My Spring Break

So while many of you were vacationing in some beautiful warm climate getaway, I spent my week bumming around in the bi-polar Chicago weather here in Hick Hills. As much as I want to complain about it, I really can't...because doing nothing for a week sure beats the hell out of going to class. And despite having a later Spring Break than a lot of my friends, I was still able to briefly hang out with those who were available. So on my last day of doing nothing, I decided to write up a little blurb about all the wonderful things I did to waste my time here at home:

TV (SPOILER ALERT!)
24 - Another action-packed episode. Jack is constantly being mistaken as a bad guy. He really surprised me when he promised that security guard safety...luckily he kept his promise. But what will happen to Tony? And how badly will Jack be effected by that chemical exposure??

American Idol - Motown Week. Typically a boring, overdone theme on the show. However, it ended up being a lot more exciting than I thought. My quiet favorites (Kris, Anoop, and Allison) all had great performances. Somehow Matt Giraud ended up in the bottom 3 (should have been Megan Joy), along with Scott and Michael (who should have been there). Michael Sarver ended up going home, and seemed rather happy about it since he will now be able to spend time with his family.

The Office - Michael's two week notice. Really disappointing episode. Angela trying to flirt with Charles seems so out of character. Michael has completely lost his mind. He decides to start his own paper company and asks (almost) everyone if they want him to join. Surprisingly Pam decides to join him?? A preview for next week's episode shows (a bleach blonde) Ryan working at a bowling alley? Perhaps he will be joining the Michael Scott Paper Co. gang as well?

Movies
I Love You, Man - A rather simple, predictable story but overall pretty funny. If you like Judd Apatow films, you will definitely enjoy it (surprisingly Apatow had nothing to with this one). Great performances by Paul Rudd and Jason Segal.

American Graffiti - Probably the most influential teen film of all time. Classic story and character types...a great look at the struggles of life after high school.

Chinatown - One of the greatest "private-eye detective" films of all-time. Everything about this film is incredible, from Jack Nicholson's wonderfully entertaining performance as Jake Gittes to Roman Polanski's outstanding directing.

Million Dollar Baby - Not your typical "Rocky wanna-be boxing movie". This film is both entertaining and emotional. Outstanding performances by the entire cast. I still have mixed feelings about the ending, but overall I think it is a must-see movie.

Unforgiven - Clint Eastwood does a great job as both the star and director of this new take on old-time Western films. The intense action and violence along with themes of death, morality, and revenge sets this film apart from others of it's genre.

Watchmen - Mixed feelings about this film. I felt it was too long, some of the violence was a little too much, and some of the acting was a little mediocre. However, the story is great and it was visually fantastic. Perhaps if I actually read the graphic novel, I would have a much different opinion.

Fantasy Baseball Draft
So I randomly decided to participate in Fantasy Baseball this year. I figured it would give me an excuse to actually keep up with the baseball season. The draft was a little hectic since I only did a little bit of research and didn't have much of a strategy. But here is my roster:

Batters
C – Benjie Molina [Giants]
1B – Ryan Howard [Phillies]
2B – Brian Roberts [Orioles]
3B – Chipper Jones [Braves]
SS – Derek Jeter [Yankees]
OF – Ichiro Suzuki [Mariners]
OF – Nick Markakis [Orioles]
OF – Raul Ibanez [Phillies]
Util – Chris Young (OF) [Diamondbacks]
BN – Nick Swisher (1B, OF) [Yankees]
BN – Jim Thome (DH, 1B) [White Sox]
BN – Juan Pierre (OF) [Dodgers]

Pitchers
SP – James Shields [Rays]
SP – Kevin Slowey [Twins]
RP – Joe Nathan [Twins]
RP – B.J. Ryan [Blue Jays]
P – Kerry Wood (RP) [Indians]
P – Joel Hanrahan (RP) [Nationals]
P – Johnny Cueto (SP) [Reds]
BN – Jose Arredondo (RP) [Angels]
BN – Aaron Cook (SP) [Rockies]

Epic Fails
Four Square - I attempted to get a game of Four Square going on one of the nice days this week. I even made a Facebook event, and 7 people confirmed. Only 3 people showed up =/

Working out - The lack of a free gym in my front yard caused me to only work out like 3 times this week. Working out everyday next week is going to kick my ass. Boo.

Drive By Insults - After watching a funny video of some kids driving by people and yelling absurd things at them, a couple of my friends and I decided to try to recreate this. Too bad pretty much no one was outside.

Reading - In effort to convince myself that I still know how to read a novel, I attempted to read Nick Hornby's High Fidelity. However, I always tried to read late at night and ended up falling asleep. Maybe I will try again in the summer (Perhaps with a different strategy.)

Homework - Didn't even look at it.

And that was pretty much my entire Spring Break. Hopefully you guys had much more eventful week. Feel free to share your experiences and/or your thoughts on anything I mentioned!