Just finished with my latest 2 classes (both A's, thank you very much) in pursuit of the elusive MBA, which not only means that I should have some more free time available now for blogging and other life-related activities, but also that I have just 2 more classes to go until graduation. I still don't really know what the hell I am going to do with my MBA once I get it, but then again I had no idea what I was going to do with my undergrad degree either and that has worked out alright. The plan has been to start studying for the CPA exam after taking the summer off, but honestly right now the thought of studying upwards of 500 hours and taking 4 exams over the next year fills me with an overwhelming feeling of nausea. Hopefully that will pass after I have the summer to recharge.
Of course, baseball season and the Cubs are right around the corner so pretty much any free time I have gained is going to get eaten up by that on a regular basis. Speaking of which, I have been collecting my thoughts on the Cubs chances for the upcoming season and will be presenting that next week some time. I would characterize my overall attitude as cautiously optimistic.
The rest of my recent time recently has been spent enjoying the greatest annual sports spectacle; the NCAA tournament! While I do think that Super Bowl Sunday is the single greatest sports day of the year, the collective awesomeness that is the first 4 days of the tournament (and especially the first 2) overtakes it. I think the real thing that separates it from the other sport playoffs is the extremely brief amount of time between rounds. In football, you have to wait a week (and sometimes two) between rounds. Same thing in baseball. And I won't even get started on the NBA playoffs. Whoever decided that the problem with the NBA was that the playoffs weren't long enough and changed the first round from best-of-5 to 7 should be summarily executed without trial. But in the NCAA, particularly if you're like me and take Thursday and Friday off, when you watch a team win in the first round you know the only thing between you and seeing their next game is 2 days of drinking beer and eating various greasy food that will be delivered to your door. And even I can handle an agenda like that. Then of course there is the matter of the bracket pool, which is one of the rare opportunities where even non-sports fans can cross over to our world and live the roller coaster of vicarious joy and anguish that is being a sports fan . This year, as I seem to do almost every year, I sit here on the last day of the Sweet 16 still mathematically alive but needing a series of increasingly improbable events to all occur in order to take home the title. And even though my rational brain knows that the combination of events I need will never all happen, I will nevertheless suppress that rationality and sit in front of my tv all night tonight watching every minute of the games and rooting for the extremely improbably to happen.
In other news, I recently finished Barack Obama's latest book (The Audacity of Hope) and can highly recommend it to anyone interested in politics and current events. You will not find any revolutionary ideas or step-by-step instructions on how to solve today's complicated problems. What you will find is an honest book written by a man that gives a lot of thought and weight to the issues facing the country and makes a genuine effort to understand where both sides are coming from. For me at least, that is what I am looking for in an elected official. Election after election seems to boil down to how the candidates feel on a handful of issues, and then whoever gets into office only gets around to implementing maybe 1 or 2 of the main issues they campaigned on. And most of the time it isn't because they stop caring about them, it's just that they don't have the political support or other, more pressing issues arise. In addition, candidates know that there are so many "hot button" issues where if you say the wrong thing a whole group of emotional voters will never vote for you even if they agree with the other 99% of what you say. That's why I think it's more important to look at a candidate's thought process on an issue instead of the conclusion they reach and espouse ad nauseam in countless speeches. I want to know that the person I help elect is going to spend time understanding and contemplating the issues I don't even know I'm concerned about yet. So, anyway, although I haven't decided if I would even support him in a general election I am definitely going to be supporting Obama as the Democratic candidate.
One final note on Obama. He really has achieved "rock star" status for the moment. I read while out in public all the time, and I rarely have anyone make comments about it. However, whenever I was out reading his book without fail at least one person would stop by and say "I read that, isn't it great?" or "I'm thinking of reading that, is it good?" Granted my perspective is a little skewed being from his district where he is well known, but it even happened to me while we were in Phoenix.
I think that's all for now. Have a good weekend everyone and may your brackets do well as long as they don't kill mine!
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4 comments:
No marathon updates? I hope you are not slipping!
Cautiously optimistic about the Cubs? Isn't that the way you start every year only to end up cautiously contemplating suicide?
Just because O'bama is smart, thinks before he acts, genuinely cares about the people around him, and is able to intelligently discuss ideas and dissenting opinions doesn't mean we should make him president.
Oh wait, those ARE all good qualities aren't they? I've listening to too much Savage Nation.
I agree about Barck Obama. And yes, he has become a rock star. I read his book in 2 days and 2 different people asked me about it, and then a friend asked to borrow it.
I mean Barack. Sheesh.
I also think that the Obama book is so easy to read that people are not ashamed to admit that they have read it. It is a sad thing to say, but being intellectual is not exactly the key to cool today. Being politically intelligent will frequently get you into trouble because people have been force-fed the idea that politics is polarizing and if you disagree with someone on one subject you have to hate them.
Obama's book is like a Cat in the Hat version of a political book. It is so easy to read.
Blah, blah, blah...
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