Farewell to a true badass

Sir Edmund Hillary, lifelong adventurer and conquerer of Mount Everest, died today.

Born the son of a humble family in New Zealand, Hillary loved mountains his whole life. He was notoriously aggressive when climbing, determined to outshine his companions while also pushing himself to the absolute limits of his physical capability.

Mankind as a whole has accomplished incredible things in the decades since Hillary's historic climb, and generations of sports fans have been privileged to witness some truly phenomenal accomplishments on the fields of the myriad games that captivate us. But when it comes right down to it, there's nothing quite so impressive as a man with a pickax and some biscuits (god it took me like 5 tries to get that word spelled right) in his pocket pitting himself against the world's highest and deadliest peak for the sheer thrill of it. RIP, Sir Edmund.

The passing of an icon

A moment of silence, if you will, for the passing of the great Lillian "The Fabulous Moolah" Ellison, a female wrestler who was the first woman ever to be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame. Ellison, who passed away yesterday, was 84. She started wrestling at age 25 (this is during the 40's, now, so she was bucking more than a few gender stereotypes along the way) and won her most recent title at the age of 76. Originally billed in the ring as "Slave Girl Moolah," Ellison eventually rose above those humble beginnings and changed her name to "The Fabulous Moolah." Yes, she was a true pioneer who paved the way for today's superstar female wrestlers like Chyna and, um, Chyna.

Seriously though? This broad sounds like the coolest woman ever. I can only aspire to one day be cool enough to pull off the nickname "The Fabulous Moolah." Not even just "Fabulous Moolah." THE Fabulous Moolah, bitches. Now that's a woman I can look up to. Sorry, Hillary and Sandra Day... I've found my new role model.

God, I feel so inspired.