Weekend Round-Up

-This weekend my parents used the free stay down on Cape Cod that I won at the Boston Golf Expo. As it turns out, they had chosen to share their hotel with a Santa Claus convention. Now, that there is a Santa Claus convention on Cape Cod in April would be odd enough by itself, but it is extra funny because if you know my father at all, you understand that little kids mistake him for Santa Claus in normal, everyday situations. Putting him in the mix with 20 other guys who are dressed like Santa is just asking for trouble. He had to spend the weekend explaining that, no, he wasn't with the convention, but yes, you were probably on the 'Nice' list.

-When did it become common for businesses to be closed on Mondays? I had to watch my niece for a couple of hours today (that story is coming tomorrow) and while searching the Internet for something for us to do, I kept coming across children's activity centers which were closed on Mondays. Are these business owners not aware people have children to entertain on Mondays? I understand they have to be open all weekend because that is probably when they get 75% of their foot traffic, but you would think they could get enough customers wandering in on a Monday to make it worth it. I'm just saying.

-We had a local election today and I have decided that I really should be doing more research before I vote. Of course I do a lot of thinking about who I will vote for for President, Governor, Senator and those kind of state or nation-wide elections, but I think it is time I start being more thorough in these smaller town contests. That way I won't find myself standing in the booth, voting for the other guy because I went to high school with one candidate's kid and thought he was a jerk. That really does not make for a good system of government.

-So, on Saturday I woke up with a stabbing pain in my ankle. It's not that terrible: just one sharp, shooting jolt that stops once I get going. It's getting through that first step after sitting for a couple minutes that is not fun. The only reason it is really an issue is because I'm not quite sure when or how it happened. I don't remember twisting it anywhere during the day, which makes me think I was asleep when it occurred. That's right - I am literally hurting myself while I'm unconscious. I can only hope I at least won whatever competition I was dreaming about.

-One of my favorite shows on television is a weekly program called, "Nothing But Trailers." (I assume you can figure out from the title what it entails.) Anyway, this week's episode featured not one, but two trailers with Natalie Portman in them: "Your Highness" and "Thor". Now, I'm sure I'm going to enjoy both of those movies, but they don't exactly scream Oscar material. I'm left to wonder if these were filmed pre- or post- "Black Swan". If Portman isn't careful about what she chooses to work on from here on out, film critics will start looking at her Oscar win the same way baseball fanatics look at Brady Anderson's 50 homerun season. Or worse, Adrian Brody's Oscar win. C'mon, Natalie, you're better than that.