1. Oscars Wrap-Up

This year’s Academy Awards ceremony was definitely interesting. Of course, it would have been just like any other if not for the crazy mishap during the Best Picture winner announcement. Moonlight cemented its place in history with the Best Picture win on Sunday night, becoming the first film focused on an LGBTQ character and with a completely non-white cast to ever win the prestigious award. It was well deserved too!

P.S. Brian Cullinan and Martha Ruiz, the two accountants at PricewaterhouseCoopers who were in the middle of the Best Picture snafu, are still employed at the accounting firm but are barred from counting Oscars ballots and working the ceremony, according to Piya Sinha-Roy at Reuters. Additionally, Sinha-Roy says details have surfaced that indicate Cullinan is apparently the person who gave Warren Beatty the incorrect envelope, perhaps as a result of being distracted by being on his phone to post a backstage photo of Emma Stone who had just won Best Actress.

2. The Rematch

Saturday night, UNC and Duke meet once more to renew the greatest rivalry in college basketball and, perhaps, all of sports. Carolina still leads the all-time series 134-109 and the games are always entertaining, there’s no question about it. I guess I’ll go ahead and say it: I’m going to the game! Yes, I’ll be there in Chapel Thrill for the big game alongside a buddy of mine. This is actually not the first UNC/Duke game I’ve been to but it is the first for my friend. I can’t wait for him to experience the game in person! It’s going to be a wild night, regardless of the outcome!

3. ACC Tourney

The ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament kicks off next Tuesday in Brooklyn, N.Y. I’m not all too excited for it given where it’s taking place because there is simply nothing like the ACC Tournament being at home in Greensboro, N.C. I’ve been fortunate enough to attend the tourney the past few times it has been held in the Gate City and the atmosphere both inside and outside the arena are incredible. Everyone in town knows that the tourney is going on. That isn’t the case in big cities like Washington, D.C. – where the tourney was held last year – and Brooklyn. I guess you can call me an ACC Tournament purist (is that even a thing?) but I’m not a fan of the tourney being anywhere but Greensboro or Charlotte. Especially Greensboro. It’s just not the same. I think this article from Alec Sawyer at Technician, N.C. State’s student newspaper, sums it up nicely. I hope the privileged few enjoy the tourney in Brooklyn because I, for one, will not be attending the ACC Tourney until it’s back where it belongs.

4. Champs (Again)!

The N.C. State Men’s Swimming and Diving team joined the women’s team by taking home an ACC Title on Thursday, its third consecutive. Like the women, the men’s team didn’t just win, it dominated the competition, setting records along the way. One of the most impressive being with the 400 Freestyle Relay, where the men set a new conference, meet and school record time 2:48.14. It’s also the second-fastest time in the nation. Incredible! I’m proud of both teams for the amazing work the past few weeks. Go Pack!

5.  Shoutout to YOU

I wanted to take a moment to give you, my readers, a shoutout. I made the transition from a simple Blogger site to Squarespace and you awesome people followed me right over and kept on reading my posts. For that, I’m grateful. I hope to continue blogging and sharing content with you for many years to come!

Thanks for Reading