Reflections

OH MY GOD! I was writing this to post as an anniversary entry for July 9, when my blog started, but as I was going through my archives I realized my anniversary was July 5! Oh well... happy anniversary to me and enjoy the post...

It was (a little over) one year ago today that I decided to blog. I don't recall the original title I used but the current one, The Internet Ate My Homework, came to me quickly after trying to publish my first post. I had worked about 30 minutes on a post and was quite proud of it. In my neophyte haze, I clicked "publish" and that was the end of that. Lesson learned.

As I've stated before, this is the longest I have ever kept any sort of a journal. This is probably because my other journals are written with the intention that someone will read them and I get discouraged when I have no one to share them with. Here, I get personal feedback from close friends and family and - now that I've added comments - my new web friends. It has been a wonderful adventure creating these entries and sharing them with others as well as participating in what others choose to share.

As I take a look back over the past year, I am reminded of events within and outside of my blog. I think it has opened new worlds to me. Let me share some of my greatest, and worst, moments with you.

In the past twelve months...

• Barry White, age 58, passed away the day before I started blogging, Buddy Ebsen, age 95, the day after I started blogging.
  
• I was first convinced to blog after seeing Wil Wheaton at Trek Expo 2003. I didn't feel then, nor do I feel now, that my prose would be worthy of publication. I thought, at the very least, that it would be an interesting journey into a new frontier (nudge nudge - notice the Trek tie-in?).
  
• I relayed my rather heady meeting with Robin Curtis at the same con.
  
• I finally got the new video card for my computer that I said I wanted in this post. It took almost a year.
  
• astronomers find oldest, most distant planet ever discovered on July 10.
  
• Bob Hope died on July 27 at the age of 100.
  
• I bought a new pickup truck after searching several days while I had time off. This was unexpected because I originally set out to buy a new SUV.
  
• President Bush took another turn in his downward spiral on July 30 saying he was exploring legal steps to define marriage as a union between man and woman.
  
• Gregory Hines passed away August 9 at the age of 57.
  
• A huge blackout hits the Northeast U.S. and part of Canada, affecting 50 million people on August 14 due to cascading failures, beginning at Ohio-based FirstEnergy Corp.
  
• I told a story about meeting a local celebrity.
  
• Alabama Supreme Court justices order Ten Commandments monument removed from courthouse on August 22.
  
• Charles Bronson lost the fight on Aug 30 at the age of 81.
  
• Musician Warren Zevon died September 7 at age 56.
  
• Leni Riefenstahl, legendary filmmaker reviled for documentaries about Hitler's Third Reich, died on September 8 at the age of 101. Man, she sure saw some changes in the world.
  
• John Ritter left us unexpectedly on September 11 at the age of 54.
  
• Just a day later, on September 12, music legend Johnny Cash died at the age of 71.
  
• I pondered about technological advances and wondered What The Hell Happened to Saturday Morning TV?
  
• In a blow to geeks everywhere, the government issued a recall for Segway scooters on September 26.
  
• Musician Robert Palmer left us on September 26 at the age of 54.
  
• I took an unexpected trip to Detroit.
  
• Underrated dancer and actor Donald O'Connor passed away a day later on September 27 at the age of 78.
  
• Famed director Elia Kazan died the following day, September 28, at the age of 94.
  
• On September 29 the FCC said it will enforce the do-not-call list.
  
• Took an unforgettable fishing trip to Colorado with my dad.
  
• October 7 - Gray Davis out, Ahnold in as California Governor. Schwarzenegger was sworn in November 17.
  
• The Staten Island ferry slammed into a pier, killing 10 people, on October 15.
  
• Actor Jack Elam died on October 20 at 84.
  
• Busted! Federal officials arrest more than 300 illegal workers at 61 Wal-Mart stores October 23.
  
• End of an era - the last scheduled Concorde (supersonic jet) flight lands at London's Heathrow airport on October 24.
  
• Actor Art Carney, Ed Norton on "The Honeymooners", died November 9 at the age of 85.
  
• I mused about stuff that is no more.
  
• Portable numbers - Federal regulators allow customers to switch home phone numbers to cell phones on November 10.
  
• I went on a rant about French salad dressing.
  
• Wacko Jacko (Michael Jackson) booked on suspicion of child molestation on November 20.
  
• I took a painful and exhausting trip to Washington, DC with my wife.
  
• Medicare program gets a prescription drug benefit on November 25.
  
• I told readers how I threw together a complete Thanksgiving dinner in less than an hour.
  
• I told the world about chasing the spirit of Christmas.
  
• I told you who (or what) was digging into my trash.
  
• My sister started blogging.
  
• Captain Kangaroo, Bob Keeshan, left us on January 23.
  
• I told you about sleep issues.
  
• Jack Paar, who pioneered late-night talk on "The Tonight Show," died January 27 at age 85.
  
• Actor Joe Viterelli, who played Jelly in "Analyze this" and its sequel, passed away January 28 at age 66.
  
• I found a new angle for "If Microsoft Built Cars."
  
• I wondered about fast-food pricing.
  
• Tragically and suddenly, actress Cecily Adams, daughter of "Get Smart" star Don Adams and Ferengi matriarch Moogie on "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," passed away on March 3. She was 46.
  
• Actor Paul Winfield, who played in Sci Fi classics such as "The Terminator," "Star Trek: The Wrath of Kahn" and "Star Trek: The Next Generation", and comedian Spalding Gray both died March 7 at age 62.
  
• Robert Pastorelli, actor best known as Eldin on "Murphy Brown" died March 8 at the age of 49.
  
• My sister's boyfriend killed himself.
  
• My dog, Baron, died.
  
• Musician Jan Berry, of Jan & Dean fame, died March 26 at age 62.
  
• I pined for the Good 'Ol Days of Sci Fi conventions.
  
• I waxed nostalgic.
  
• My sister turned 40.
  
• Woody Woodpecker will laugh no more after the death of Harry Babbitt on April 9 at the age of 90.
  
• I met John Doe.
  
• I decided that marketing departments scare me.
  
• I talked about my dream job.
  
• I told you about my guardian angels.
  
• I told you 100 things about me you probably didn't want to know.
  
• I finally saw "Matrix: Revolutions" and hated it.
  
• I gave you lots of details about what I see in my backyard.
  
• I wired my house for sound.
  
• I turned 37 on May 4.
  
• Comedian Alan King died May 9 at the age of 76.
  
• I gave you the good, the bad and the ugly of cars.
  
• My wonderful wife and I celebrated our 14th wedding anniversary.
  
• There was something about... shoes.
  
• I applied for a new job that I didn't get.
  
• Actor Tony Randall, most famous for playing Felix Unger on TV's "The Odd Couple" died May 17. He was 84.
  
• I talked about the lost art of storytelling.
  
• I broke my lawnmower.
  
• I went fishing with my dad again.
  
• I had a so-so Memorial Day and my dad started a blog.
  
• Stillwater got hit with a bad storm.
  
• Former President Ronald Reagan lost his battle with Alzheimer's on June 5 at age 93.
  
• Singer Ray Charles died June 10 at age 73.
  
• I wondered if my blog was worth reading. (according to my readers, it is! Thankyouverymuch)
  
• I made it to Trek Expo 2004. (part 1, part 2, part 3)
  
• The Godfather, himself, Marlon Brando died July 1 at the age of 80.
  
• I recalled a fantastic Independence Day.
  

It's amazing what can happen in a year... and I didn't even talk about what's been going on at work.

Thanks to all of you who have been here from the beginning and welcome to all my new friends.