Oscarcasts Past

This year was the first Oscar show in a while where I've actually been home. Last year we were in Rincon in Puerto Rico on the big night. The American family who were renting the house next door--I think they were from Boston--were all leaving the next day so they were having a big-ass loud farewell party. Long after the Oscars were over and the Slumdog Millionaire people had all flown back to India, these bastards were still partying hardy. My partner and I did not get to sleep till just before the local guy who lived across the street woke up to go to work and his roosters started crowing. If you are reading this, you sons of bitches, thanks a lot.

The year before in 2008, we were in Cancun at a Palace resort. The entire broadcast was dubbed in Spanish except for Javier Bardem's acceptance speech for No Country for Old Men. They had two local celebrities offer commentary while sitting in front of a movie theatre in Mexico City. These two would occasionally cut away to a Mexican lady correspondent was actually there at the Oscars, standing with the parking valets!

Before I met my partner I would run the office Oscar pool and hang out in bars to watch the show. Then I would mark the ballots like a teacher grading papers. I would sometimes be accused of cheating because I won sometimes. But to insure impartiality, I would give my ballot to a friend who would be at another party and have them grade mine. Everytime I won, people in the office would yell "The fix is in" the morning after the Oscars. The pot would sometimes get up to $150 so we are talking serious money. After a few years, it got to be too much trouble.