Did You See That!?

Phew...I think I’m finally catching my breath from what can only be described as a weekend of incredible basketball. It was full of excitement, buzzer-beaters, major... nay, huge upsets and 16 teams advancing to the second weekend of the Big Dance. On a side note - How screwed is your bracket looking? Yeah, thought it might be.

What happened to the Big East? (More like the Big Easy, Little East, etc, etc.) Eight bids showed the strength and muscle of the conference...until they had to play teams outside the conference. Apparently Georgetown, Marquette, Notre Dame, Pitt, Villanova and Louisville decided that they could finally take a breather now that they were out of the battle-hardened, bruiser Big East. So take it easy they did, and now they’ll have plenty of time to take it easy as they sit in their dorms and watch Syracuse and West Virginia try to bring some credibility back to the Big East. What happened to the one-bid Pac 10, the conference that should be in the play-in game if the Selection Committee had any stones? What the hell!

And how about the little guys, eh? I’ll start with Cornell. The first Ivy League team to win an NCAA game since 1998 and the first to advance to the Sweet 16 in 31 years. (I also want to note I picked them to advance to the Sweet 16 in my office bracket) Saint Mary’s beat down on Villa-NO-va and the invisible “Mr. Clutch” Scottie Reynolds.



I think that about covers it...

Wait you say! What about Northern Iowa??

I’ve been through Iowa, and I didn’t know there even was a northern part of it. I figured it was all just nameless cornfields...Except for “Worlds Largest Truckstop”. What a game. I was in the city and happened to walk into a bar during the last two minutes or so of this monumental game. It was just in time to see the ballsiest, most daring shot of the weekend. Ali Farokhmanesh pulling up on a breakaway to bury a three pointer and drive the stake into the Jayhawk’s heart. All I can say is “ONIONS!”



Now lets get to The Orange of Syracuse. The pundits were asking bundles of questions about the Orange, having entered the tournament riding a two game losing streak and playing a team they haven’t played since the infamous 2005 game. They were expected to beat those maple syrup lovers, but after that? Who knows.

Well the ‘Cuse flexed their muscles, especially their Andy Rautins and Wes Johnson muscles. People were scared, including myself, about how the team would play without Arinze Onuaku controlling the paint. To add to the anxiety, Rick Jackson picked up his third foul with 8 minutes left to play in the first half. I’m sure that’s not how Jimmy B drew it up.

Well apparently instead of being a death sentence the Orange went on a tear and never looked back, crushing those West Coast hippies (Gonzaga). Wes played like the Big East Player of the Year we all know and love, and Andy shot the lights out of the place. Now with Kansas out of the picture, people are looking at Syracuse as a legitimate contender for the title along with Kentucky. But lets not get ahead of ourselves. There are still plenty of games to go, and now they have to head out to Salt Lake, leaving the cozy confines of Buffalo. On the bright side, the weather in Utah is cold and snowy too, so maybe the players will wake up and think they never actually left Central New York.



We can now chalk up the first weekend of March Madness in the books. Some promise the second weekend will bring back sanity to the tournament, while others believe the chaos will continue. Others are dreaming of a Mid-Major Final Four...

God I hope not. I may be a college basketball fan, but I’m an Orange fan first.

I just hope all this possible continued chaos doesn’t involve my boys from Syracuse.

What Comes After February? Madness!

Okay, so once again I took an extended break from writing my “weekly” blogs. Sorry about that. Life has been hectic. But instead if wasting your time writing about why I haven’t been writing, lets get right into it...

It’s March, baby! Time for the Madness, and you know what that means for this Syracuse fanatic. Hanging on every game, moment, and write-up I can find about Syracuse, the West bracket, the Final Four, and championship predictions.

So about 2 weeks ago I was as high as a kite after driving to Syracuse to watch the Orange crush Villanova in front of a record-setting 34,616 orange-crazed fans. It was glorious to watch Cuse hand Nova it’s worst defeat of the season and see Syracuse ascend to #1 in the polls two days later. Well Cuse had a bit of a slide after that and people panicked about if the Orange would be a No.1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.



So now lets fast forward to Sunday evening and the selection show. They get to the South bracket, played in Houston and the expected home of the Orange, only they announce Duke is the No.1 in the region. I was stunned to see this, and then watch the Orange be names as the No.1 in the West, going out to Salt Lake.

Some suggested it was wrong because Syracuse was a better team and should get to play closer to home. Honestly, that doesn’t mean crap. I doubt throngs of Syracuse fans were willing to make the 1,600 mile trek, but decided to pass on the 2,000 mile journey to Salt Lake. It s a difference of 400 miles, and if you were committed to going to Texas, I doubt you will let that stand in your way.

The REAL reason Syracuse should have been in Houston was because they are just better than Duke, plain and simple! The NCAA Selection Committee came out last week and said they would not put as much weight on the last 10 games of the season as in past years. So then when Mike Slive, head of the Selection Committee, came on CBS and was immediately asked why Duke was put over Syracuse, his answer was something to the extent of “because they won their conference tournament.”

Funny how that works. But I’m actually torn over whether I’d have preferred Syracuse to stay as a No.1 seed or fall to a No.2. Now hear me out, then you can curse all you like. Yes a No.1 is nice, and certainly a status symbol, but is a No.2 that much worse? Instead of facing the worst team in your region, you face the second worst.

I also believe it may have re-ignited a fire under the Orange I’m not sure they have maintained since gaining national notoriety and being No.1 in the polls for a week. There is a lot of pressure on 1-seeds to make it deep into the tournament, and anything less than, I’d say, the Elite Eight is a failure, major upset and will ruin ESPN and my favorite shows for at least a week (till the next round is played).

But I also read on another Syracuse blog that maybe the fact people even doubted if Cuse should be a No.1 and being ranked lower than Duke may be enough to fire them up. I sure as hell hope so, especially with Arinze Onuaku missing the first game and most likely the first weekend.

So now the field is set, and it seems the Selection Committee is not without a sense of humor either, those sons a bitches. I’m sure it went something like this...”Hey guys, lets make Syracuse play Vermont, har har har, that’ll be great.” Yeah, hilarious guys, give yourselves a pat on the back for that one. If we don’t make maple syrup seep out of their eyes and ears, I will be thoroughly upset.

So one of the most exciting parts of March Madness is filling out brackets, no? I read on another blog that if you “have stones,” you use the same bracket in every pool you’re in. I couldn’t disagree more with that statement.

The whole fun of the tourney is to see all the different combinations you can come up with. I try to do that and I still end up with the same teams in the end! But don’t you like playing around with upsets, being brave instead of always playing it safe, and having a chance if a Final Four team in one bracket gets eliminated you don’t suck in every other bracket also? At least I think it is.

Well I could go on forever about the tourney, but I’ll save it so I have more to write about soon (as long as Syracuse doesn’t decide to exit the tournament early). But I’m back!

Lets Go Orange!

The Land of the Delta Blues

So since there was nothing major this past week in sports (Super Bowl to come), there was nothing I felt passionate about to spend the time writing on. I could have always written about Syracuse basketball, but it’s a little early to start day dreaming about the post season possibilities for this years team. Instead, I wrote about this.

Have you ever stared out the window of a moving vehicle, be it a plane, train, or automobile while listening to some song and began day dreaming about a movie montage depicted in much the same way? You know, like then suddenly several old scenes from the person’s life play out while the actor stares off into the distance?

Well I’m not saying it has happened to me, I’m just saying…

…It happens…

Well it’s funny because people always associate music with moments in the lives, whether they are good or bad; songs an ex loved so you hate, songs that remind you of summer, of winter, of certain holidays, and moments you’ll never forget.

It never happens on purpose or by design. By pure chance a song happens to be playing, and it isn’t until later on, when you hear the song again, that you realize just what has happened. The song is now imprinted in your memory right along with the images, feelings, and sounds of the moment.

Last week I got a text message from Linz who said she was listening to “Walking in Memphis” on the radio and thought of me. The song became the official anthem for Linz, Susan, and I during our Sweet 16 road trip to Memphis in April. Although, in this case, I’m pretty sure we knew the song was eventually going to reach this level. Every time we stopped the car, for no matter the reason, Marc Cohen’s famous song was the first one played when everyone piled back into the car. We did it to remind ourselves of the mission at hand.

The images usually consists of random things like driving through the “hairy hills” of Kentucky, passing by “The World’s Greatest Flea Market” and “Dinosaur Land,” and especially walking down Beale Street and sipping on a beer at B.B. Kings while listening to some live blues music.

Sitting with the two of them in there crystallized the whole trip as we watched this great old band, featuring a 79-year-old on lead/rhythm guitar, belt out some tunes. Afterwards we stuffed ourselves with authentic Memphis BBQ, which we still talk about to this day. It was one of the most disgusting and delicious meals we’ve ever experienced.

We were all starving and decided to order an appetizer for all of us, BBQ nachos, but these weren’t just any nachos. This plate was piled high with chips, packed with chunks of BBQ chicken and dripping with two melted cheeses on top. Looking back, I’m not sure how our hearts did not stop beating right then and there. But luckily they did not and in our frenzy we cleaned the plate. Finishing our main dishes was a challenge after and I’m not sure anyone did, but we didn’t care. Those nachos were a little slice (huge helping) of heaven.

To go along with the greasy food binge, we ate fast food almost every day, including at least 2 stops at Sonic on the way down and back up to Syracuse. We still talk about that too…But not with the same fondness of the BBQ dinner.

But I think what I’ll remember most from my first road trip was traveling with two amazing friends and having a blast; touring the Gibson Guitar factory, painting the windows of my car with Otto, “Memphis or Bust,” and “Go Orange!,” Linz’s spider hand jumping around the car, and having the girls wake up to me screaming “Where the fuck are we, Janet?!” as we rolled back into Syracuse at about 3 in the morning (for the record, Janet was the GPS). I’m also reminded of our adventure every time I step into my car, christened Lucille, after our whirl-wind trip to Tennessee and back.

It was a trip that solidified a relationship, and created an amazing friendship.

If you stop and think about it, I’m sure everyone has some songs they can associate memories with. I now always put “Remember the Name” by Fort Minor with Big East basketball, and the 2006 Big East Championship where Gerry McNamara took the Orange on his back and led them to the title on an inspired run that will never be duplicated. “Running Down a Dream” by Tom Petty is my song for summer. I only picture rolling south on the highway toward Long Beach, windows down and music blasting. And of course, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention “Stronger” by Kanye West and the thought of Derek and I (aka Team Hollywood) dominating in beer pong.

I’m not a music aficionado by any means. I like loads of different music even though in conversation I say I listen to classic rock to make things easier, and can’t really tell you why I like one band and not a very similar band.

I just go by what my ears tell me.

But I think the most special songs are the ones when you can close your eyes and they do the telling all by themselves.

Is there a problem, officer?

So until Sunday I had no idea about what to write about this week, but thankfully I went skiing with Susan and Derek which made Saturday pretty eventfully and gave me plenty to write about.

Our day started at about 6 am when Derek and I got up, got dressed and headed for Jersey to pick up Susan. The trip started out easily enough, until we hit 95 bound for the George Washington Bridge and “no delays” according to 1010 WINS and CBS 880 radio. Those guys are really great at telling you absolutely nothing about what is going on where you are. So since they can’t read what’s actually going on in the cameras they stare at all day, Derek and I sat in an hour and a half of traffic just trying to get to the bridge.

Want to hear the best part?

When we got to the bridge, the traffic magically opened up and everything was perfect. All the signs we saw for “Road Construction 1000 ft.”, “Left two lanes closed ahead,” all bull. No construction, no accident, no lane closures. What a great way to waste an hour and a half of my life and gas.

So we finally hit the Palisades Parkway and I had had enough. I saw open road and no cars. I put my foot down and sped toward freedom. Well soon enough a NJ County cop car rolls up behind me and I started acting like an angel. I slowed down, followed the rules of the road, got off the highway and headed on 9W toward Susan’s house. The odd part about this Johnny Law who magically showed up behind me was he decided to follow me all the way to Susan’s area. It was peculiar, but since he didn’t pull me over, I shrugged it off and kept going about my morning.

So we pick up Susan and head back out on the road to pick up the highway again, and don’t you know it, sitting on the opposite side of 9W was the cop, camped out and waiting for me. He turned around, and tailed me back to the highway and then proceeded to pull me over promptly upon entering the highway.

I rolled down the window with my ski mask and ski goggles on, to which he responded “Sir, will you please step outside the vehicle,” while reaching for his holster and pushing me up against the car and searching me and the car...

Well, maybe that wasn’t exactly how it went down...

I rolled down the window and was immediately asked to roll down the back window. I guess he thought Derek may become violent, as we all know he can be around law enforcement. He then asked what I was doing in the area, and who I knew. When I explained I was picking up my girlfriend, he demanded to see her ID to confirm and then asked her several questions to ensure she lived there. He explained to me why he had in fact pulled me over and the generosity he was showing me by giving me fines for my tinted windows and Syracuse license cover instead of not giving me a speeding and tailgating ticket.

He then proceeded to take my license, registration, and her ID back to his patrol car for a minimum of 10 minutes looking at who knows what. I figured he just had a bad WiFi connection and couldn’t find the recipe for cheese dip he was planning on using for his football party on Sunday. We also began wondering if it was illegal to transport gingers (Derek) across state lines, what the hell the “P-I-P” was (turns out it’s the Palisades Interstate Parkway), or if he was possibly going to come back with a taser and have some kid practice aiming it at each one of us like out of The Hangover.

What a saint. For a guy who was telling me how much of a break he was giving me, he sure was making it hard to believe. He only knew one tone of voice, bad mo-fo, made us wait 10 minutes plus before letting us get on our way to the mountain, and didn’t seem to be that nice of a guy, period.

Eventually he came back with all our information and my two tickets hot off the press. After a little talk with the officer, we finally got back on the road and headed for Mountain Creek. Luckily, the three of us had a great day on the mountain and the morning incidents were the furthest thing from my mind. And we got some good laughs out of it while sitting and waiting for the cop, so my encounter with the New Jersey Bergan County Police wasn’t a complete loss.

The only advice I can offer is don’t take chances trying to smuggle gingers across state borders. It’s just not worth it!

Baseball: Now Featuring Capt. Obvious

This week, former St. Louis Cardinals player and new hitting coach, Mark McGwire, decided to finally come out of the closet and admit he took steroids during the 1990s and the ’98 single season home run chase. After all, what would a Big Mac be without its special sauce?

In his statement he said, “It's time for me to talk about the past and to confirm what people have suspected,” in response to his appearance on Capitol Hill 5 years ago when the only phrase we heard him say was “I’m not here to talk about the past.” Whoever drafted McGwire’s statement must have thought they were pretty clever, a real master of language with that little illusion. I found his new statement more of a joke than anything else, bringing back memories of Congressional inquisition and the inability of a man to contribute anything whatsoever to the conversation, except to take up space and use up oxygen.

Well I have to say, I’m so relieved Big Mac finally came clean. I was never sure about….

Yeah right.

The fact McGwire took roids is on the same level of common sense as “does a bear shit in the woods?” The door opened when he admitted to taking Andro during his playing career, though at the time it wasn’t a banned substance. So we were supposed to believe that a guy who admitted to taking one muscle-building drug wouldn’t have tried others?

Does McGwire and his representation really think the American people are so dumb that we couldn’t see right through him? We may be a lot of things; lazy, overweight, fantasy-loving and gun-toting, but when it comes to our celebrities and sports figures, don’t screw with us. We know what you’re doing, who you’re with, and who you’re going to marry before you do (aka Jeter – What’s the real story about that anyway?). While at Congress, he might as well have had a stamp on his forehead saying “I took them!”

So now that he has finally put it out there, most likely at the prodding at the Cardinals, McGwire may feel free, but nothing has changed for us baseball fans. We, or at least I, was always under the assumption he had. He was guilty in my eyes well before this confession (sorry, judiciary system).

Now we can finally end the conversation about whether or not he will make the Hall of Fame. He could barely get enough votes to stay on the ballot before this announcement, and this will effectively put a nail in his coffin. He may have hit over 500 home runs, but he had a low career batting average (.263) and didn’t really add a whole lot to the game as a first baseman.

Now this issue of making the Hall or not for admitted or caught steroid users becomes tricky, because not every case is as black and white as McGwire. For starters, you have to deal with Bonds. I don’t think he deserves it, period, but I know a lot of people argue he would have gone to the Hall anyway. That might be true, but we’ll never know, and I think the arrogance he showed in not only vehemently denying taking them, but also thinking we are all so naive as to believe him is enough for me. Plus, if everything about him wasn’t true, then he would have sued the authors of Game of Shadows for slander and libel.

Now it becomes harder when you start talking about current players, such as A-Rod and Manny. It is tough for me to bash Rodriguez since I am a die-hard Yankee fan. You could state the same case for Alex as for Bonds – he would have made it without help. He has a chance to become the home run king, but it would once again be by someone who had taken juice. He was supposed to be one of the clean ones, a savior of baseball who would clean the top of the home run leader board with purity.

So much for that.

Next we have Manny. What can I say? I really don’t like the guy, but he is a hitting machine, when he wants to be, and has over 500 home runs. He is an average fielder with a dozen All-Star games to his name, but I don’t know if that’s enough. The difference between him and A-Rod is Rodriguez is a complete player. He has Gold Gloves and runs the bases well all of the time, not just when it is convenient for him, on top of a great career average. I think the Gold Gloves and the base running are what really separate the two.

I think players who go to the Hall of Fame should be complete players. Not just excel at one aspect. But that’s just me.

Sorry, back to the topic at hand. Mark McGwire, ah ha!

Well thanks so much for clearing up all of that (non)debating we’ve been doing since you left the game. It’ll be interesting to see him back in baseball, and how effective he is as a coach.

Now Mark, you can get to teaching all those Cardinals how to hit the ball, though will you be able to, since you have to take daily injections out of their regiment?

Taking a Bite of the Apple

Aren’t you sick of all the damn commercials starting Justin Long and John Hodgman discussing Mac vs. Windows and how much better Mac is. We get it, alright? Mac’s are cool. You are casual, go-with-the-flow, and awesome at everything. They come with programs that do this, and programs for that, unlike Windows where everything has to be bought in addition.

Mac is cool. Windows is uptight, professional, and boring.

Got it.

For years I’ve written-off Mac, not quite understanding why everyone loves their own so damn much. I knew with Windows there was the chance of random freezes, slowed down systems after a couple years, and crashes while I was in the middle of conquering the ancient Egyptians or invading Russia. But mostly, I just wanted the talk of Mac vs. PC to go away. If the Mac people thought they were so much better, as it appeared they did, then good for them. They could go brag about it to their own friends, but please for the love of God leave me alone.

But sophomore year I switched majors and of course was now forced to use Macs every day.

Adobe InDesign, Photoshop, and Illustrator became mainstays for class assignments and the Mac labs became the place to be for assignments and group meetings. It was awkward at first to figure out how to use this “superior” machine, with its one button ways and simplified ways of saving. After all, humans got to where they are because we became more complex right? Not more simple.

Well, unfortunately I have been talking about getting a Mac for some time (But I won’t say it was because of those ads!). The only problem was my HP was just fine. I couldn’t justify spending so much on a new computer when mine worked fine.

Then a window opened... Thanksgiving Day the HP laptop decided the new colors of the season were ultraviolet. Everything that should have been white was hot pink, everything was pixelated, and there was a green line running down the left hand side of my screen at all times.

“Well, this is my chance,” I thought. If I was destined to get a Mac, now was the time. Christmas Day Santa knew what just to bring me.

So as I sit here on my Mac explaining how much I hate the advertisements I’ve been subjected to for years, I can’t help but agree with all of them. It pains me to know the commercials were dead on, any maybe I should have given in and found the light years earlier.

I try not to be one of those people going around talking about my new Mac like it’s a newborn, showing pictures to everyone and talking about all of it’s firsts; first laugh (starting up for first time, “and my it’s so fast!”), first steps (using all the capabilities of the mouse pad), first words (you get the point). But I’ll admit, it’s hard at times.

So I guess I’ve turned to the dark side, or the side of holiness, depending on what system you’re reading this on.

It’s a great machine. I just hate the advertisements that go along with it!

A Look Back on 2009

I hope this holiday season is treating you well and you received all the goodies you asked for this year, be it for Hanukkah, Christmas, or Kwanzaa.

I had originally planned on writing on a totally different topic for this post, but since it will be my last post of 2009, I thought it would more appropriate to look back on the year and those things I am most thankful for.

To start, this has been a pretty eventful year for me in general.

Last winter I began my final semester at Syracuse, seemingly counting down the minutes as my friends and I squeezed every last drop of enjoyment and fun out of our time in Cuse. We went to all of the Big East basketball games at the Carrier Dome, even camping out several hours for a few of them just to ensure we would have good seats. We played beer pong almost religiously, used Halo as the best way to procrastinate from doing work or studying, and played Rock Band to get ourselves ready for a night out. We were second semester seniors, living the dream, and we made sure to do it all.

Syracuse had an outstanding season, earning a high seed in the NCAA tournament and convincingly made their way into the Sweet 16. They were set to play in Memphis against Oklahoma, and it was sure to be a good game. When the Orange beat Arizona State, the talk began about taking a road trip to Memphis to watch the boys play. It started with about 10 of us, and within a week and a half had dwindled to 3: Linz, Susan, and I. But 3 was enough so we made plans and set our course. It was my first true road trip and that was just as exciting as going to see Syracuse play in the NCAA tourney. While the game was forgettable, the experience was awesome, and the three of us really became close over those three days and had a great time together, though it’s tough not to get close when you spend close to 100 hours together.

In March my two best friends and I, who all attend different universities, happened to have the same spring break and spent a week in Key West, Fla. It was a great time. We fooled around like we usually do, shared many laughs, and of course did stupid things as we always do when we’re together. We spent our last night of spring break glued to the television as Syracuse and UConn battled in what can only be described as the most epic college basketball game of the year, if not the decade. By the time the game ended it was so late, we didn’t even attempt to go out. Instead we celebrated with a handle of Jack and 2 liters of Coke.

The spring of senior year came and went and life was good then. I had my friends, my girlfriend, and the one place I never wanted to leave. I got to walk across the stage and hear my name called in front of my family who had come up to Cuse, and listen to Vice President Joe Biden give a passionate key note speech at Commencement in the Carrier Dome. I sat with my friends inside the Carrier Dome, and finally got to take part in graduation traditions such as writing on an orange ribbon and tying it around a tree in the Orange Grove.

I was fortunate to find an internship in NYC for the summer, rebuilding my bank account a little bit in time for my big adventure and gaining valuable experience to help me land my first full time job. I became close friends with the people I worked with over those two months and still keep in touch with some of them.

After much anticipation, the calendar finally turned to August and you know what that means, my cross country road trip with Lucille (my car) to San Diego, Cali. and back. I won’t go into detail about the trip since I’m guessing if you’re reading this you know about everything on my trip. I’ll just say it was one of the most incredible experiences of my life, and something I will absolutely never forget. I got the chance to see places and things in this country I might never see again and that some people dream of going to; a Redwood Forest, driving up the California Coast, hiking both sides of the Grand Canyon, and I could go on. I got to experience a little piece of Americana, as my dad would say, and it wouldn’t have been possible without my awesome parents and amazing girlfriend.

In October I awoke one morning to a phone call from someone claiming they were in HR with Porter Novelli and asked me if I was interested in coming in for an interview. Three weeks later I received a formal offer to join the company and had a start date to began my first full time job. I am now almost two months in and enjoying working with my team, meeting new people, and growing professionally. I am working in the field I studied at Syracuse and in the industry focus I have wanted to work in for a while now. I couldn’t have asked for anything more in a first job and know how lucky I am I even got the opportunity.

At the end of October I got to fly out to Arizona for what has become the annual Father-Son baseball tournament with my dad. It’s a blast getting to play alongside him on the field with the rest of fathers and sons on the team. I try to cherish each time we are there together because not only do other fathers and sons not get the chance to have the same experience, you never know what next year will bring and it we’ll be able to go again. Between trips like there and traveling cross country with him in four days, and the following note, this year has been a big year for my dad and I to spend time together.

In November, the Yankees advanced to the World Series and by sheer luck, my father and I had tickets to Game 6 and watched the Yankees celebrate in their new stadium in the Bronx. I had begun work a mere two days beforehand and didn’t get to bed that night until about 1:30, waking up to my alarm clock a very short 4 hours later, but it did not matter. I was wide awake the following day, running on adrenaline and trying to relive a moment that I will probably never get to be part of again.

In mid-November I celebrated my one year anniversary with Susan, an impressive milestone considering we are no longer in college and able to see each other as easily. Granted we are still only about an hour away, but now life has begun, and between looking for jobs, hanging with friends, and being with family, it is tough to juggle everything. Thankfully we have made it work and have a great thing going. We meet in the city frequently, and try to make special plans around things we both enjoy (usually food).

And now I’ve celebrated the holidays with loved ones and am about to go to the Poconos to celebrate New Year's Eve with my group of friends and hopefully break in my new skis on a mountain out there. Not a bad way to cap off an incredible and memorable year, if I do say so myself.

After writing all this down, I realize this has really been a great year for me. I’m not sure how to compare it to years past, but I’m confident it contains the most adventures and plenty of things I will remember for many years to come. I’d say it was better than the past few years I can recall, and I am optimistic it will only get better from here.

I only hope 2010 brings as many new challenges and adventures.