Fingers crossed for Oscar bleacher seats

I promise to look more enthusiastic and happy to be sitting there!

I have been a fan of the Academy awards since the mid-80s, that's when I really started to pay attention to them when I was in my teens. In 1992, when my favorite film of the year, The Silence of the Lambs won five well deserved Oscars, predicting the Oscars and watching the show has been in my blood ever since. In all this time, because I'm such a cinephile, I have been very, very disappointed with decisions that the American Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) has made over the years. Politics/Religion/Sexism/Racism/Intolerance should have no place in truly honoring the best in cinema... but it does, and that's what happens when you have a voter base that is not reflective of the diverse society and world we live in. In response to winners that I was disgusted with, I boycotted watching for a few years. Sure, I kept tabs on predictions, nominations, and the end results, but at an arms length.

Due to my favorite actor, Michael Fassbender, possibly getting his second (should be his third) Oscar nomination for his excellent work in Steve Jobs, I have entered into two lottery contests for the chance to win a pair of tickets to sit in the fan bleacher section along the red carpet at the next Academy Awards, February 28th. One contest via AMPAS just gives you the tickets to attend (after passing a background check), and the other is through People magazine where they will not only give you two tickets, but pay for hotel and airfare. I would prefer the People contest, but if I won the AMPAS lottery, I have already created my AirBnB and Uber accounts to help me enjoy my quick LA visit.

If I won either contest, I'm so there and I'm very excited to take part in this once in a lifetime opportunity. In years past, for people to get into the bleacher seats, they camped out for days. But it was always the same strange fanatics who would camp out, save spots for friends, and sit in the bleachers for years and years and years. But AMPAS put a stop to that in 2011-ish and in an effort to be more fair and give other people from around the country and world a chance to sit in the bleachers, they have this annual lottery contest. I think this is fair and if I win the lottery, what a dream come true for a lover of cinema and the art of fine films and performers!!!

Fingers crossed!