In the homestretch....

Update on the Bat Girl contest: So I wasn’t going to even mention this whole thing to my brother Andrew – I mean, why get the kid’s hopes up when I’d have about a snowball’s chance in hell of actually winning? My twelves of fans notwithstanding, that is. I’m just going by my usual luck, or “luck,” as the case may be.

Then I’m talking to my mom about the contest, as I’m still trying to harness the power of the retirement community contingent, and she mentions something about Andrew going to Korea for work in May, since he works for Nickelodeon. Shit! I had forgotten about that! Hmm, I figure I’ll think of some subtle way of finding out when he’s going, so as to not spill the beans.

Me: Hey, how’s it going? What’s new?
Andrew: Oh, not much, the usual gorgeous California weather here. Same old, same old. Hey, I’ve been voting for you!
Me: Shit! I mean, thanks! How’d you find out about the contest? I thought you rarely read my blog?
Andrew: I think I was really bored one day, and there it was. Me. I mean you, and me, at that game.
Me: Well, damn, I wasn’t even going to mention the whole thing to you, since I probably won’t win. You know how my life is.
Andrew: Oh, I know.
Me: But just in case – when are you going to Korea? The game is May 9th.
Andrew: We’re going.....towards the beginning of May. I think leaving the 8th.

We discuss the vague and distant prospect of my winning, and it looks like even if I did, he wouldn’t be able to come out here. I hang up the phone totally deflated. I mean, if I can’t have my perfect game with my big brother, then what’s the point? Sure, it would be cool, but definitely not the same. Not even close. Damn those Koreans and their Ni Hao Kai-Lan!

As I’m calling Laura to tell her she can hold off on rounding up all her kids’ friends to press them into button-clicking computer service, my phone rings.

Me: Hello?
Andrew: Okay, so I figured out, if you do win, I can head out to Korea that Sunday night, other people are doing that too.
Me: Seriously?
Andrew: Yeah – I mean, this would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, plus I am kind of the focus of your story and...
Me: I know! That’s my point!
Andrew: So just keep me posted.
Me: I will – and tell everyone to vote for me then! Ni Hao and all that! That means “win one for the Gipper” in Korean, right?
Andrew: Well actually, it just mea....

I hang up. Who has time for this idle chit-chat when there’s voting to be done??

So that was all about two weeks ago. Since then, I’ve jockeyed my bodacious little self into first second place (eek!) in the vote count, by shilling for votes pretty much everywhere, hitting up my tri friends (thanks Natalie et al!), FB friends, everyone at Slowtwitch, gardening friends, my fellow cancerchick girls, friends at the dog park (hi Ron and Shirley!), Dobie rescue folks, my mom’s retired friends with lots of time on their hands when they’re not playing Bunco or dominos, my hockey team, my twelves of blog readers, and anyone else I can think of. I’ve been passing out promises like cheap party favors - brownies here, cleavage-enhancing pictures there.

And while last year’s winners apparently had people write up some kind of .exe script for them to run so they could rack up the votes (ha, no pun intended!), I of course didn’t even consider that, no sirree.

That’s because I don’t have those kind of mad computer skilz myself, and when Brian mentioned the idea to his Romanian developers, they mumbled something about needing 3 weeks, 2 cases of cigarettes, and a flock of baby goats. That means we’ve been doing this old-school Chicago style: voting early, voting often.

The point of all this is to note that this is coming to a close soon – April 13th at 12:01 PM eastern time, the madness ends, thank god. Until then, I need YOU, pretty please, to keep up the voting. Because as we say around these parts – shoot the puck! Umm, I mean.....play ball!