What a Year! What a Year!

I usually write this kind of stuff on New Year's Eve, but since I'll be heading downtown to embrace 2009, here it is:

When the flame of 2007 burned itself out, I made two new year's resolutions for the brand spanking new 2008.

1. Make Harry and I's Internet Radio Show a popular crowd-pleaser.

2. Beat the Danny of 2007 in terms of kindness, creativity, vocabulary, school/community involvement, intelligence and willpower.

Well, the first one died out after about 4 months into the year, but I'm glad we had a great time. Besides, we were able to use our account to help get some ridiculously high marks for English culminating. And I revisited the account to do daily shows during the Olympics.

For the long list of things I wanted to achieve in 2008, you can check off every one of them, because I truly did beat old self in all those things. Job well done, Danny!

It's been a year like that. A year marked by personal growth, maturity, and overall CHANGE. This was without a doubt, the best year in my life...so far.

To say time flew by is a massive understatement. Time felt like it was going faster than the speed of light. Time was, as one wise author writes, a dimension. However, the timeline of 2008 was not without speed bumps. There were plenty of trials and tribulations, and I'm proud to say we got through it all.

In this past year, I've met so many new people and learned a lot about what's important in life. I've learned, but not mastered, time management. I've discovered a lot about myself. I've improved as a person. And that's probably my biggest accomplishment this year.

It was a year when my homeland, China, proved itself to the world in what I think was the most extravagant Olympics ever.

It was a year when many of us were dazzled by the performance of Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt, when Canada won 18 medals, all in the second week, when an age controversy plagued Chinese gymnasts, but we still won 101 medals, 51 of them gold in the end.

It was a year when we, the Chinese, rose up to defend our nationhood in a sea of Western criticism on the subject of Tibet, and when we all pitched in to help the victims of the Sichuan Earthquake.

It was a year when America elected its first black president, the junior Senator from the Land of Lincoln, who brought hope to the United States and the world alike.

It was a year of Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin and their counterpart on SNL, Amy Poehler and Tina Fey.

It was a year when oil soared to $148 a barrel only to be slammed down to $35, bringing gas prices from 140 cents a litre to what is now 66.4.

It was a year when the failed Conservative policies of Stephen Harper were given another chance, and when Harper dictatorially prorogued Parliament to avoid a defeat at the hands of the new coalition.

It was a year when Roger Federer only won one Grand Slam, when Nadal beat him in an epic 5 hour Wimbledon final, when the Williams Sisters made a huge comeback, and when the tennis world was introduced to Jo-Wilfred Tsonga.

It was a year when the Philadelphia Phillies beat the Tampa Bay Rays for the World Series, when the Celtics-Lakers rivalry was renewed, when the Leafs continued to downspiral into a seemingly bottomless pit, and when we bid Yankee Stadium farewell.

It was a year when the world financial markets went head first down a toboggan hill, when millions of jobs were lost, when the entire nation of Iceland almost went bankrupt, and when "bailout" became a familiar term.

It was a year marked by a plethora or snowstorms, and rainstorms, and temperature that swung 30 degrees in a week.

It was a year when citizens around the world took symbolic action against climate change, in the first ever Global Earth Hour.

It was a year when we survived our first high school exams, and survived our first major lockdown.

It was a year when volleyball became a lunchtime favourite, when we went to movies more often, and when we learned about what a lung collapse is.

It was a year when more friendships strengthened than weakened.

It was a year with more triumphs than regrets.

It was an amazing year for me, but a not-so-good one for many others.

But it has come to an end.

In the spirit of an optimist, I will say: MAKE 2009 THE BEST ONE YET!

-D

P.S. New Year's Resolutions:

1. Find a paying job. [All suggestions welcome! :)]
2. Finish my "big project". I'll reveal it when I'm done.
3. And as always: Beat the Danny of 2008 in terms of kindness, creativity, vocabulary, school/community involvement, intelligence and willpower.

Comments?

Texeira Worth $180 Million??!!

Once again, I whisper under my breath: WTF??!!

Mark Texeira to the Yankees for a ridiculous total of $180 million over 8 years. This maddens me. This infuriates me! This is absolutely unbelievable!!

The US economy is in more than a sticky wicket. The interest rates have been slashed to nearly zero. Millions have lost their jobs this year. Stock markets have dipped 40% in the last year. Banks are nosediving into the ground. Yet baseball players...oh how lucky they are, baseball players are raking in money like never before.

WTF??!! WTF??!! $180 million??!! 1-8-0??? I mean, I like Teixeira as a hitter and I look forward to seeing him hit live. But $180 million is just preposterous, pompous! The Republicans said "Drill Baby Drill!" I say to the MLB: "CAP BABY CAP!"

In the Toronto Star today, Vernon Wells said that the race in the AL East next year will be tough. It will be tough for the Blue Jays because of what the Rays did this year, the way the Yanks are spending money, and the way the Red Sox always pulls through. He commented on the way Aaron Hill is recovering and reflected on what went wrong in the Jays '08 season. Being an honest man, Wells remarked that hitting was virtually non-existent and all the pressure was on the pitching staff, who did amazingly well. As well, Vernon Wells joked that he might be booed if he plays for Team USA in Rogers Centre during next year's World Baseball Classic.

In other Yankees news, less pompous news, an exhibition match against the Cubs in early April will feature prices of 25 cents for the bleachers. This is all an attempt to "relive" the events of 1923-when prices were indeed just a quarter. My opinion? This kind of thing should happen more often, especially seeing how elite the prices at new Yankee Stadium will be once the regular season starts.

Leafs got "carved up like a Christmas turkey" tonight.

Raptors...well, one of my friends are calling them Craptors, and one has "given up" already. I really think we should give them some time. The team has been on a roller coaster this season and people need to be calm about it. It's frustrating, no doubt, but this team has the capability to be great. Going to sell 50/50 tickets at the ACC on New Year's Eve! Can't wait!

-D

Holiday Break

I can't believe it's already December 20th!!

School is finally out and let the partying begin (okay, let's not forget to keep up with the studies)!

Unlike most years, I actually have homework from all four of my courses this year. Not Herculean tasks, but small things that HAVE to get done.

What is going on with the Raptors lately? It seems like everybody's in a big slump. Toronto lost 91-83 to Oklahoma City last night. I mean, OKLAHOMA CITY! They're the worst team in the league. Of course, losing streaks always bring out frustration. But obviously, new strategies have to be implemented if this team is to be taken seriously.

Boston Celtics are on a 17 game winning streak. Reminds me of the Rockets last year. How long can it last? One thing's for certain, they have a great chance to defending this year, with the way they're playing.

Baseball market is still going crazy.

Mats Sundin signed with the Canucks. When he started putting off self-imposed deadlines, the chances of him returning to the Leafs got smaller and smaller. I'm not surprised he's not coming back. Perhaps it's best Sundin didn't come back. The entire Leafs organization is in an absolute mess right now. I don't know what to say.

World Junior Hockey Championships take place in Ottawa over the next couple o' weeks.

Doc Ellis, the pitcher who once tossed a no hitter while under the influence of drugs (opium I believe) has died at the age of 63.

I haven't heard much about the 2009 Baseball Hall of Fame voting yet. Ricky Henderson is the star of this year's slate of candidates. I will post my ballot sometime over the holidays!

We're getting a "snow-maggedon" here in TO this week. About 10 cm of snow fell on Tuesday night into Wednesday. Yesterday, the winds howled and we got dumped on with around 15-20 cm of snow. Tonight into tomorrow, another 10-15 cm is expected before the next storm moves in Tuesday night into Christmas Eve. The uncertainty on that one is still pretty high-the snow could be mixed with some rain. But this will definitely by the second straight year we have seen a White Christmas and I'm lovin' it!

-D

Monday Night Notes

Well, it's 11 o'clock on a Monday night.

I SHOULD be in bed.

Well, just wanted to say it is the last week before Winter Break and I can hardly wait. It's been a busy semester, and I look forward to taking a couple weeks off. Got lots planned already, should be fun.

Can't believe Sabathia went to the Yankees for 161 million dollars. Isn't this supposed to be a time when the US economy is in the worst period in 80 years? Why are these athletes still setting payday records?? It's absolutely ridiculous!!! MLB DEFINITELY needs a cap before GMs have shown that they can't control themselves in hiring players for way too much money.

AJ Burnett has also signed with the Yankees...always HOPED he'd be back. I liked the guy. But guess we are all enticed by the greenback.

Raptors are...surviving, let's just say.

How bout 'em Bills, starting off the season 4-0 and on the verge of elimination?!

Just learned today that the best performing stock exchange of 2008 was Tunisia.

Okay, seriously, time to go to bed.

-D

A Year of Writing

Yes, it's been a year.

It was about a year ago this time that I decided to seriously run this blog and boy, have I run with it. Over the past year, through what was a very snowy winter, we kept up to date on the baseball offseason, watched some great basketball together, not to mention a flabbergasting Australian Open. I ran a radio show for about 10 weeks with an inspirational friend. When baseball started, I wrote about that. There was the NBA All-Star Break. And through the first half of the year, I bashed Hillary Clinton.

When June gave way to July, I said I wanted to make something out of the summer, so I wrote a couple 3000 word articles on topics dear to my heart. Oh, and of course, there was that Wimbledon showdown between Rafa and Federer.

And then there were the Beijing Olympics. I live blogged through it all, almost living on the couch along with my laptop. Those were the best times of the year, I think. I miss the Olympics the most. The days of reduced sleeping hours, of press credentials, of national anthems, of Usain Bolt, of Michael Phelps, and of gold medals and last place finishes. And of course, of the radio shows-which I still have a hard time believing pulling off every day.

When fall came, it was school, baseball, and Obama v. McCain. I live blogged Election Night, and provided my insights on other political events the October 14th Election, and Crisis in Parliament.

There were happy posts, angry posts and teary posts. But all in all, about 100 of them in the course of the past 12 months. Twelve months full of adventures.

I was flipping through the old posts last weekend, when I came across one I penned on Friday, January 4th, 2008. It was titled "The Ten Predictions of 2008".

How many of them came true? Well...take a look:

• Roger Federer will be the victor of all 4 Grand Slam titles. Aussie, French, Wimbledon and US! Move over Pete Sampras, Federer is the King of Tennis!

Kind of ironic, isn't it? Many tennis fans probably had the same prediction as me. But as it turns out, it was not Roger's year. First, Djokovic knocked him out in the Aussie Semis, then he got crushed by Nadal at Roland Garros, before running into that "best final ever" at Wimbledon. Federer didn't come close to the medals in Beijing (singles-wise) but the man salvaged his year by winning at Flushing Meadows.

• Italy will capture the EuroCup 2008, proving to us once again, that Italy is now the envy of the soccer world.

Italy was great, but Spain was greater. Simple as that.

• Michael Phelps will win 8 gold in Beijing and become the poster boy of every magazine in the United States!

Yay! There's one that came true! Phelps did win 8 golds in Beijing, albeit, not easily. And yes, yes he did become the poster boy of every magazine in the United States...and beyond.

• Canada, our home and native land, I sense, will bring home at least 20 medals from the 08 Olympics!

Close, but no cigar. Canada won 18 medals in Beijing, but that number could easily have been 20. A good performance for the Canucks in China, but there's always room for improvement!

• The Vancouver Canucks will take home the Stanley Cup! Finally, a Canadian team!

Man, what happened to the Canucks down the stretch? It was like they were in first place, and all of sudden dropped out of nowhere. The Cup did come oh-so-close to Canada after the Detroit Red Wings won the title. Now, only if it could cross the Ambassador Bridge in 2009.

• The San Antonio Spurs will for the second straight year be able to say: "We are the Champions!"

San Antonio was caught in that super tight race in the Western Conference down the stretch. They did manage a berth in the Western Conference finals, where they ran into the Kobe-run LA Lakers, who were oh-so-strong through out the year. They lost 4-1 to LA. But I doubt the Spurs would have beat Boston either way.

• Writers and fans go mad in March as Florida State will repeat as NCAA Champions!

Who am I kidding? Florida State didn't have a chance to begin with. Kansas was crowned champions after an intense match against Memphis.

• My idol sprinter, Jeremy Wariner, will break the Men's 400 M World Record (43".18 by Michael Johnson). Do I dare say in Beijing?

Oh man, I don't even want to talk about this. God knows what happened to Jeremy Wariner down the home stretch. Forget about 43"18, Wariner didn't even get the gold medal, running an ugly time of 44"75. Well, Wariner's still young, and there's still next year.

• World Series? World Surprise! My guess: Houston Astros!

World Series was World Surprise alright, but the Astros were out long before the World Surprise even began. But hey, I'd settle for a Phillies v. Rays Series any day. Besides, it was crazy enough that Game 5 lasted 3 days!

• Canada will win gold at the 2008 World Men's Curling Championships! Who says no body watches curling!

Three words: Yes they did!

There you have it, I went 2-10 for 08. I'll make my predictions for 09 when that year begins!

-D

Proroguing Sucks!

Straight and simple!

Prorogation sucks!

It's undemocratic, lame, and even dictatorial.

I don't know why the Governor General agreed to the Prime Minister's request to suspend Parliament yesterday. It's utter stupidity. Now, we have no lawmakers for 2 months, as the country sinks even deeper into an economic crisis. And why is this? 'Cause the Conservative Prime Minister wants to save his job. It's all about keeping face and I dearly hope the coalition together so that Mr. Harper gets the message that enough is enough!

No body is holding him accountable now. It is infuriating. And definitely one of the most classless acts Mr. Harper has ever done.

Okay, just had to get my political emotions off my chest.

Now to sports. I was flabbergasted that Sam Mitchell was given the pink slip this week. The man was Coach of the Year just a couple seasons ago. And the Raptors weren't even THAT horrible. It was a streak of mediocrity that I think could be easily turned around. But I also respect Colangelo's audacity and risk-taking style.

I believe Jay Triano has what it takes to lead the Raptors team until the end of the season. He's a very smart man, and has plenty of experience.

Brian Burke's finally here! This is only one step in what I see as a rebuilding in the Leafs organization. It is clear that the old ways will not work for Toronto. Don't even hope for Sundin anymore. In 2008, it's all about change!! :) And the Leafs, if they expect to win a Cup anytime soon, has got to make colossal changes! Burke's a good start, now let's see what he can bring.

Jays cut 24 front office jobs this week. One sign that no body can escape the economic downturn.

Speaking of the economy, 533 000 jobs were cut in the US last month alone. I'm surprised the Dow's only down 20 points right now.

-D

Constitutional Crisis

Think the Florida Recount in 2000 was a test for the US Constitution??!!

Think again!!

Right now, right here in Canada, our own constitution is getting tested in unprecedented ways. Just 7 weeks ago, on October 14th, the Canadians elected a Conservative minority government. Parliament officially opened on November 19th. On November 27th, the Finance Minister tabled the government's economic statement, a move that would prove as costly as poison.

The opposition parties, which compose the majority of the House of Commons, united together and tabled a motion of no confidence. That vote was originally scheduled for this Monday, but the Prime Minister pushed it back to December 8th.

This week, parliamentarians and commoners alike have been engaged in fierce debate about what the government should do. If the motion passes next Monday, the Conservative minority falls and there are two options. There could be another election, though costly and fatiguing. Or, the Governor General will ask the opposition parties to work together in a coalition government. The latter has already been arranged, all that needs to be done is the vote.

To add to the incredible circumstances, the Prime Minister will ask the Governor General tomorrow to prorogue parliament, a term many of us have never heard before, and probably will never use again. It means that the House will go on holiday break until the Conservatives bring their budget forth on January 27th. The GG is entitled to reject the PM's prorogation request, but it would be extraordinary.

If Parliament indeed gets prorogated, we'd have to wait until January 27th to see these MPs heckle eachother again. The coalition may hold in place until then, but the possibility of an election will increase by the new year. And then there's the issue of Dion becoming Prime Minister. And if we go into an election campaign in the spring, the Liberals will have to do so with Dion as lame duck leader with their leadership convention in May.

This is complicated and entirely political. But for now, I am enjoying the daily hour of shouting match-Question Period! You should check it out on the net! Amazing, heated exchanges.

Well, the drama continues and we can only wait...

-D