My life is pretty boring right now—that's good, right?

I know I've slacked with the blog posts lately. For that, I apologize. Don't worry, I'm not slipping into my old habits. I've just been really worn out this week. I have less than 2 weeks left here in Phoenix, so things are getting a little crazy at work. There are pending deadlines that need to be met, and as such I've been working later and arriving back at the hotel with much less energy than usual. I've enjoyed my time here in Phoenix, but I'm thrilled to be returning home soon.

Speaking of returning home, I'll be flying back to Chicago once again this weekend, only this time I get to stay an extra two days. Woohoo for holidays! The only unfortunate thing is that I'll be traveling back to Arizona on the 4th, so I will miss any and all festivities. That's sad, but at least the end is near. Next weekend I'm actually not coming home, since I'll be flying back for good the following week. I wanted to try to catch a Diamondbacks game while in Phoenix, but I discovered that they're going on an insanely long road trip starting tomorrow, so I will not be able to partake in some baseball at the ballpark formerly known as the BOB. That's a shame—I always enjoy checking out a baseball park for the first time.

Speaking of baseball, Stacey and I are going to the Cubs-Sox game at Wrigley on Sunday. It's disappointing that the Cubs are playing so like the Bad News Bears this season, but that only slightly dampens my enthusiasm for this game. How could I not be looking forward to (A) a ballgame at the Friendly Confines, (B) my first Cubs-Sox game, (C) a Zambrano/Buerhle pitching matchup, and (D) the returns of Michael Barrett and Derrek Lee. (Okay, so they'll both have been back before Sunday, but that's just splitting hairs.) I have a personal 6-game winning streak at Cubs games I've attended, and this Sunday that streak will be seriously tested. I almost hate to mention this because I'm sure it will jinx them, although it takes a lot less than a jinx for this particular squad to lose a ballgame. If the streak reaches 7, however, I think I might take that as a sign to invest in some lottery tickets or a flight to Vegas.

While I'm in town, Stacey and I will also be doing a little furniture shopping. It's not the most exciting thing in the world, but hey, at least we're not going to IKEA. I don't need that stress!

My friends Jill and Brian got married last weekend. The ceremony and reception were both a lot of fun, as I expected them to be. I got to meet my good buddy Scott's new girlfriend Laura, and she seemed very nice. The two of them met through MySpace, just like Stacey and I, which just goes to show you that some good does actually come from that site. In addition to seeing those two, my other pals Mike and Nick were in attendance. I was shocked to see Nick, since he's back to his old habits of using school as an excuse to never do anything on the weekends, but I was happy to get to spend some time with the old Grand Knight. As for Mike, let's just say that it's already nearing July and I still haven't gotten a ride in his Camaro this year. He'd better rectify that situation when I get back!

So I just went down to do some laundry and the dryer took my money but wouldn't start up. I was worried that it was broken and spent about 2 or 3 minutes trying to get it to start up. At that point I was ready to go up to bring the situation to the attention of the front desk when I noticed that I hadn't bothered to close the door to the machine. Whoops!

I read in the paper the other day that J.K. Rowling plans to kill off two more main characters in the final chapter of the Harry Potter series, which I believe (hope!) will be released next summer. The odds-on favorites to bite the dust have to be Lord Voldemort and Severus Snape, but I'd be surprised if that's how things actually played out. I have a feeling that she will throw a curveball or two our way. Either way, I can't wait to get my hands on the book and find out!

The NBA Draft was yesterday, and the Bulls used parlayed their pick and the one the stole from the Knicks (in the Eddy Curry trade) for Tyrus Thomas and Thabo Sefolosha. I will reserve my comments for them after I've seen them play some games, but I do have two predictions: this team will win at least one playoff series next season and they will be one of the best 2 or 3 teams in the East within 3 years. No matter what happens, they should have another high draft choice next season, since the Knicks agreed to swap picks with us if they end up with a worse record. Needless to say, I don't think anybody—even somebody as talented as Renaldo Balkman—can prevent that from happening. In fact, it's likely that we'll be treated to another top-3 pick again. Boy, do I enjoy taking advantage of Isiah Thomas—it's too bad that he'll probably be fired before he can help the Bulls out any further.

Well I need to get ready for bed. Take care of yourselves! If I don't talk to you before then, have a great weekend and 4th of July!

-Mark

Just finished reading: Last Witness, by Jilliane Hoffman

About to start reading: Political Suicide, by Alan Russell