Pumpkin Seeds

1. If I had gone for the Lord of the Rings sweep (that I'd hoped for but didn't expect) and not taken a gamble on a couple of other longshot upsets, I'd have done better than 67% with my picks last night. Considering I hadn't seen the vast majority of the nominees, though, it wasn't too bad.

2. After last night, shouldn't Peter Jackson re-consider his planned remake of King Kong? I know I'd be thinking retirement if I were him. Or at least doing only small-budget films for awhile. As the great philospher Kenny Rogers says, "You gotta know when to hold 'em; know when to fold 'em."

3. The Passion of the Christ's huge opening weekend led to some entertaining puns: "Passion" Blesses Box Office; The Passion of the Christ really nailed it.; Jesus Christ a Superstar at Box Office; And on the seventh day ... Jesus ruled the North American box office.

4. I hate to admit it but I like Tiger Woods' latest American Express commerical, a knock-off of Caddyshack with him in the Carl Spackler (Bill Murray) role. First evidence of an actual personality I've ever seen from the guy.

5. John Edwards finally came out swinging in Sunday's debate but it was probably too little too late. And if he was holding back all this time for the VP slot, that slim hope is all but gone now. I'm starting to believe it's going to be a Kerry-Gephardt ticket. Once Bush brings Giuliani on board, this thing is going to be an ugly and unpredictable dogfight.

6. John Kerry is quickly moving up the list of people I want to punch in the neck. His response to a question about his wealth: "We all have different definitions of assets." Yeah, but we all probably agree on the definition of "asshole."

7. Tried to get some writing done this weekend but got bogged down (again) in editing what I'd already written. Part of the problem is the long gaps in between writing sessions which force me to re-read what I've already written. One change leads to another and then nap-time is over.

8. I had the most bizarre dream last night, the details of which I can't remember. One thing that stood out, though, was the in-dream realization that it was a remake of a previous dream.

9. If I haven't answered your email recently (like in the past few months) I'm most likely not ignoring you, I'm just way behind. I replied to several from December over the weekend!

10. My boss just referred to Starbucks and Blockbuster as "community-friendly businesses." Must. Not. Kill!

11. Without getting too specific, let me just say that I am so Machiavellian sometimes that I scare myself. The "worst" part is that it's more instinctual than deliberate. More on this later as things continue to develop.

12. Played the corporate networking game on Friday night for only the second time, a couple of drinks turning into several turning into a super-late night out. On the heels of my good - potentially great review - I realized the load I'd been carrying around recently had lifted a bit. Of course, it was replaced by the load from my not calling home to say I'd be later than expected. Much later! :-/

13. My milkshake is better than yours.