NP: Duke vs. Xavier (TV)

I think maybe I'm driving a lot these days. Last night, I left my apartment to go see a movie (more on that in a minute), and tried to lock the front door with my keyless entry thingamawhatsis.

Anyway, while there would have been some appropriateness to going to see Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind by myself after a date fell through -- as in, erase all memory of the original plans -- I wasn't really in the mood for it. Especially with the hecticity (no, it's not a word; yes, it should be) of the last week, I just wanted to relax. You know, like a zombie. Segue!

So I went to see Dawn of the Dead. It was much more crowded than Starsky & Hutch was even on its opening day, which surprised me a little. And I was entertained. Maybe not for the same reasons as everybody else, but hey, whatever works.

First was when our intrepid band of survivors first arrives at the shopping mall. What's the muzak being piped in? Bobby McFerrin's "Don't Worry, Be Happy." Gotta love it. Then, the lounge version of Disturbed's "Down With The Sickness," performed by a group called Lounge Against The Machine. Works for me. Plot? Action? Probably wouldn't hold up if I thought real hard about it, but to continue making zombie puns, this is about mindless entertainment.

I have no opinion on whether zombies should be able to run fast. My guess is that first-person shooters in the video game world have helped effect this change. It's not like there's conclusive evidence that they can only amble menacingly with their arms outstretched.

Mekhi Phifer stressed this point in an interview with Jon Stewart recently. He also revealed that he, in fact, is not eaten by zombies in the movie. I'm a sucker for a well-conceived statement like that, except maybe in politics when it's a guy I don't like. That's all I'm sayin'.

There's a certain sense of desperation in Chicago during March where we latch on to early nice weather and go way overboard in celebrating it. Everybody breaks out their shorts at the first opportunity, which technically was a couple of weeks ago, but that might have been early enough that it didn't go to people's heads. This weekend, it's like we're collectively trying to will spring into existence. This causes much gnashing of teeth later on, when it snows on a Cubs game.

Speaking of which, I'm trying to figure out why Mark Prior starting off on the DL is such a big deal. We're talking about two starts out of, what, thirty-two? And two games out of 162. I'd be more worried about Matt Clement's lack of control in the preseason, but maybe that's just me.