2011 Personal Year-in-Review

This is a recap of personal events that took place in my life this year, in addition to the ones listed in the previous blogs regarding my first two weeks of vacation and my return to school.

My 10^th anniversary of working at Acme took place on June 12.  I received a service pin shortly afterwards.  Many changes were taking place, including an expanded cake center and floral department.  A mass hiring took place during the spring and summer, with some more people hired in the fall.  Seeing all the kids come in is an interesting experience.  They probably all wonder how I ever made it there 10 years.   I try to give them the advice of a more experienced person. 

I made a ton of new friends, my two best being Max Hennis and Megan Kozak.  I would say Max has a similar personality to mine.  We’re both laid back most of the time, but when we don’t like something, we get fired up and tell it like it is, although he swears more than I do.  His parents remind me of mine and we both think that Matt D is a pretty cool dude.  Megan is about the nicest person you’ll ever meet.  You couldn’t pay her to say something bad about someone and seems to be constantly happy.  We hired a few older people too and they are good to talk to as well.  Some good people left too, like Teresa, Jen, and Chris.  Teresa had a baby girl, Jen married former co-worker Kyle, and Chris left for college.

Matt, Max, Justin (girlfriend Megan), Todd, Dayne, and a few others started meeting out at Griffith’s Pool this summer.  We had a blast out there and I want to keep it going a few more summers. I went to Max’s graduation party and was glad to be there for that special moment in his life.  We played a fun game of corn hole too.  Megan, Yuki, and I got together once for a movie, but Yuki’s leaving for school, so Megan and I will have to find a new movie buddy or two.

A few good people I knew died this year.  In March, our neighbor, Mrs. Kaludy, passed away at age 83.  Soon afterwards her husband moved to a retirement center.  They were good neighbors and I miss seeing them when I go outside, even though they only lived there four years.  In November, Grandpa Muffet’s first cousin, Juanita Thomas, passed away at age 81 after a few months of illness.  I knew her well from St. Andrew’s and she was a nice lady to talk to and was good to our family.  Stephanie’s (BHS friend) dad also died this year and while I didn’t know him, I felt bad for her since her family’s had some bad luck the last few years.

Father Tarsis retired from St. Andrew’s at year’s end.  A lunch was held to honor him and his wife on Dec. 11, followed by the annual Christmas party at his home on Dec. 18 (I got to catch up with old friend Paul C. while I was there).  His last service was Christmas weekend.  I’ll miss seeing Father Tarsis at church, but I plan to remain friends with him as long as we’re both alive.  Scott and I continued to usher once a month.  We almost always meet for lunch after church, either at Thano’s, Green Diamond, or with his parents at Taco Bell.

I try to get to Barberton football and boys basketball games when my work and school schedule allow.  I usually sit with family friend Jim, but I got to catch up with old friends BJ, Sean, and Josh at the Greynolds Holiday Classic on Dec. 30.  I hadn’t seen BJ and Sean in several years, but Josh and I get together on occasion at Magics sporting events and attended a U Akron basketball game at the JAR in February.

I want to give a shout out to some people who graduated, married, and had children this year.  Cousin Jamie graduated from Norton High School and Megan (BHS friend) got her master’s from UA.  They both had graduation parties the same day and they were both fun.  I got to catch up with people at both.  Liz (BHS friend) got married and while we haven’t seen each other in ages, I try to keep up with her blogs.  Cousins Rachel and Ron had a baby, Parker, in September.  A few hours later, our longtime friends Beth and Tony had a baby, Drew.  It was too ironic!  A few others who had babies were BHS friend Brett and his wife Susan (daughter Emma), Cousin Stacy and Matt (daughter Julia), and Cousin Lisa (daughter Caysen).  I’ve seen one of the four babies so far.

The Thanksgiving and Christmas holiday season went on as usual, spending Thanksgiving at Grandma Maybin and Susie’s house (Uncle Tom’s mom and sister) and Christmas at Aunt Kathy’s house.  We also got together a few others times, including Labor Day weekend, when we celebrated Grandma Maybin’s 90^th birthday at Green Diamond, and Cousin Ellie’s 1^st birthday at Aunt Kathy’s house.

2011 Current Events Year-in-Review

January

Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton and the Auburn Tigers win the BCS National Championship over Oregon.

A mass shooting takes place at a political rally in Arizona for US Congresswoman, Gabrielle Gifford.  She survived the shooting after a long fight, but six other victims died.

February

After starting the postseason as the 6^th seed in the NFC, the Green Bay Packers win Super Bowl XLV, 26-21, over the Pittsburgh Steelers.  QB Aaron Rodgers won the Super Bowl MVP.  I celebrated by purchasing a Super Bowl championship t-shirt and a Rodgers jersey.

March

The NFL lockout began.

A massive tsumani hits Japan, killing thousands and setting of a nuclear reactor.

Kelley Williams-Bolar is convicted of illegally enrolling her children in the Copley-Fairlawn School while living in Akron.  The case attracts national attention about school funding inequalities.  Bolar’s conviction is later converted to a misdemeanor by Ohio Governor John Kasich.

April

In an ugly NCAA Basketball championship game, UConn defeats Butler.  I participated in my first Bob Phelps tournament pool at Acme 14, where I had a mediocre finish.

May

US troops in Afghanistan capture and kill 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden after nearly a 10 year search.  In the weeks following, President Barack Obama announced that all troops will be pulled out of Iraq by the end of the year.  It was a good year for US foreign policy as three dictators fell from power, upon the deaths of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi and North Korea’s Kim Jung Il, in addition to the resignation of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak.

Ohio State head football coach Jim Tressel is forced to resign after lying about his knowledge regarding five football players receiving free tattoos.  Assistant Luke Fickell served as interim head coach for 2011.

The Cleveland Cavaliers strike it lucky on NBA Draft Lottery night, landing the 1^st and 4^th overall picks in June’s NBA Draft.  Duke G Kyrie Erving was drafted 1^st overall (a pick obtained from the L.A. Clippers).

Dan Wheldon won his second Indy 500, but sadly he would be killed in an accident during the last race of the season at Las Vegas in October.

June

New York Congressman Anthony Weiner is charged with indecent behavior after sending photos of his privates to women that followed him on Twitter.

The Dallas Mavericks win their 1^st NBA championship over the Miami Heat.  It was exciting to see future Hall-of-Famer Dirk Nowitzki win the NBA Finals MVP, with Miami’s big three, LeBron, DWade, and Bosh finishing the season with disappointment.

July

The NBA lockout began at the beginning of the month.  The NFL lockout ended at the end of the month, with only the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame game being canceled.

The NFL announces a few changes for the 2011 season that created a lot of controversy.  First, kickoffs will be moved five yard to create more touchbacks and replay reviews will now take place on all scoring plays.  The NCAA topped the controversy by implementing a rule that revokes TDs from any player who receives an excessive celebration penalty.

In a controversial verdict, Casey Anthony is acquitted of all felony charges in her murder trial, regarding the death of her three year old daughter Caylee in 2008.  Later in the year, Amanda Knox, who served a four year prison sentence in Italy for murder, had her conviction overturned based on the lack of DNA evidence.

September

In the primary election, Barberton incumbant mayor, Bob Genet, is defeated by councilman challenger Bill Judge, Jr.  

Emotional ceremonies were held to honor the 10^th anniversary of 9/11.  Many interesting documentaries aired on TV in the days leading up to the anniversary.  NFL teams also honored the victims as their season kicked-off that day.

Two new sitcoms on ABC captured my interest this fall, Last Man Standing and Suburgatory.

October

The 2011 Major League Baseball season had one of its most exciting finishes in history.  The Boston Red Sox and Atlanta Braves, who both had large leads in their respective wild card races, both collapsed.  This allowed for the Tampa Bay Rays and St. Louis Cardinals to enter the postseason in thrilling games on the final day of the regular season.  Three weeks later, after being one strike away from losing the World Series in both the 9^th and 10^th innings, the St. Louis Cardinals come back to win Game 6.  They go on to win Game 7 to win the World Series championship.

After 20 years of performing Are You Ready for Some Football? prior to Monday Night Football Telecast, Hank Williams Jr. and ESPN severed ties due to controversial comments that Williams made using a Hitler reference on the news show, FOX and Friends.

November

Ohio Issue 2 failed, which would have restricted collective bargaining rights for public employees.  State Senate Bill 5 was passed in March and outrage led to a petition being filed to have the issue recalled, with myself being one of the signers.  The defeat of Issue 2 was a major roadblock to the agenda of Ohio Governor John Kasich.

Sex scandals hit two major NCAA programs, Penn State football and Syracuse basketball.  Jerry Sandusky and Bernie Fine, both assistant coaches, were accused of molesting several young boys.  Sandusky, Fine, and legendary Penn State football head coach Joe Paterno all lost their jobs.  Sandusky’s trial is set to start early in 2012, but Fine got off the hook due to the expiration of the statue of limitations.

Tony Stewart wins five of the last 10 races in the NASCAR Sprint Cup series to overtake Carl Edwards for the 2011 title.  The two racers finished on top in the final race of the season at Miami Homestead, making this season’s finish one of the greatest ever.  More than anything, most fans were thrilled to see Jimmie Johnson’s run of five straight championships come to and end.

Urban Meyer is introduced as the next head football coach at Ohio State.

December

The NBA lockout ended, with a 66 game season starting on Christmas Day.  The MLB quietly agreed to a labor agreement a few weeks later.

The NCAA announced that Ohio State football will suffer sanctions during the 2012 season, including scholarship reduction and a bowl ban.

The past two Super Bowl MVPs, Green Bay Packers QB Aaron Rodgers and New Orleans Saints QB Drew Brees, both have record breaking seasons in a battle for 2011 NFL MVP, with 2010 NFL MVP, New England Patriots QB Tom Brady, following right behind.

After becoming the Denver Broncos starting QB, Tim Tebow won seven straight games, including several comeback and attracting national attention.

As a part of ESPN’s Films 30 for 30 documentaries, two very good ones were Catching Hell about Steve Bartman and the 2003 Chicago Cubs and The Marinovich Project one about former USC star QB Todd Marinovich.