Seriously, 2008 was probably the worst year of my life. Worse than 2002, even. But maybe not. It’s time to let go of all that horribleness. As of midnight tonight, none of it happened. Instead, let’s examine the awesome things that happened in 2008:

Awesome shows of 2008:
1. Hot Water Music/Bouncing Souls – Roseland Theater, Portland
2. Georgetown Music Festival – Georgetown, Seattle
3. REVERBfest – Ballard, Seattle
4. Owen/Rocky Votolato – Neumo’s, Seattle
5. Tim Fite/Jen Wood – The Tractor, Seattle
6. Jeremy Enigk/Damien Jurado – Dante’s, Portland
7. Mates of State – Sonic Boom, Ballard, Seattle
8. Bronze Fawn/Panther Attack – King Cobra, Seattle
9. Cindy Crabb – Left Bank Books, Seattle
10. Octopus Project – Nectar, Seattle

Awesome general events of 2008:
1. Snowpocalypse!
2. We got a soccer team!
3. The viaduct didn’t crumble!
4. These are hard to think of!

Things that happened to me in 2008 that were awesome:
1. Bellevue teacher’s strike.
2. National Board Certification.
3. Grew a beard, didn’t like it.
4. Finished the basement, mostly.
5. Built a deck.
6. Tom got a new rally car.
7. Rolled the old rally car.
8. Co-drove for Jay Woodward at Olympus Rally.
9. Two new tattoos.
10. BFF!
11. Met and hung out with some new folks.
12. Got involved with politics a very tiny bit.
13. Went on some camping adventures and saw the Perseid Meteor Shower.
14. Quit playing soccer, started skateboarding.
15. Went to Santa Cruz for my Birthday, ate a Taqueria Vallarta Burrito
16. Saw at least 27 shows.
17. Learned a lot about what I can survive and what is important in life.
18. Sorted things out, ostensibly.

I’m sure I’ll look back when I’m 75 at 2008 and laugh about all the trials and tribulations that I survived. How insignificant they will all seem as I’m sipping cocoa on my porch, overlooking the ocean and sharing them with my lovely wife or my 150 cats. The key is that I am probably less than halfway through this life and this one year I didn’t actually lose “everything”, I just suffered a minor setback. The plan now is to have such a ridiculously awesome 2009 that 2008 and the years before it will seem insignificant in comparison. With such high expectations, it’s bound to happen, right?

Tomorrow, I lay out the plan for Awesomeness 2009. Be prepared.