Regarding the parentheses thing ....
In fourteen years, my dog has never jumped up onto the furniture when I am at home. But occasionally, when I arrive home, I will peek through the glass panel in the front door, and there she will be, lying on her back on the couch, feet up in the air. As soon as I put the key in the lock, she scrambles down and meets me at the door with a 'Who, me?' look in her eye.
I guess that's kinda how I am with you and parentheses. When I am writing specifically to you, I avoid them scrupulously (well, semi-scrupulously) <-- as you can see. Yet, when I think you are not looking, I use them with abandon.
Why do I feel like a two-year-old with her hand caught in the cookie jar?