Apparently tomorrow, March 30, is opening day for baseball.

I know this by accident—my office TV is tuned to CNN, not expecting sports news.

But tonight Anderson Cooper’s guest, Harry Enten, Senior Data Reporter, asked the question:

Is America’s favorite pastime past its prime? His answer was Yes, and he had data to prove it:

• In 1948, 39% of responders chose baseball as their favorite sport.

Now baseball is at 11% for that question.

• Among 18–29-year-olds, baseball ranks lower than basketball and soccer, with 60% choosing football! Football, or what I like to call the Concussion Sport.

Do I care? Well, I used to. But when I learned that the reason my favorite team left Boston those many years ago was because the owner was losing money—what? It’s a business?—I never rooted for a team again.

Still, I’m a little sad that what I think of as a nonviolent sport is losing ground among fans.

Comments?

I’m not sure who keeps track of all this, but now and then I like to know: is there anything to celebrate today?

Here’s the list for March 23, some noble, others not.

If I need an excuse to eat a chocolate cupcake (my freezer has a decent supply), I’d choose:

March 23, 1965, America’s first two-person space mission took place: Gemini 3 blasted off with astronauts Virgil I. “Gus” Grissom and John W. Young aboard, for a nearly 5-hour flight.

Cheers!

Still grieving over the loss of an Oscar.

No, not for me, for any one of my favorites to win on Oscar night, 3/12/23!

I’ve been a judge often enough—for almost every category of Edgar, more than once, e.g.—to know that it’s almost impossible to set down hard and fast criteria for choosing award winners, unless it’s word count or some other quantifiable guideline. Otherwise, it’s rather subjective.

I don’t get to vote on the Academy Awards, but I know what I would vote for and it would not be magical realism, unless that were a category. As a writer I know how easy it is to create fantasy, as opposed to straight drama, especially when the producers have more than 100 years worth of special effects history and development to call on.

What film/actors was I rooting for? Instead of being specific, I’ll just repeat my favorite joke of the evening: “Colin Farrell’s eyebrows should get an Oscar.”

Celebrated International Women’s Day by watching the Oscar nominated film, “Women Talking.”

Recommended. Even if the write-ups don’t appeal–it took several pop up ads for me to try it and I’m glad I did. With Frances McDormand producing, why did I hesitate?

Since I offered readers of my newsletter a prize if they could name the 5 dolls I own today, it’s only fair that I do the same for readers of The Real Me.