There are times in life where you just have to take a step back and say things like, “Is this really happening?” and “How long could this possibly last?”

I have been on a pretty good winning streak lately, much of it involving sports but also regarding life in general. It’s definitely one of those runs where you start to think something incredibly bad has to come soon in order to balance out the universe, so I’m on the lookout for thunderstorms that may try to strike me down with their treacherous lightning.

I posted recently about a string of prognostications about Olympic events, snowfall amounts and hockey games played by small children. If you missed that one, I came up on the winning side many more times than my roommate.

Now that streak has extended to the NCAA men’s basketball tournament, where teams like St. Mary’s, Xavier and Cornell have propelled my bracket to ridiculous heights in several pools. Before Thursday’s third round, I am in the 100th percentile on ESPN.com. When people are posting things on your Facebook page like, “st. mary’s though? who makes that pick?! dammit!” you know there’s a certain amount of luck on your side.

Since the end of the college football season I have also been taunting my brother (a Redskins fan) about the prospects of former Florida quarterback Tim Tebow being drafted by his favorite team. As a fan of the rival Giants, and not a fan of Tebow, nothing would make me happier than seeing him in a Washington uniform. While watching my NCAA basketball picks come through last weekend my brother sent me a text message that said the Redskins were giving Tebow serious consideration.

ESPN also has a contest of sorts where you try to string together streaks of correct picks about sporting events called Streak for the Cash. It’s maddeningly entertaining. Sometimes you lose six games in a row, but sometimes the luck kicks in and you run off a streak of 10-straight correct picks. Of course when you get to 10 (as I did yesterday) it’s only a matter of time before you get a little ahead of yourself and make a dumb pick. Unfortunately UNC beat UAB last night and my streak is no more.

Hopefully that will be enough of a lightning bolt for now and my bracket picks can continue their run.

Though maybe I should be trying to raise the stakes a bit–cold call Bill Gates and ask him for a few million dollars, see if the Nationals will let me pitch on opening day, try to get a Taco Bell Express built in place of a neighbor’s house, find out if Mila Kunis wants to have dinner at that Taco Bell Express–you know, get while the gettin’s good.

This is totally unrelated, but too neat not to pass along: A story about an artist who turns people into a canvas…of themselves.