I’m the kind of person who forces myself to finish a book even if it’s boring, so I now find myself stuck in the middle of two snorefests. I’m reading Sybil by Benjamin Disraeli on my iPaq, and I’m listening to The Name of the Rose by Umbert Eco on my iPod. Neither has been holding my attention, and I’ve been stuck for more than 10 days already.

Over the years, I’ve discovered that the best way to get through these reading lulls is to make sure I have a couple of books queued up that I’m really, really looking forward to. In this case, my next book is John Adams by David McCullough, and my next audiobook is The Appeal by John Grisham. I can’t wait to read those, but it means getting through Sybil and Rose first.

I can do it… even if I read just 10 pages per day or listen for just 10 minutes per day, I’ll eventually finish, right?

The calendar says it’s spring. Opening Day for Major League Baseball is tomorrow, stores currently have patio furniture, gas grills, and gardening items prominently displayed, and college students are now returning from Cancun, Daytona Beach, and other top spring break destinations.

Yet it certainly doesn’t feel like spring. The weather’s terrible, there’s snow in the five-day forecast, and I just don’t feel like heading outdoors at all.

This winter has been so harsh that I wish the weather would break already. I’ve got cabin fever like you wouldn’t believe and need to go out and do something fun soon!

Are you participating in a bracket pool at your office? If so, how are you doing in it? I have to admit that this is one of the things I miss most about working with other people: gambling pools for major sporting events!

Anyway, in case you’re interested, the Elite Eight for this year’s NCAA March Madness tournament are as follows (with their tourney seed in parentheses):

West
UCLA (1)
Xavier (3)

South
Memphis (1)
Texas (2)

Midwest
Kansas (1)
Davidson (10)

East
North Carolina (1)
Louisville (3)

As you can see, the only real surprise left is No.10 Davidson. All the other schools in the Elite Eight were ranked either 1, 2, or 3 before the tourney started.

I love sports ‘dogs, so of course I’m going to be rooting for Davidson now (even though I picked the Bruins to win) it all.

We just bought a tiny ATV for our son to practice riding on. He’s too short to touch the ground on our CRF50, and he probably wouldn’t be able to balance anyway, so we decided to go with an ATV for him instead. That way, he can start to learn throttle control and braking, and get used to riding on dirt for a year or so before we put him on the motorcycle.

We went with a really cheap knockoff from China here because we didn’t think it would be worth it to spend $1,000 or more on a Honda, Yamaha, Suzuki, or Kawasaki ATV that the boy will outgrow in no time. But we’ve agreed that we won’t let him ride it on a real track with other riders; it’s just going to be a practice rig for dirt terrain. That way, safety shouldn’t be too much of an issue.

So now that we have all these off-road vehicles to haul around, we’re probably going to need one of those big travel trailers to get our stuff to and from the track. Our van, as big as it is, simply isn’t going to cut it in this case.

Today we’re going to go buy a helmet and some boots, then we’ll maybe give the ATV a whirl in the backyard.

I’m not really a big fan of the NCAA tourney, but I do get caught up in March Madness a bit. This year, the biggest news of the tournament (besides Davidson advancing to the Sweet Sixteen) is the fact that Stanford sophomore Robin Lopez is dating golf sensation Michelle Wie.

I’d never heard of this guy before the Michelle Wie pairing, but after checking his stats, it seems like he’s actually good and has a decent shot at making it to the NBA. He’s seven feet tall, which I’m sure NBA teams will be interested in, and is a leader on the Stanford team. Oh, and he has a twin brother named Brook who also plays for the Cardinal.

Here are a couple of Robin Lopez pics that I found online (none with Michelle Wie, however). He’s No. 42 for Stanford:

There’s no sugarcoating it now: the economy is definitely in the toilet. Prices are rising on almost everything out there, income levels are flattening out (at least in my neck of the woods), and foreclosures continue to skyrocket in major cities across the country.

At a time like this, what’s a good investment to make? I don’t really want to put my money in the stock market now because I know I wouldn’t be able to stomach the roller coaster ride as the Dow Jones falls 400 points, gains a couple hundred, falls again, etc. I would get ulcers for sure!

Maybe this is the right time to invest in gold bars or bullion — both of which are probably going to be more stable than the stock market, at least in the near future.

I’m going to have to talk to hard asset professionals about this before making any moves, but gold seems to be the way to go in this weak economy.

Here’s this week’s Booking Through Thursday question:

While acknowledging that we can’t judge books by their covers, how much does the design of a book affect your reading enjoyment? Hardcover vs. softcover? Trade paperback vs. mass market paperback? Font? Illustrations? Etc.?

I’m used to reading electronic texts these days, which I love because of the amount of control I’m given over almost all of these things. But whenever I do grab a “real” book to read, the only thing that really affects my reading enjoyment is the font size.

I absolutely hate it when the publisher opts for tiny, tiny print that squeezes an ungodly amount of words on a page. This is particularly a problem when there’s little to no dialog on the page, making the amount of text downright daunting.

I remember having this problem with the cheap-o paperback version of Walden that I tried to read. Ugh, I couldn’t even get through the first chapter of HDT’s ramblings without setting off a massive headache!

I had recorded the Opening Day matchup between the Boston Red Sox and Oakland A’s from two days ago, but didn’t get around to watching it until this afternoon. I was surprised at how wild Daisuke Matsuzaka looked in the game, and am beginning to wonder if he really is overrated (as many analysts and fans have proclaimed ever since he signed for $103 million).

Of course, much has been made of the fact that Matsuzaka was pitching in the Tokyo Dome for the first time since joining the Red Sox. Obviously, there was a media circus surrounding him and he couldn’t do anything without hundreds of cameras flashing in his face. So, the logical excuse was that Matsuzaka, who threw 95 pitches in just five innings of work, let his nerves get the best of him — but I don’t really buy that excuse.

Remember, this is the guy who went the distance in a 17-inning koshien game in high school (and followed it up with a no-hitter to win the tournament). He helped the Seibu Lions win the Japan Series in 2004, pitched on the Japanese Olympic team, led Japan to victory in the World Baseball Classic (earning MVP honors along the way), and won Game 3 of the 2007 World Series for the Red Sox.

In other words, Matsuzaka has pitched on just about ever major baseball stage in the world, and has had tremendous success on all of them. This is NOT a guy that would be affected by “butterflies”.

What a lot of people don’t realize is that Matsuzaka wasn’t a truly overpowering pitcher in Japan, so it stands to reason that he’s not going to be a powerhouse in the States either. In fact, I don’t think he ever won more than 15 games in a season in NPB, and would be very surprised if he did more than that for Boston this year.

I like Matsuzaka, but definitely think the Red Sox overpaid for him. $103 million? That’s about $50 million too much…!

This has been one of the worst winters I can ever remember, so to say that I’m ready for some sun and fun would be an understatement. We’re thinking about taking a quick vacation to a warm destination sometime in the next six weeks, and Cancun is tops on our list of possibilities.

Cancun Vacations are known for being exotic and affordable — two qualities that we’re definitely looking for right now. White sandy beaches, sparkling blue water, beautiful weather… the only thing that would make the picture complete is an all-inclusive stay at Karisma Hotels. With their delectable gourmet food, unerring attention to detail, and unparalleled service, it’s no wonder Karisma Hotels is the premiere provider of all-inclusive Mexico vacation packages.

Whenever we do make it to Cancun, I’m sure we’ll take advantage of one of the deals offered by Karisma!

I’m talking about Robert Salisbury of Jacksonville, Oregon. I just read an article about how this guy was the victim of a Craigslist hoax that led to his home and barn being looted. Apparently, someone posted an ad on Craigslist saying that the owner of the home had to leave town immediately, so his stuff was free for the taking.

By the time Salisbury got home and realized what was going on, most of the items from his barn and front porch had been taken.

Even when he confronted looters and said he was the owner, they told him they had a right to be there — just because they printed out the Craigslist posting.

Good lord, what is this world coming to? Did Salisbury piss someone off or was he just a random target? I can’t believe people were telling him that they had a right to his stuff since it was posted on Craigslist. Wow.

I almost wish this story hadn’t been publicized. It’s just going to give a lot of people new ideas about how to screw someone over big-time.

I took a nap this afternoon and dreamed that I received a blogging assignment that paid $4,460! Don’t ask me where that number came from, as I have absolutely no clue… what an odd figure to dream about.

When I woke up, the dream was so fresh and realistic that I actually checked all of my assignment lists to see if the task was queued up. Of course it wasn’t, but what a trip that would have been!

I guess this means that I’ve spent far too much time blogging in the past few weeks and should let up a little bit. I do have offline stuff that I need to attend to, so maybe that wouldn’t be such a bad idea…!

Now that we’re finally into spring, the busy summer wedding season will soon be upon us. I already have at least one wedding to go to in June, and I have a feeling that there will be a couple more invitations before all is said and done.

Unlike past years, I’m not going to be involved in any planning for these weddings, so I can just sit back and enjoy the ceremony and reception without having to stress out about anything. But that doesn’t mean I won’t offer my advice — if asked. I’m not the kind of person to impose on the-bride-to-be with unsolicited tips and pointers (I know from firsthand experience just how annoying that is), but I wouldn’t hold back if directly approached.

For example, one thing I would definitely suggest would be looking into buying wholesale roses, calla lilies, carnations, orchids, or other popular wedding flowers instead of purchasing from a regular florist. By buying wholesale from a place like FiftyFlowers.com, you can save up to 75% on the retail price of flowers while still getting absolutely beautiful arrangements for your big day.

FiftyFlowers.com also offers special wedding flower packages that include everything from the bridal bouquet to table arrangements — all for one low price.

If you’re looking to save money on your wedding flowers without sacrificing beauty, freshness, or quality, I recommend checking out FiftyFlowers.com today!

We don’t really do much for Easter at our house. Just a few chocolate bunnies and a small egg hunt, but I know that a lot of you out there celebrate in style (whether religiously or secularly). So I just wanted to wish you and your families a very happy Easter this year!!

I don’t wear makeup very often, but do put it on for special occasions, such as dinner or drinks with friends. But the problem I have is that my bathroom lighting is very soft and dim, which makes it very difficult to put makeup on evenly. So I often have these little exposed patches on my face that I missed when applying my foundation — totally embarrassing, of course!

That’s why I would really like to get some better lighting there in the bathroom. I know it’s not merely a bulb issue because I’ve tried switching already, so I’m going to have go get different fixtures. I’ve checked around and found a few pretty designs that aren’t too terribly expensive. Maybe when I get my rebate check from the government, I’ll be able to fix up the bathroom a bit!

When I was in junior high and high school, I was convinced that I wanted a career on Wall St. as an investment banker. I went so far as to research different firms that I thought I’d like to work for, and Bear Stearns was one of them. Sure this was just a teenage pipe dream that petered out after I discovered other interests, but for a few years, it was all I could think about.

So when I heard the news this week of the collapse of this once-formidable Wall St. institution, I was shocked beyond belief. I have no true ties to Bear Stearns or anything like that, but I still feel as though the firm played a big role in my life. You remember how everything seemed so important when you were 14, right? What can I say… my heroes weren’t athletes, they were investment bankers.

The Reuters photo above says it all… $2 per share… wow.