign that Disney is not the least bit intimidated by the Florida governor’s tough guy act.

(Via Rolling Stone)

The Sacramento Kings leave their home stand at Golden One Center up 2-0 on the Golden State Warriors, a widely unexpected result. Making the matter even more unexpected is that the Kings have largely been catapulted by a strong defensive performance.

This series has provided a remarkable inflection point of the elasticity of spacing, unbridled pace, and determined freneticism. During the earlier game on Monday, the Philadelphia 76ers turned the tide against Brooklyn’s ball screens by sitting back in a 2-3 zone, all 5 players planted inside the arc.

There are few more disparate images then the one provided by Philadelphia’s defense sitting back and what we routinely saw in Sacramento from both the Kings and Warriors, trying to combat each’s high-octane attack.

Shotmaking defined the first game in spite of incredibly active defense from both sides. Game 2 levied opposing results, as many of the “in your face” shots were further off the target. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Kings held the Warriors to 104 points per 100 possessions in Game 2, staunchly below their 116.6 mark across the regular season. That kind of improvement on the defensive end begs the question: How’d they do it?

For starters, Davion Mitchell played just over 28 minutes in the game, well above his season average and by far the most he’s played in a game in which Fox was healthy. Per Cleaning the Glass, the Kings have employed lineups featuring Mitchell and Fox for 67 possessions in their first two playoff games, which accounts for 13.2 percent of their total possessions played together this season.

Mitchell and Fox took turns pressing Curry full court, the first and perhaps most important staple in Mike Brown’s gameplan against his old team. After every make, Mitchell or Fox picked up Curry, and all the more interestingly, the Kings played a near full court man. To take away some of the gaps that the Warriors take advantage of with their quick passing, razor sharp cutting, and crips ball movement, the Kings opted to work to take away most kick-ahead opportunities and outlet passes, rather than simply sprinting back to designated spots on the floor.

The results were stunning. The Warriors were able to slip through the cracks at times to get into their quick-hitter sets, but the Kings were by and large able to ramp up the pace while also trimming the margins that higher pace can provide an offense. With tight rotations and frankly, the highest level of intensity we’ve seen from them all year, as cliche as it sounds, their pressure gave Golden State consistent trouble.

The Warriors attempted to set ball screens higher and higher, a fascinating problem-solving effort in real time, but the Kings were game. The further the Warriors tried to stretch out, the further out the Kings were willing to apply pressure. It’s not often you see a team playing out at the level of the screen at halfcourt.

Every player deserves praise for what Sacramento put forth defensively, and Domantas Sabonis was pivotal. He played extremely well out on an island, occupying on late switches if a guard got screened out of the picture, hedged onto ball-handlers, prevented middle penetration, and showed with active hands and quick feet a the level of the screen to deter actions. Fox was key as a point of attack pressure point, but his off-ball defense was huge, including a massive block at the rim late in the fourth. He often played as the main back line tagger and was huge covering ground.

Mitchell, in particular, has been essential to unlocking their entire defensive plan, starting with the aforementioned 94 feet of hell. Every straight up ball-screen for Curry against Sacramento’s bigs received a show or hedge with Mitchell running overtop the screen in rear pursuit. The two-man game to contain Curry was executed as well as one could hope against a first ballot Hall of Famer. Pressure and aggression on defense unlocks the ability to cause havoc and force turnovers, but also opens the door to create easy looks if the positioning and timing are off. If that game played out 50 times, I’m not sure the Kings could recreate that level of performance without a drop off in intensity, timing, and rotations as a whole.

The tagger was always there to catch the slipping roller, arms were always up with hands out, the physicality straddled a fine line, and off-ball defenders remained alert. It takes all five players in tune to stifle an action, and in Game 2, Sacramento’s defense was “on a string” as coaches and players love to call it.

We’ve seen it time and time again against the Warriors how they take advantage of lapses as a defense’s focus begins to wane. No, this isn’t the same team that won a title, but the principles are still there alongside the top end talent. It is so easy to get burned by a minute mistake and get exploited for a run, and the Kings deserve an immense amount of praise for 48 minutes of being stupidly locked in in a way that would draw a grin from Jimmy Butler.

In the final 5 minutes of the game, the Warriors went to their bread and butter, running staggered screens for Curry with Klay Thompson as one of the screeners. In back to back possessions, the principles we witnessed all game bore out for the Kings.

On the first play, Mitchell picks up Steph off a make and mirrors him full court. Kevon Looney and Thompson set up in staggered screens with Curry dribbling middle to set up the flare screen for Thompson to take advantage of how the Kings are defending Steph.

By having Looney as the first screener and Klay as the second, it adds a small gray area the Warriors exploit. Sabonis is staying home because he isn’t the immediate defender on the latter screen, denying the roll. Monk bumps out and switches onto Curry as Mitchell chases in pursuit. The problem is, this abandons Klay, who flares out into the slot for the open pitchback; cash.

Play 2, Mitchell once again picks up Curry full court. This time however, the Warriors angle their staggers up to open up Klay ghosting under Looney to the slot. Looney angled higher and stepping back could put Curry on an island against Malik Monk, or open up Klay Thompson again. As soon as Looney steps back, Mitchell calls out for Monk to switch, recovering back to and taking away any open pass to Klay. Monk holds his own and immediately gets a hand on Curry, keeping a wide base and not giving an angle. Curry calls for the re-screen from Looney and Sabonis shows as Monk gets caught by the screen.

Curry dragging the play as far as he can to the slot makes the recovery harder and a further distance to cover, so Fox flies up to take away the Looney roll and Sabonis extends his recovery back to Gary Payton II. The action is stifled and Andrew Wiggins sets an impromptu screen to open up Curry curling to the corner as the clock winds and he misses a contested pull-up.

It seems small, but the read and react from the Kings on the fly after getting burned the play before by a similar look was remarkably impressive. It was made more impressive by the multiple efforts and reactions to stifle the Warriors multiple times in the same possession to string them out into deep waters late in the clock.

Multiple impressive, intense, intuitive, and planned out efforts won the game for the Sacramento Kings as they put together arguably their best defensive performance of the season considering the moment. For a team that faced understandable questions about how their defense would hold up in the postseason, they’ve shown through two games that intense effort and full commitment to a gameplan can make up for what they lack in individual defensive prowess. I can’t wait to see how Golden State tries to counter and what the Kings have in store as the series wanes on. As evidenced by the double drag set, they’ll have some tricks up their sleeves for the Sacramento pressure, testing the young Kings’ commitment to their principles.

Beau is afraid, but Joaquin Phoenix isn’t afraid of looking “f*cking stupid.”

While appearing on The A24 Podcast with Beau Is Afraid writer and director Ari Aster, the Joker star discussed how he prepared himself for a scene.

“It got me spinning in a panic,” Phoenix told Aster. “[I’m a] little reluctant to say this, but because it sounds so f*cking stupid and just like actor sh*t, but I remember, and I was thinking, what I did before was I did a scene, but I wasn’t really volatile. I didn’t really put myself out there. I was still nervous. In some way, I was controlling a little bit. I was controlling what people thought about me. I didn’t want to let people down.”

Phoenix remembers “realizing I had to do something that was f*cking stupid, and I just so didn’t want to do it, but I just knew. And I just started screaming, just the most intense guttural pain scream that I could before we were shooting sitting there because I had to just fully humiliate myself.” That’s when he realized that he couldn’t “look any more stupid than you do now.”

You can listen to the podcast below.

Beau Is Afraid is out in theaters now.

(Via IndieWire)

Yung Miami and Diddy’s relationship has been the subject of fascination across the internet for months, but the City Girl really caused a stir in January after making a salacious confession on her podcast Caresha Please. When Miami told her guest Trina that she enjoys the occasional “golden shower,” fans dubbed Sean Combs “Pee Diddy,” assuming that he shared her proclivities.

However, in a new interview with The Cut (with thanks to Billboard for the spot), Miami shot down the rumor — and seemingly confessed to the end of the relationship, just three months after the couple went “Instagram Official” in January.

“I never said he was the one I did that with,” she explained. “Sex is a part of life. I’m grown, and maybe I talk about it too much, but everybody’s got their personal experiences. Some people get sh–ted on. Some people live life on the edge, some people boring as f*ck. I watch a lot of porn, b*tches get peed on.”

But regarding the wider implications of her and Diddy’s recent public gallivanting, she was a little more circumspect. “We’re still friends!” she stressed. “We’re still good friends! But we’re single. That’s not my man. We had our own situation, I’m not gonna put a title on it. We were f–king with each other hard. We were together every day at one point. He supported me, I supported him. I’ll let the internet call it whatever they want to call it.”

Diddy has yet to respond, but as he’s an active Twitter user, a statement may not be too far off.

The phrase “light beer” probably conjures some not-so-great thoughts. Pints that taste more like metallic, yellow, fizzy water than actual beer. And the truth is that, historically, light beer has been just that — a borderline flavorless, low-calorie, and low-alcohol content brew that everyone tolerates and no one loves.

Truth be told, to make a beer that’s low in calories, you often do have to settle for a lot less flavor than you’d hope. But that isn’t always the case. To find the best light beers for spring, we figured the best course of action would be to get insight from the professionals who spend their days pouring pints and asked a few of our favorite bartenders to tell us the best light beers to drink this season.

Golden Road Mango Cart

Andrew Bone, bartender at Viceroy in Chicago

ABV: 4%

Average Price: $12 for a six-pack

The Beer:

I thoroughly enjoy Mango Cart from Golden Road Brewing out of Los Angeles. It’s a wheat beer brewed with mango. The mango is a nice addition without overwhelming the beer into a fruit cocktail.

Tasting Notes:

This refreshing summery beer is all about the mango aroma and mango and wheat flavor. Light, fruity, and extremely thirst-quenching.

Griffin Claw Madam

Cosimo Bruno, beverage curator at Daxton Hotel in Birmingham, Michigan

ABV: 5%

Average Price: Limited Availability

The Beer:

One of the most enjoyable light beers is the Madam Sorachi Ace Rice Lager by Griffin Claw. Ultra-crisp and smooth give this lager a rounded finish and a soft hop aroma. This is a lager that is easy to drink and won’t leave you feeling full.

Tasting Notes:

Crisp, sweet, refreshing, and highly drinkable. It’s the kind of beer you’d want to crack open on a hot spring day.

Miller Lite

Austin Jacobs, bartender at The London West Hollywood in Beverly Hills, California

ABV: 4.2%

Average Price: $8 for a six-pack

The Beer:

The best-tasting light beer is Miller Lite. It’s crushable but not afraid of a little flavor. There’s a reason it’s one of the most popular light beers on the market.

Tasting Notes:

There’s still a malty pilsner backbone that gives it notes of toasted bread and light bitterness and makes it taste like something, something a lot of domestic light beers don’t.

Dogfish Head Slightly Mighty

Thomas Muscolino, director of beverage innovation at Landmark Hospitality in Plainfield, New Jersey

ABV: 4%

Average Price: $12 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Dogfish Slightly Mighty Lo-Cal IPA. It’s only 95 calories and 3.6g carbs without sacrificing all the hoppy flavors and tropical notes you’d expect from an IPA.

Tasting Notes:

This crushable, low-alcohol beer is high in flavor. It’s fruity, tropical, and gently hoppy. Perfect for warm spring days.

Krombacher Pils

Lauren Porto, Cicerone at The Graceful Ordinary in St. Charles, Illinois

ABV: 4.8%

Average Price: $11 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Krombacher Pils is a classic 4.8% ABV light beer from Germany. Has a great crisp, clean taste that comes from the Felsquellwasser and Hallertau hops. It’s great for all occasions.

Tasting Notes:

It’s a light beer that has a great mix of fruity hop aromas that balance well with the malt taste. It’s pretty hard to beat.

Off Color Stoutling

Alex Barbatsis, head bartender at The Whistler in Chicago

ABV: 3.17%

Average Price: $8 for a 16-ounce can

The Beer:

A fun light beer is Stoutling from Off Color Brewing. It’s an Irish dry stout but it’s only 3.17% ABV and 100 calories in a 12-ounce can. It’s incredibly delicious and goes down easy.

Tasting Notes:

It has all the chocolate, coffee, roasted malts, and velvety mouthfeel of your favorite Irish dry stout with a very manageable, sessionable 3.17% ABV.

Modelo Especial

Drew Russ, head bartender at Venteux in Chicago

ABV: 4.4%

Average Price: $9 for a six-pack

The Beer:

Modelo Especial is a great light beer. Its light body profile makes it a perfect companion for the weekend Michelada. Its crisp, refreshing flavor also makes it a great accompaniment to yard games and good times with friends and family.

Tasting Notes:

Sweet malts and flavors of honey, light citrus, and floral hops make this a very sweet, easy-drinking, refreshing light beer.

Amstel Light

Mario Flores, beverage director at Maple & Ash in Chicago

ABV: 3.5%

Average Price: $9 for a six-pack

The Beer:

If I was to pick just one light beer, I would have to say Amstel Light. In my opinion, it has deeper flavors similar to malted barley and with an ABV of 3.8%, it’s a very crushable option so you can definitely enjoy a couple of these.

Tasting Notes:

Cereal grains, honey sweetness, wet grass, and lightly bitter, earthy, floral hops make Amstel Light one of the best, most crushable light beers on the market.

Alliance Club Lager

Randi Savage, bar manager at RT Lodge in Maryville, Tennessee

ABV: 4.6%

Average Price: Limited Availability

The Beer:

Alliance Club Lager is a great light beer. It’s perfect for enjoying the warm spring weather out on the patio or deck. It’s crisp, refreshing, light, and oh-so-easy to drink.

Tasting Notes:

Made with four types of European hops, Club Lager is crisp, refreshing, easy to drink, and filled with citrus and floral flavors.

Dogfish Head SeaQuench Ale

Caleb Hallman, restaurant manager at Society Cafe in New York City

ABV: 4.9%

Average Price: $10 for a six-pack

The Beer:

The best light beer for a day in the park, pool party, or beach is definitely DogFish Head’s SeaQuench Ale. I have sold this beer at many of the places I have worked, and it is always a customer favorite in the warmer months.

Tasting Notes:

On the surface, it sounds like any other summer ale: tart, sour, light ABV. However, what makes this one unique is its brewed with black sea salt. This adds a savory profile and depth of flavor you won’t find in another summer ale.

Billy Idol made history earlier this month by becoming the first to play a show at the Hoover Dam, which separates Nevada and Arizona — and is typically reserved for class field trips (and that Vegas Vacation scene). Idol’s show, held on April 8, was kept to a small crowd, with just 250 attendees.

Throughout the set, Idol played the classics like “Eyes Without A Face,” “White Wedding,” “Rebel Yell,” and more. Adding to the exclusivity of the show, he was also joined by a lineup of special guests, including Alison Mosshart of The Kills, Steve Jones from the Sex Pistols, and No Doubt’s Tony Kanal.

The Hoover Dam stop was made between Idol’s current North American tour that continues until October. Along with the unique pop-up venue, Idol will be returning to a regular Nevada-style stage as he plays a five-night residency at The Cosmopolitan. A complete list of dates and more information can be found on his website.

The performance has been recorded for a concert film coming later this year and is produced by Lastman Media, according to NME. More details about a theatrical release will be coming soon.

For now, he has shared a teaser of the show, titled Billy Idol: Live At The Hoover Dam, that includes a snippet of his “Cradle Of Love” performance.

“I’ve played a few gigs in my time,” he jokes. “But not anything quite like this.”

Check out the clip above.

Tua Tagovailoa was limited to 13 games during the 2022 season due to head injuries. The former Heisman Trophy winner and No. 5 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft suffered concussions against the Cincinnati Bengals and New England Patriots that kept him on the sidelines, and he also made headlines when he struggled to walk off the field against the Buffalo Bills earlier in the year, although the team said that was due to a back problem.

The one against the Bengals, in particular, led to controversy, as Tagovailoa had to be carted off the field and the league responded with changes to its concussion protocol. And during a meeting with the media on Wednesday, Tagovailoa revealed that he mulled walking away from the NFL altogether.

Via ESPN:

“I considered it for a time, having sat down with my family, having sat down with my wife and having those kind of conversations,” Tagovailoa said. “But it would be really hard for me to walk away from this game with how old I am, with my son.

“I always dreamed of playing as long as I could to where my son knew exactly what he was watching, that he’s watching his dad. It’s my health, it’s my body and I feel like this is what’s best for me and my family.”

Tagovailoa went on to say that he spoke to experts who assured him that “CTE wasn’t gonna be a problem.” Tagovailoa completed 64.8 percent of his passes last season for 3,548 yards, 25 touchdowns, and eight interceptions with a league-best 105.5 passer rating.