DAILY DIRT: Will LUV YADI ever be dethroned, or simply retired as the champion plate? 

A plate is a plate is a plate — unless YADI is involved … Welcome to today’s three thoughts that make up Vol. 312 of The Daily Dirt.

1. We reach a milestone today in our ongoing Great Plate debate to find the the No. 1 personalized license plate in West-Central Illinois and Northeast Missouri.

That LUV YADI plate, which I have spotted at least twice in Quincy (most recently in the Walmart parking lot), marks 16 weeks atop our rankings. That’s four full months. Will LUV YADI ever be displaced before the end of the year when the ranking cycle comes to an end? 

No. 2 GOL D LOX, which was No. 1 for two weeks before the LUV YADI dynasty started, is a fine plate in its own right. GOL D LOX was originally spotted at Quincy Notre Dame during basketball season.No. 3 TAXED has been holding steady, but that bronze-medal position has been rather fluid since we began this quest.

Remember, feel free to send me pictures any interesting plates you spot. At some point, LUV YADI will have to fall from No. 1 — either by a stellar replacement found by you or me, or the end of the calendar year. (PUBLISHER’S NOTE: Yes, feel free to join the Stalker Steve license plate hunt, but Muddy River News is not responsible if you catch him leering at your car. JRG)

2022 Medal-Winners To Date

Gold medal: LUV YADI. It’s the 16th straight week atop the rankings.

Silver Medal: GOL D LOX. 

Bronze medal: TAXED.

This Week’s Top 5

1. AXSHUN 4: Definite points for creativity.

2. HOWDYDO: Same to ya.

3. U ZUMBA 2: If that’s a question, the answer is a definitive “No!”

4. ROOFING: Nothing wrong with some interesting advertising.

5. FARM: Simple, yet poignant.

2. I’d be surprised if some of the ensuing celebrity net worths didn’t surprise you.

• Paul McCartney: The left-handed Beatle’s bank account shows $1.2 billion. Just retire, Paul You deserve it.
• Jimmy Buffett: The “Wasted Away In Margaritaville” guy is estimated to be worth as much as $650 million. Who said there was no a future in a laid-back lifestyle?
• Judge Judy: Would you believe $440 million? I may need to start watching that TV show of hers.
• Randy Quaid: One of the guys we loved in such films as “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation,” “Days of Thunder” and “Independence Day,” is reportedly now $1 million in the red. “Randy and his wife, Evi, claim that the root of their problem lies with the “Hollywood Star Whackers,” a secret underground cult that defames or assassinates movie stars as means of embezzling their fortunes,” according to author Dan Ketchum. Sounds like Randy has some other problems, too.
• Sammy Hagar: The Red Rocker is not hurting. He’s worth about $150 million.

3. Quietly, and without much fanfare, here come the San Diego Padres in this week’s rankings of the best — and worst — MLB teams.

The Top 5

1. New York Mets: Pete Alonso is rapidly becoming one of my favorite players.

2. New York Yankees: Remember, Aaron Judge is a free agent at the end of the year. Could he become the first $50 million-a-year player?

3. San Diego Padres: And don’t forget, Fernando Tatis Jr. will be back in the not too distant future, likely around mid-July. More and more, the Padres are emerging as the best overall team in that loaded National League West.

4. Toronto Blue Jays: They’re coming, and they’re coming fast. Has anyone noticed how good Alec Manoah is? He a legit Cy Young candidate with my kind of appetite.

5. Houston Astros: AT this rate, Dusty Baker may manage until he’s 80.

Most overrated: Los Angeles Dodgers. Or at least their offense. And the closer situation is becoming a travesty.

The Bottom 5

1. Kansas City Royals: The Royals are on pace to win 55 games. Fifty-five!

2. Oakland Athletics: At what point will the announcement become official? The A’s are moving to Vegas, baby.

3. Washington Nationals: The Nats may not be competitive again the calendat turns to about 2030. There are some long, dark years ahead in D.C.

4. Baltimore Orioles: In fact, I predict the Orioles will be competitive (well, sort of ..) before the Nationals.

5. Colorado Rockies: The best the Rockies can ever hope for in the next decade or so is to beat out the Diamondbacks for fourth place in the NL West. And considering that it appears the D-backs have turned things around, I may need to rethink that first  sentence. On the same line of thought, wouldn’t these five teams make a great division? Talk about competitive balance!

Steve Thought O’ The Day — If Steve ever opts for a second career in acting, his stage name would be Raven.

Steve Eighinger writes daily for Muddy River News. He has more names than a New York phone book.