My Picks

Clearly I won't be winning any tournament pools... no bragging rights or money here.

Nonetheless, here are my picks for the Final Four:

Illinois vs. Wake Forest
Duke vs. UConn

National Championship Game: Illinois vs. Duke, with Duke winning 98-77

The Brackets are Here!

This week starts one of my favorite times of year… March Madness is here! I’ve been working on my brackets… I’m in a few pools this year – none of which are for money. (My high-rolling sports-betting days are a thing of the past – for now.)

I’m always torn when it comes to the brackets. My loyalty to my Big East alma mater tends to get in the way of my objectivity. In years when I honestly don’t think they’re all that great, do I really eliminate them in the first or second round? And what about those teams I hold a personal vendetta against (ahem, Kentucky for 1996). Can I eliminate them in the first round on the sole basis that I WANT them to lose?

Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. That’s why I always have to sign up for more than one pool.

Back to work... I'll post my picks tomorrow.

My Toes are Gettin' Psyched

It's almost time for spring and summer shoes! No more wellies, no more snow/cold/rain appropriate shoes... bring on the strappies, the slides, and all other type of sandal!

Okay, weather-wise it's not anywhere near spring or summer shoe weather, but SHOPPING-wise, it's high-shoe time. Or low-shoe time, given the current trend of flats.

Flyers came in the mail from Macy's, Bloomingdale's and Lord & Taylor over the past week. All the colors and styles look delicious! I need flats, and kitten heels and a strappy pair, and a new pair of cork wedges... I need new black sandals, and a pair in white, definitely a cool pair in silver, and I love that bright turquoise, and a pair in pink would be nice, too.

I smell a lunch hour rendezvous at Lord & Taylor with my two favorite shopping-companion co-workers... (Lord & Taylor is conveniently located just a few small blocks from my office. Should our rendezvous run over an hour, I'm sure we can get the receptionist to cover for us. She understands the importance of mid-workday shopping blitzes.)

I wonder if my fun shoes from last spring and summer will be jealous?

I wonder how I'm going to fit it all in my closet...

I wonder how many people will read this and think, 'what a shallow, materialistic waste.'

Happy Pi Day!

Today is March 14th... also 3/14.
As in the (abbreviated) definition of Pi.

All of my brothers are math teachers, what can I say...

The Best Thing I Saw This Weekend

Isn't he the cutest roly-poly?

[Bronze sculpture: Man on horseback by Fernando Botero at the Nassau County Museum of Art]

Add this to the list of reasons why Blockbuster sucks...

My boyfriend and I decide to rent a movie. He drives us to the nearest Blockbuster. Since we are in New York (well, Queens, specifically) there is no parking readily available. Boyfriend says to me, "I’ll keep circling, you go in and pick a movie."

Sounds like a great plan to me. [Not that it matters much, but the best thing I could find was "School of Rock".]

So, I take selected movie to the counter and realize that Boyfriend is the one with the Blockbuster membership card, not me. No problem, or so I think. I tell the cashier that I don’t have my card, but I can give her my address/phone number, etc. The account is under my boyfriend’s name.

Cashier’s response: "If your name isn’t on his account, I can’t rent the movie to you."

I explain to her that he’s outside circling because there’s no parking. I ask if I could go get his Blockbuster card and then proceed with the rental transaction.

Cashier: No, sorry he has to come in himself.

Me: Okay, he can’t come in because there is no parking available, but what if I go and get his Blockbuster card, his Driver’s License and one of his major credit cards… can I rent the movie then?

Cashier: No, he actually has to come in the store in person.

Me: But he can't find a parking spot, and he can't leave the car because he'll get a ticket. What if you turn around and he waves to you from the car, right outside the store?

Cashier: Um, no, he has to come in himself. It will only take a second.

Me: But he can’t come in because he can’t find a parking spot and if he leaves the car parked illegally, he'll get a ticket. [This neighborhood is a notorious hangout for NYPD ticketing agents.] Is there any way I can rent this movie without my boyfriend walking into this store?

Cashier: No. [blank stare]

Here’s a link to Netflicks . Go, sign-up and let’s put Blockbuster out of business -- or at least scare them into being more customer-satisfaction oriented.

Will it ever end?

Remember that movie The Day After Tomorrow?

Not a great movie, but pretty cool special effects. Speaking of special effects... Certain scenes from that movie can give people an idea of what Brooklyn and Queens looked like on Tuesday night.

Will this wretched winter ever end? Who kidnapped the start of spring and ran off with the goddess of mild weather? Every time I open my closet doors, all my cute spring and summer sandals mock me. And then I look over at my wellies. Another day of those I guess...

Any Brides-to-Be Out There?

I've been bridal gown shopping with more than a handful of friends over the past several years. I've logged hours and hours at bridal salons throughout New Jersey, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island. But I have never seen a dress quite like this one before.

I have no idea who these people are. A friend forwarded these photos to me and I felt compelled to share them with the world.

Is it time for summer vacation yet?

Too many people in my life are teachers -- or in some way employed by a school district. I've never been envious of their career paths. I always said that I only have the patience to teach gifted & talented children. (How many times and how many different ways can you explain long division to a roomful of kids?)

The one teacher-benefit that I am jealous of: SNOW DAYS. Places of business here in the Big Apple NEVER get snow days. Add this to the list of ways that life is not fair.

I would totally take a self-declared snow day, but I'm trying to save up my small amount of vacation for my big trip to Italy this summer...

While we'r on the topic... Another juicy teacher benefit is that week off during February. Spring Break in my apartment in Brooklyn probably wouldn't compare to Spring Break in the Bahamas or anything, but I would still gladly take the week off from work.