Top 10 of 2006: My Moments

Ok so I lied before when I said Monday's column was the last best of 2006 list.I ripped this idea off from my friend Kristen so big ups to her for the inspo. 2006 will probably go down as a pivotal year for me and one that provided more memorable moments then I can count but since I am counting here are 10 of them.

1. Moving Home- This whole process really dominated my year. As of November 2005 I knew I was going to end up back in Minneapolis but the question was when. After months of failed job searching I finally packed up and headed home at the end of July. I found an apartment I love, reconnected with my friends, and most importantly was nearby to lend a helping hand to my mom when she needed it. While I miss my peeps and even Madison itself, the move has turned out to be the right…uh…move.

2. Steve’s wedding- 2006 saw my best friend tie the knot with his lady love. I was honored to be his best man and the unofficial dance leader at the reception. Definitely the single most memorable 24 hours of the year due to the chance to connect with a large group of friends all in the same place for the first time in a long time. It also featured the best sing along on a shuttle bus ever.

3. Vegas, Baby, Vegas- I took my first real vacation in 6 or 7 years this fall when I spent a long weekend in the town that many people have said was made for me. Well turns out they were right and while the ol’ pocket book might have been a bit pissed, I completely embraced the experience from taking a limo from the airport, to ignoring the need for sleep, to enjoying my first Borg sphere cocktail, to the discovery of Star Wars: The Slot Machine, to the monorail, and my # 7 moment.

4. Starting the Self Loathing Pop Culture Fanatic blog- For the last couple of years I had hit a huge wall when it came to any kind of writing. I was still trying to write the great American screenplay or novel but my notepads tended to fill up with thoughts on my life or list after list ranking items from our mass media. At the end of 2005 I started to blog on MySpace and when the demand expanded I opened up this site in 2006 and haven’t looked back since.

5. Halloween Party Bus- Man I am a sucker for these things. I don’t know why but the idea of gathering a group of friends on a bus, with alcohol and loud music just tickles my fancy. No better way to spend Halloween weekend than listening to the Buffy theme song, drinking beers and adjusting the snakes on your Snakes on A Plane costume.

6. Hitting my Long Term Weight Loss Goal- In the last month or so, I finally hit the mark I’ve been shooting for on the scale. It took over 4 years and about 60-70 lbs. but I’m finally at a healthy weight for myself. I celebrated by shaving of facial hair for the first time in years and quickly discovered that even though I’d lost the weight, I still don’t have a chin.

7. Playing Poker at a Table in Vegas- After years of home games, online games, and the occasional free tournament, I’d been itching to sit down at a real casino table. On my last night in Vegas I got to sit down at a table with a couple of friends and while I lost I gotta say that the whole thing left me feeling six ways of excited. Even after I got knocked out it was a blast watching the table continue to play.

8. Camping at an Adult Campground- Get your mind out of the gutter; it’s not an adult campsite in the biblical sense, it’s actually just a campsite that caters to grown folk who like to stay up late drinking and playing bean bag toss in the night.

9. Retiring the Britney Dance- After all these years of doing my dance to Brit’s “Hit Me One More Time”, doing my finale in front of an appreciative audience really made for a special memory.

10. Dinner at 20.21- For her birthday this year my mom wanted to go to Wolfgang Puck’s new restaurant at the Walker Art Museum in Minneapolis . I was a little skeptical but it was her birthday and I didn’t have much of a choice. Thank god I didn’t because this was truly the best meal I had all year. I eat out a ton and even more so since I moved home and while I had a bunch of great meals nothing sticks out in my head like this place. The Asian fusion dishes all bedazzled my taste buds with flavor after flavor popping on my tongue.