This little experiment is a chance for me to try many of those things that I always think I'd enjoy but I haven't gotten around to trying yet. One such thing is the "Readers Choice Awards" in the local newspaper - in my case, the Framingham Tab.

Every year I see the ballot and, I have to admit, it's tempting. There's something about a blank sheet in a newspaper, waiting to be filled in ink - kind of like a blank NCAA Tournament bracket, or a crossword - that I find irresistible.

But then I let time go by, and the blank ballot sits unfilled until I finally put it in the recycling pile.

And then the results come out, and I enjoy reading through them, but I think it's a shame that I didn't have my say.

Well, not this year.

This year I put down my choice for the best local pediatrician, the best gift shop, and of course, our favorite furniture store. I even played the good employee and wrote in my school for "Best Summer Camp".

There were 79 blanks, and we filled out 42 of them - so we're not just throwing kudos around to fill a blank slot here. We're only voting for the best of the best, which is what the Readers Choice Awards are all about. (You need to fill in at least 10 for your ballot to qualify.)

(For what it's worth, I don't love that they don't have an apostrophe after 'Readers'...but I guess they're going for more than one reader making a choice rather than the choice belonging to the reader. I don't agree with it...but they're entitled to their logo.)

So I filled out my ballot. Now I just have to make sure I get it in the mail before the February 13th deadline.