Oh Well...

...so much for all of those posts I was going to write last week.  I did a lot of writing last week, it's just that none of it fell into the categories that would normally end up here.  But if you're really interested in the 1200-word piece I wrote on Thursday about capital appreciation bonds, just let me know.

But as long as I'm here, why not jump in for a couple of quick hits.

- "Hansel and Gretel?"  He's a great actor, but Jeremy Renner seems to be getting very close to Nicolas Cage territory with his choices.  Doing a Mission Impossible and an Avengers movie is one thing, but this new one just looks horrible.  On the other hand, I haven't seen it so there could be some point in the future where I am forced to eat those words.

- I've written about the moaning in women's tennis on many previous occasions, but the Sharapova/Azarenka double bill the other night was just excruciating.  I finally had to stop watching the Azarenka match.  Just ridiculous.

- On the other hand, the Australian Open is always one of my favorite sporting events of the year.  It's winter, it's dark, it's cold and/or raining, you're struggling to pull yourself out of the post-holiday season blues, and there's nothing quite like watching some great tennis from a venue where it's hovering around 100 degrees and everybody present is having a grand old time.

- And how about the current situation in the men's side of the bracket?  I can't think of a time when we've had a four-way rivalry like the one we've got right now.  And even though Nadal didn't make the trip this time, it would be foolish to write him off until we have further evidence that he deserves to be written off.  In the past, during my lifetime, we've had Connors/Borg, McEnroe/Borg, Sampras/Agassi, and a few others.  Every now and then a third would slip into the mix, but what we have right now - a point where in any given tournament, all things (especially health) equal, you could go with Djokovic, Federer, Murray or Nadal and no one will raise their eyebrows.  Fun, and (I think) unprecedented.

- So Sports Illustrated has picked the Ravens to win the Super Bowl, 27-23.  That's fine - and things could turn out that way.  But I'm counting on the boys by the bay to ruin Ray Lewis' little party, and I'll be offering my prediction sometime before kickoff next Sunday.  I promise.