Pressure

Mike's Blog.  Mike's Rules.  Or so he says.

While he might have been on the Bachelor, make no mistake, he is not the bachelor. His rose has long since wilted faded and no doubt been given away.........many....many times.

Yes, I have been re-challenged to participate in Mr. Short Attention Span Theater's (so short, he's only blogged three times in four months!) "annual" Oscar contest.  He claims to win his office contest yearly - he just fails to mention he probably works from home in an office of two. And he only triumphs because Otis doesn't have opposable thumbs.

Last year it was a tie, but this year the playing field is level. Mike didn't set out rules last year so it was a mish-mash of who voted for what, but when it all came down to it, it was basically a tie.  But since he's considerably older, thus having less chances as the sands pass through the hourglass, the appellate judges probably would have ruled in his favour.

This year, we'll be voting guessing on all 24 categories.  Mike, being Mike, will dominate the make-up and hairstyling and costume categories. I will, no doubt, be more successful in the lumberjack and truck pull selections.

At first, I thought the wager of buying the winner a drink was harmless enough, but then I remembered watching Mike toss back his pricey top shelf double martinis (with extra olives!) faster than Larry Tate after thinking he saw Endora appear and disappear right before his very eyes.

This bet might force me to take out a loan just to pay up, so I had better win.  It's no longer just about pride.

All are certainly welcome to participate, but I think you know the Prize Patrol will only visit either Mike or myself.  But don't let that deter you.- bragging rights are just as important as getting inebriated on someone else's dime.

Like Mike, I have yet to settle on my selections. This year seems more difficult than last. Oh, the pressure. Still Mike was nice enough (I know, right?) to list out the categories for me, so we really are playing off the same field.

We still have one or two movies left to see before I can really make my selections, but time is tight, as the awards are in about two more weeks. The reality is, I'll only get one more movie in and it will be Lincoln, so.....I'm not sure that will change my votes. But it's about strategy, not what I really like or who I think should win.

Unlike the Emmy contest, there will be no Will Win / Should Win scenarios (Mike's rules!).  It is only picking the winners.  Like me. I'm a winner.

Mike?..........well................... at least he's pretty.

1. Best Picture: "Amour," "Argo," "Beasts of the Southern Wild," "Django Unchained," "Les Miserables," "Life of Pi," "Lincoln," "Silver Linings Playbook," "Zero Dark Thirty."

2. Actor: Bradley Cooper, "Silver Linings Playbook"; Daniel Day-Lewis, "Lincoln"; Hugh Jackman, "Les Miserables"; Joaquin Phoenix, "The Master"; Denzel Washington, "Flight."

3. Actress: Jessica Chastain, "Zero Dark Thirty"; Jennifer Lawrence, "Silver Linings Playbook"; Emmanuelle Riva, "Amour"; Quvenzhané Wallis, "Beasts of the Southern Wild"; Naomi Watts, "The Impossible."

4. Supporting Actor: Alan Arkin, "Argo"; Robert De Niro, "Silver Linings Playbook"; Philip Seymour Hoffman, "The Master"; Tommy Lee Jones, "Lincoln"; Christoph Waltz, "Django Unchained."

5. Supporting Actress: Amy Adams, "The Master"; Sally Field, "Lincoln"; Anne Hathaway, "Les Miserables"; Helen Hunt, "The Sessions"; Jacki Weaver, "Silver Linings Playbook."

6. Directing: Michael Haneke, "Amour"; Benh Zeitlin, "Beasts of the Southern Wild"; Ang Lee, "Life of Pi"; Steven Spielberg, "Lincoln"; David O. Russell, "Silver Linings Playbook."

7. Foreign Language Film: "Amour," Austria; "Kon-Tiki," Norway; "No," Chile; "A Royal Affair," Denmark; "War Witch," Canada.

8. Adapted Screenplay: Chris Terrio, "Argo"; Lucy Alibar and Benh Zeitlin, "Beasts of the Southern Wild"; David Magee, "Life of Pi"; Tony Kushner, "Lincoln"; David O. Russell, "Silver Linings Playbook."

9. Original Screenplay: Michael Haneke, "Amour"; Quentin Tarantino, "Django Unchained"; John Gatins, "Flight"; Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola, "Moonrise Kingdom"; Mark Boal, "Zero Dark Thirty."

10. Animated Feature Film: "Brave"; "Frankenweenie"; "ParaNorman"; "The Pirates! Band of Misfits"; "Wreck-It Ralph."

11. Production Design: "Anna Karenina," "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," "Les Miserables," "Life of Pi," "Lincoln."

12. Cinematography: "Anna Karenina," "Django Unchained," "Life of Pi," "Lincoln," "Skyfall."

13. Sound Mixing: "Argo," "Les Miserables," "Life of Pi," "Lincoln," "Skyfall."

14. Sound Editing: "Argo," "Django Unchained," "Life of Pi," "Skyfall," "Zero Dark Thirty."

15. Original Score: "Anna Karenina," Dario Marianelli; "Argo," Alexandre Desplat; "Life of Pi," Mychael Danna; "Lincoln," John Williams; "Skyfall," Thomas Newman.

16. Original Song: "Before My Time" from "Chasing Ice," J. Ralph; "Everybody Needs a Best Friend" from "Ted," Walter Murphy and Seth MacFarlane; "Pi's Lullaby" from "Life of Pi," Mychael Danna and Bombay Jayashri; "Skyfall" from "Skyfall," Adele Adkins and Paul Epworth; "Suddenly" from "Les Miserables," Claude-Michel Schonberg, Herbert Kretzmer and Alain Boublil.

17. Costume: "Anna Karenina," "Les Miserables," "Lincoln," "Mirror Mirror," "Snow White and the Huntsman."

18. Documentary Feature: "5 Broken Cameras," "The Gatekeepers," "How to Survive a Plague," "The Invisible War," "Searching for Sugar Man."

19. Documentary (short subject): "Inocente," "Kings Point," "Mondays at Racine," "Open Heart," "Redemption."

20. Film Editing: "Argo," "Life of Pi," "Lincoln," "Silver Linings Playbook," "Zero Dark Thirty."

21. Makeup and Hairstyling: "Hitchcock," "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," "Les Miserables."

22. Animated Short Film: "Adam and Dog," "Fresh Guacamole," "Head over Heels," "Maggie Simpson in `The Longest Daycare,'" "Paperman."

23. Live Action Short Film: "Asad," "Buzkashi Boys," "Curfew," "Death of a Shadow (Dood van een Schaduw)," "Henry."

24. Visual Effects: "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey," "Life of Pi," "Marvel's The Avengers," "Prometheus," "Snow White and the Huntsman."

Song by:  Billy Joel (I know, I know....I am so sorry!)