What a relief

Module 2 (of 3) of my first year in the MBA program has ended. I have heard the third module is easy. Hopefully so. The last one nearly killed me! Haha!

Exciting day in college basketball ahead. Bracket Busters where the mid-majors shine! MEMPHIS-TENNESSEE! And even more importantly, New Jersey Institute of Technology goes for the big goose egg. If they lose to 13-14 Utah Valley State (which is likely) they will finish the season 0-29. Congrats guys!

Speaking of Memphis-Tennessee, I don't think the game will be as close as the pundits are predicting. I say Memphis wins by double digits. Tennessee is deserving of their #2 ranking based on their record, but there a lot of teams who would beat them in a one game scenario. Barring a performance I'm not expecting today, I don't think they'll go far in March. Memphis is much more likely to be a champion although there are a few teams (Kansas and UCLA) I think are better. Memphis's offense is a little weak at times and their free throw shooting is abysmal. Can a team that can't shoot 60% from the stripe be a national champion? I'm concerned.

Appalachian and William & Mary taking part in Bracket Busters today. App will be taking on Niagara and the Tribe host Loyola Chicago. I'm disappointed with W&M as I thought they had a good chance for a top 4 seed in the Colonial which would give them a first round bye. After a three game losing streak to Northeastern, UNC-W, and Towson, and with games remaining against George Mason and VCU, I have a feeeling that chance is over.

Oscar Ballot Time

I'm finished with my second set of exams. And Ashley has been harassing me so I have to embarass her yet again. It's time for our 962nd Annual Oscar Pool. I'm on a 961 year winning streak. So let's go to my picks!

Best Picture: No Country for Old Men
Best Director: Joel and Ethan Cohen
Best Actor: Daniel Day Lewis
Best Actress: Julie Christie
Animated Film: Ratatouille
Best Supporting Actor: Javier Bardem
Best Supporting Actress: Cate Blanchett
Original Screenplay: Juno
Adapted Screenplay: No Country for Old Men
Foreign Language Film: Beaufort
Art Direction: Atonement
Cinematography: There Will Be Blood
Costume Design: Atonement
Documentary: Sicko
Documentary Short: Freeheld
Makeup: La Vie En Rose
Editing: The Bourne Ultimatum
Score: Atonement
Song: Falling Slowly
Short Animated Film:Even Pigeons Go to heaven
Live Action Short: The Tonto Woman
Sound Editing: The Bourne Ultimatum
Sound Mixing: The Bourne Ultimatum
Visual Effects: Transformers

I like saying words like McGuffins in class

I love how everyone is so quick to make quick judgments during case discussions during our classes. I'm 23 years old and sometimes I feel like I'm the only one who is actually trying to read between the lines.

Of course I'm a self-righteous ass so that could have something to do with it.

I have an interview with an investment bank tomorrow. Two interviews in a week? Perhaps this internship search will pay off after all.

Another mass shooting in America, this time at Northern Illinois University. At least six dead. I am so sick and tired of the politicians not doing anything to try to solve this problem. I'm not saying that guns should be outlawed (unlike my brother) but steps need to be taken to at least keep firearms out of the hands of mentally ill people. I am not sure if this situation makes me cry so hard it makes me mad, or if it makes me so mad I cry. One of the two.

The Obama rally was interesting. Not really great for a vantage point. But it doesn't change my opinion of him. Hopefully he will be the Democratic nominee and then we can have Obama-McCain. I would vote for McCain today but it's a slight edge and there is a lot of time left in the ballgame. And maybe Bloomberg will run! Looking less likely though. Oh well.

I'm a little inconsistent

I blame school for the inconsistency of my blog. I try to do better but then we get about a dozen assignments to turn in at the last minute. Oh well!

How about that Super Bowl? I did pick the Giants to beat the spread but I am still surprised they ruined the Pats' season. I'm just not ready for a world where Eli is a Super Bowl champ. It's not right!

I have an interview with IBM tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Is the Running Grammy Diary coming to an end after two spectacular years? I fear so. Because I have just been informed that Barack Obama will be speaking in Virginia Beach tonight. So I may be attending that. Sorry Robyn! It seems there will be no irreverent and irrelevant comments about the Grammys this year.

I went and bought a suit at S&K yesterday (mainly to get rid of a giftcard) and it was one of the more unusual experiences I have had in awhile. The salesmen seemed more like used car salesmen than usual. And also when I was buying my merchandise, the apparent manager kept treating the man who was ringing me up (and was not very young mind you) like an incompetent. Apparently I got a percentage off because he started using a coupon that I did not even bring into the store. And the manager was threatening to kick the guy's butt if he made a mistake again. And I'm not sure if he was joking. I would laugh at his comments but it was more out of nervousness than anything. The manager seemed overall pretty rude, but I must endorse that if you want to buy a suit and get some weird theatre along with the purchase, than S&K in Williamsburg is the place to be.

I played the Wii last night for the first time. It was quite fun! Although I suck at bowling. And golf. And baseball. And I'm ok at tennis as long as I don't play Sammi.

Ok time to take a shower. Later! Hopefully not till next week this time.

The B in MBA probably doesn't stand for Blog

Hey, the program gets pretty busy sometimes. I can't help it.

Went and saw Rambo with Christoph last night. Oscar nominations are guaranteed for next year.

William & Mary is now tied for 2nd in the Colonial after winning 8 of their last 9. And the game I went to see was the loss. Clearly I am bad luck.

Appalachian isn't doing too bad either. They've won 9 of 10 and are tied for first in their division. Davidson is still the class of the SoCon though.

And my new favorite team, New Jersey Institute of Technology, (or as I like to call them, NJIT), has yet to win a game. They're 0-23 with only six games remaining. The smallest margin of defeat they have had is 9 on two different occasions. Their best chance for victory comes tomorrow though! At home vs 5-20 Longwood. GET PUMPED!

And it's time for my Super Bowl prediction I believe. I think I'm 7-3 against the spread so far but I'm too lazy to look. I think the Patriots are going to win. But that's not the question. Will they win by more than the spread which is currently 12 points. I say no. The Giants have been on a roll as of late and I expect the Giants to play hard while the Patriots will be just trying to finish the perfect season after a long struggle. I say no blowout. Giants (+12) over the Patriots.

After a 9.46% gain in two days and a 21.54% gain in ten days, my portfolio is now in positive territory for the year. I have broken my all time record for portfolio performance gain by percentage twice in this span. I still need to gain 41.14% to get back to my all time high, but this is a nice turn of events. I've been trimming some of my homebuilders and other related stocks of late. I took a big loss on Hovnanian but also a nice gain on Comstock Homebuilders. There are probably a few more that I will sell tomorrow as I am less confident than I once was in their prospects.