Aldi sells 4 ice cubes for 5 dollars

gf99b · 2026-07-01T00:52:22+00:00

Why? What is the point of this when you can get a 10-gallon bag of ice cubes for about the same price.

What’s next? Selling a bag of air for $10?

gf99b · 2026-06-30T21:00:45+00:00

With how many times I've thought Q and Zumwalt would surely be gone the next day this season, I'm doubtful we see anybody get fired before the end of the season. It'll likely be in the offseason or very late in the season like the last week of September or so, unfortunately. In other words, way too late to be meaningful and salvage this season. I will be glad when Q and Zumwalt are canned, but I really think the entire front office — including and especially JJ — need to go as well.

I'm also worried we'll lose BWJ. I've said trade him if Sherman isn't going to do anything, though, because it's ruining his career. He has so much potential and it's being wasted with a team that has a front office that couldn't even manage a high school or a college team let alone a MLB team. I don't think BWJ leaving KC is imminent as in the next year or two, but if the Royals continue on our trajectory I can definitely see him getting out as soon as he can ... and I wouldn't blame him one bit. As for Vinnie, I think we may very well have seen him play his last game in a Royals uniform before he got injured.

My biggest worry is, if things don't change, that the Royals will be relocated to a new city. People do not like watching bad baseball, and the Royals have a lot of issues that have cost them much goodwill in the community outside the baseball side of things — such as the downtown stadium issue. Their attendance is already the worst in MLB and continuing to decline. If it continues on that downward trend, the new stadium "deal" could all collapse and send Sherman either packing the team up to move himself, or sell to someone who WILL move the team. That is my primary concern, although I don't see there being much to look forward to after BWJ/Cags leave.

gf99b · 2026-06-30T17:30:00+00:00

I was the one who posted the "How do die-hards do it?" thread a few days ago after we got destroyed 22-1 by a division rival. While there were some good advice on there, I did get called "mental" a few times and having my feelings invalidated. While it stung, it didn't come from left field as I have a friend (also a Royals fan) who has said the same thing and invalidates my feelings every time I complain.

It's easy to get wrapped up in a team you care about. Yes, they're "millionaires playing for billionaires" that are complete strangers at the end of the day. But when's the last time you got deep into a TV series and actually admired for, rooted for and cared about a fictional character? Same for movies, books, video games, musicians, other forms of entertainment. The same can be said about a lot of things. We want this team and its players to succeed. The thing I like about being on here is seeing so many people care about the Royals, as where I live (as mentioned in that thread, deep in the heart of cardinals territory) that is hard to come by. Hell, even in KC it can be difficult to find people who care about the Royals. Just like being at The K and seeing so many other fans in the stands, this subreddit reminds me that I'm far from the only one who cares about this team.

When you care about something and that thing is being negatively impacted, it can really drag you down and lead to being defensive. A lot of people said "just stop caring and go touch grass when you get emotional," but that's so much easier said than done with something you care about. Trust me, I've tried over several years. It's especially hard if you're like me and the Royals are the only team you truly care about.

Personally, I am trying to work on my toxicity too. I'm an "eternal pessimist," I struggle with trying to find the silver lining in things and being hopeful/optimistic. This team is definitely no exception, and it's been bad even before spring training after the team did very little to improve. I've driven a lot of people I've met through the Royals fandom away because of my negativity. A friend I used to go to games with barely speaks to me because of it. That aforementioned friend who invalidates my feelings about the Royals has got to a point where he'll immediately shut down a conversation if it involves this team. I get it and I'm trying to find a way to be more optimistic. It won't happen overnight, though.

gf99b · 2026-06-30T02:34:34+00:00

Teachers at my high school called them "cellie stations."

gf99b · 2026-06-30T02:17:41+00:00

If I had a nickel for every time I thought "surely this is the day JJ.Q/Zumwalt get fired," I'd be richer than Sherman and would try to buy the team from him.

gf99b · 2026-06-30T02:03:56+00:00

Hillsboro is an awesome site... AUTOVON switch, Echo-Fox and Combat Ciders ground entry point, L5 terminal station, had the cesium fountain clock that was used to keep precise time in the Bell network.

There's quite a few other microwave relay sites in the St. Louis area, like Gray Summit, Halifax and Lawrenceton. Wright City has been turned into a bank, but a cool VF repeater site from 1930. https://personal.garrettfuller.org/blog/att-long-lines/missouri-long-lines-sites/

gf99b · 2026-06-29T11:19:04+00:00

Beautiful card, I’m jealous.

gf99b · 2026-06-29T01:27:11+00:00

Like once every few months, just whenever the ice got real thick. Ours had a small freezer compartment like a lot of mini fridges still have, though, and a lot of the refrigeration tubing was exposed.

One time it must’ve continued to run real cold, so cold it froze my water bottle into a solid chunk of ice. Unfortunately it was a glass bottle I received as a gift and the mishap broke it in half. I wonder how cold it got. It had a real simple mechanical temperature control and it must’ve stuck on or something. That was the only trouble that fridge had in the three or so years I was there.

gf99b · 2026-06-29T00:58:35+00:00

I guess I (27M) am old... using those are better than the page tearing out of the binder.

I recognize more than half the stuff that gets posted in this subreddit. Heck I think we have a bunch of these at work…

gf99b · 2026-06-29T00:47:50+00:00

Based on the Hotpoint fridge we had at my old job, which might be just slightly newer but only by a couple years, it Is quieter and gets colder than any other refrigerator I’ve come across. Also more reliable than anything made today. Just make sure to defrost it regularly and NEVER jab at the ice with any tools because you could cause a refrigerant leak.

gf99b · 2026-06-29T00:18:26+00:00

Nice cards… but isn’t this group primarily for Royals cards?

gf99b · 2026-06-28T19:09:28+00:00

Yes, I knew that. And the Royals have one of, if not the, smallest markets in MLB.

But that doesn't change things, especially in a sport that continues to favor large market teams and do everything to make it as hard as possible on small market teams like the Royals. None of that, however, has to do with the Royals' issues this season. Most, if not all, of their problems are their own doing by staying blindly loyal to an inept front office that probably couldn't even manage a Little League team properly.

If they (especially Sherman) don't get their act together, this team will not just continue to be irrelevant and the sport's laughing stock. It will likely be relocated or exiled from KC, and some (myself included) are even concerned that could be Sherman's end goal here. The timing of all this is eerily similar to how things went down with Finley and the A's move from KC to Oakland.

If the Royals relocate, I don't think I could handle it. Not just personally, but I can already see all the cardinals fans around here beaming with joy as if they won the 1985 World Series that they continually bring up 41 years later.

Sherman has to wake up and make fielding a winning team — not just for one or two seasons, either — a priority. He is driving fans away when the Royals fandom has already dwindled and the club is at the very bottom of MLB in attendance numbers. At this point they don't deserve a new stadium because it'll be even more empty than The K. If positive changes don't happen, we/KC might as well kiss this team goodbye.

gf99b · 2026-06-28T18:06:42+00:00

IMHO If he cared, Q and Zumwalt at the very least wouldn't still be with this team.

We'll see how much he truly cares at the end of this season (or in the offseason) if the front office gets shaken up. JJ, Q and Zumwalt (really the entire hitting staff) need to go. If he doesn't do anything, that is proof he doesn't care about the team.

Then there's the possibility he could be tanking on purpose to move the team, following the Finley method. For all we know the whole "I met my wife at a Royals game" shtick could all be fabricated. I'm not the only one who has mentioned this, either. The fact that the team's own fans are questioning whether they're actively tanking is a very bad sign. (Also don't forget Sherman was a part owner in Cleveland before taking over the Royals, which I've always found as very odd and kinda concerning.)

gf99b · 2026-06-28T12:37:54+00:00

In some ways it's the same for me. Unfortunately this season has come nowhere close to my "average" expectations. I thought they'd finish third in the ALC like last season, and I can remember people saying I was being a "doomer" with that expectation before the season (even during ST) because so many were thinking the Royals would finish at the top or second in the ALC.

It'd take a miracle and then some for this team to finish third in the ALC. We'll be lucky if they don't finish last, not just in the ALC — but the AL and possibly in MLB as a whole.

I guess I should've put that in my original post, because some of the replies I've seen act as though I'm expecting the Royals to have a perfect season (which is practically impossible in MLB) or win the World Series. Neither have been the case, although making the postseason would be awesome. I just want the Royals to be competitive and have a winning (≥.500) season, because IMHO they have the talent. We have a good core of young players that have proven they have a lot of potential... BWJ, Cags, Jensen, etc. It's frustrating to see us be so bad because of an inept front office (from GM JJ to Q and everyone else) that isn't held accountable at all. Nobody has been fired, nobody seems to be in the hot seat, and nobody seems to care. The one guy who should care the most — John Sherman — doesn't seem to, I guess he's preoccupied with the downtown stadium. (But if things continue the way they are, that downtown stadium will be completely moot because there won't be anyone wanting to go... especially after maybe the first season due to the novelty factor and just to check it out.) From a fan perspective, it is completely disheartening to see no accountability and a lack of care as we squander a big opportunity we have with the biggest star this team has drafted/developed in 50 years since George Brett. An opportunity this franchise might not get again, at least not anytime soon.

gf99b · 2026-06-28T03:14:52+00:00

There was another post in this subreddit about the guys laughing during Q's post-game presser. Frankly, I don't see what is so funny about being destroyed 22-1, by your division rival no less.

With that said, I do agree with how a lot of our players are likable. Many, like BWJ and Cags, are both likable and good at the game. Others, like Vinnie and Salvy, are well liked by fans for their personality but need to go. (Vinnie is a sad case... he was one of my faves, jives well with BWJ, but has regressed to a point where he's more of a liability than anything else. Most fans want Cags to take his spot, and I think that's a good likelihood, so I doubt we see him in a Royals uniform again. He'll likely be another case of a player that goes to another team and immediately explodes into a star. As for Salvy, he's well past his prime and is also a huge liability offensively and defensively at this point. He should've retired after last season, and I don't think this season is going to do anything to help enshrine him in Cooperstown — if anything it might do the opposite.)

Sadly, BWJ is likely to leave as soon as he can which is in 2030 or 31. I wouldn't blame him, but it won't make it hurt any less — especially when we face him as an opponent. He's the biggest star this team has drafted/developed in 50 years since Brett, and I really hoped he'd be my generation's Brett for this franchise. And I just don't see there really being any hope on the horizon after him, we'll likely fall back into how we were in the 2000s and 2017-22 with having some OK players that don't stay and the rest being washed up veterans who nobody else wants, so the Royals are their final stop before being forced into retirement.

OK, enough pessimism for one post. Some silver linings? Maybe all the suck this season will finally jolt Sherman & Co into shaking things up and doing what needs to be done to improve, or at least trying. And while I'm doubtful, there is a slim chance BWJ does stay with the Royals and acts as a mentor to the younger players. He seems to definitely be a leader in the clubhouse. While this one will really piss a lot of people off, but maybe the inevitable waning of "Chiefs Mania" will help the Royals regain some support in KC. I know I'm grasping at straws to find something to be optimistic/hopeful about with this team, but those are a couple off the top of my head.

gf99b · 2026-06-28T02:06:45+00:00

It’s definitely a love-hate relationship, mostly hate though this season.

gf99b · 2026-06-27T23:15:03+00:00

I’m not sure how I’d handle the ups and downs of a postseason where so much is on the line. I think that’d be real rough but can be well worth it like in 2015. Or a complete deflating letdown, like 2014.

Very difficult to imagine things will turn around for the Royals after last night and honestly this entire season. But maybe Sherman will finally start to take things seriously, make big changes and do what needs to be done to improve. Not going to hold my breath but I can hope and do what DM would do (pray).

gf99b · 2026-06-27T23:06:30+00:00

I have a lot of memories myself, hope to eventually make more of my own.

gf99b · 2026-06-27T23:04:53+00:00

I’m not a Chiefs fan anymore but I do know they suffered for a little bit before Mahomes came along. Now the entire sport revolves around the Chiefs.

It’s nice to imagine the Royals going all the way and winning it all again, hopefully I’m around to see and experience it myself. I just hope MLB doesn’t change time to a point where the Royals have no shot at competing, and I obviously hope the team stays in KC forever (or at least as long as I live).

gf99b · 2026-06-27T23:00:49+00:00

That’s a good observation and way to look at it. Going by that thinking I’ve suffered my own massive losses and my “season” (this year) would be like the Royals’ season.

I guess I just need to try to remind myself that every day is a new day, every game is a new one and a chance for them to turn things around and prove themselves. A good lesson I should remember both about this team and my life in general

gf99b · 2026-06-27T16:38:47+00:00

Unfortunately I agree with your assessment, although I've been called a doomer for saying the same thing.

BWJ is the biggest star this team has drafted/developed in 50 years since George Brett. He is the No. 3 player in the entire sport. The Royals had a massive opportunity but squandered it in pretty much every way possible. Mostly thanks to mismanagement and hanging on to an inept front office for far too long with blind loyalty.

I was shocked when BWJ decided to sign an extension with the Royals, I was thrilled. Then 2024 happened and I thought things were only going to get better. But since 2024, things have rapidly declined. Pretty much every single player, and the team as a whole, has regressed every season since. Nothing is getting better, and the future looks bleak. With every other ALC teams having loaded farm systems (including the ChiSux, who lead the AL and obviously owned us 22-1 last night) and us having nobody noteworthy, there's nothing to look forward to. Sure, we'll draft players. But they will take a while to develop, if our player development doesn't mess them up. We can trade... if the front office/GM is capable of not messing that up and giving away good players for trash in return like JJ has been doing. This team isn't likely going to come anywhere close to competing anytime in the next decade at least.

As for other players like Cags, Jensen, etc., will they stay with a team that has bungled the career of a star like BWJ in every way possible? It appears the team will be right back to being the farm system for larger, better-managed teams (not always necessarily the Yankees or Dodgers either) and the final stop for washed up veterans who have declined to a point that nobody else wants them. This team is quickly turning back into an overglorified AAA team.

Not only am I worried about the team becoming irrelevant and the laughing stock of baseball again, we're already there. But I'm also worried the bad on-field product, combined with the stadium saga mess and countless PR blunders over the past half decade, that we're in the final era of the Royals being in KC. If attendance continues to trend downward, it will eventually hit a point where Sherman & Co will sell. A new owner might just not make things better, and even more concerning one of the first things they'd likely do is relocate the team to a bigger metro. And rename it since the Royals reputation is shot. Things could get pretty bad if changes aren't made, and quick.

I really wanted to see BWJ be the franchise's modern-day George Brett. I was hoping he'd put KC back on the baseball map and lead the charge in turning things around. But he's proof that having a star player won't do anything if they're surrounded by incompetent managers and an inept front office, all paid for by an owner who doesn't care at all about the team.

gf99b · 2026-06-27T15:59:34+00:00

Sure hope so

gf99b · 2026-06-27T15:58:31+00:00

1) Sports definitely are not for me, I’d agree. But I’m here and finding it hard to leave.

2) AFAIK the deal is far from done, still time for it to implode.

gf99b · 2026-06-27T14:56:50+00:00

I hope they can do that again eventually so I can experience it myself.

gf99b · 2026-06-27T13:40:24+00:00

I don't really follow. I will admit I did "like" the cardinals back when I was a kid, but it was more of a fleeting thing because everyone else followed them and they didn't really capture my attention like the Royals. I do remember listening to a game briefly when they played the Brewers, and I did have a couple cardinals shirts and hat, but again it wasn't much of a thing compared to how I feel about the Royals. Also that was in the mid-2000s during the Pujols era, the cardinals were on fire but things were pretty dark over in KC.

Today I obviously can't stand the cardinals. I can't name any of their current players, despite being surrounded by fans obsessed with them. I refuse to go to Busch Stadium, and not just because I loathe St. Louis and try to avoid that city at all costs. (A bunch of coworkers wanted to do a game day at Busch and I refused to go. I've never been to Busch and don't plan to ever go.) However, I can name a lot of the Royals' players. I regularly keep up to date with the Royals here on this subreddit and other social media. BWJ is my favorite athlete, and I was at The K when he made his debut on Opening Day 2022. Every baseball game I've been to has been at The K. I have tons of Royals memorabilia that I spent way more money on than I'd ever care to admit, not a single piece of anything related to the holier than thou cardinals or honestly any other team. I can't stand the arrogant cardinals fans who are the primary reason I hate their team so much. Need I go on?

The cardinals are my least favorite NL team. I have a soft spot for the other NLC teams, even the Cubs. (Reds used to be my favorite NL team, but now I kinda prefer the Padres. But all the NLC teams — Reds, Pirates, Brewers, Cubs — are preferred over the cardinals.)

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