Well,it’s the last day of 2017 and before I get to what the title is, let’s review the year a little bit.

New Year’s Day is where things got interesting. When having dinner with some friends of mine at a restaurant near Sac State, I broke a tooth on a piece of really hard bacon and months later the pain became too much to bear and the end result was getting a crown to repair the tooth in July. I could’ve had it removed,but seeing as I’ve had enough tooth gone I wanted to save any remaining teeth I had,and I did.

Late January and early February was where Patriots football came into play, leading my beloved team into the Super Bowl yet again. All of us know what happened,the Falcons led 28-3 before the Pats came back and won it in overtime.It was their fifth championship and quite a roller coaster of a game,and emotional one at that,but a fun one at best.

My April and May were pretty uneventful other than my beloved Edmonton Oilers being in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in 11 seasons. Sorry,Sharks fans,but my boys were going to win that series no matter what,and I’m glad they did. I wish they had gone further than the semifinals against the Ducks,but beggars can’t be choosers,I suppose. I was very proud of them for getting as far as they did after they were so bad for so long.

Summertime is always a great time to be with friends and to make memories and I felt like that happened at the many get-togethers we all had together. Whether it was an early July barbecue at a friend’s home or the Fourth of July at a house 300 feet away from you or a Labor Day soiree by the pool, there was no shortage of fun stuff happening.

If you’re wondering if I went to Disneyland, you don’t have to wonder for very long. That happened twice,once in February right before I turned 35 and again in mid-August.

While I was by myself the majority of the trip both times, I did get to have breakfast with a great friend before I went home and spent Valentine’s Day with my grandmother on the first trip and made some new friends on the second trip. I got to ride the Guardians of the Galaxy ride that replaced Tower of Terror and it didn’t disappoint. In fact, I liked it better.

I was also glad to be able to ride the rails of the Disneyland Railroad when it reopened. I always like taking a trip around the park on the train to get to see the park in a different way and it’s an excellent way to get from place to place without walking so much. I love going to this place and can’t wait for the next trip.

One thing that came to life was my cooking capabilities. At the Super Bowl party I was at, I brought this tater tot casserole that was gone within a half an hour. Everyone kept telling me how much they enjoyed it. At the summertime barbecues I was at,I made a sesame pasta salad that everyone kept asking me about and were amazed of how good it was. For a Friends-giving I made a Butterfinger pie that was almost cheesecake-like that was also enjoyed by everyone who had it. I also made a pudding pie at my own family’s Thanksgiving celebration that was also liked by those who ate it. It’s things like that which make you feel good about yourself and I continue to find recipes that are interesting and I’ve even tailored a couple recipes that I hope to unleash in this next year.

While there were many great things that happened in the year, there were also some disappointments. I wasn’t able to find love or lose very much weight or even find a forever home for me, but the great thing about those goals is that they’re fluid ones that are going to be there still for me and I’m ever hopeful that those things will happen at some point.

Now,those aren’t my three wishes for the new year. Here are,in fact,those wishes in no particular order.

The first wish I’m listing is to reconnect with old friends in any way possible. I’m blessed with the friends that I have in my life currently,but honestly,the more I have in my life,the merrier. There are friends I’m still in contact with that I enjoy very much,but just don’t get to see as much as I’d like and it would be nice to see them,too,every once in a while. If you’re one of those friends, let’s talk and get together sometime. I care about you very much and would like to see you.

The next wish I have is to just be able to let life happen. Often times I’m hesitant to step out of my comfort zone because I’m worried of the risk I may or may not be taking. I can’t do that anymore. I have to be able to see what life has in front of me and I feel like the person getting in the way of all of it is the person writing this column. So for me,choosing between safety and adventure should be a no-brainer this year. Get ready to see a more adventurous person in the time to come.

Finally my third wish is for us as people,a society,a world to stop being so nasty to one another and to be able to be better to one another. So many times we’re at each other’s throats because we’re not the same when in reality our differences should be what unify us and make us better people when we recognize them. When it comes down to it, we’re more alike then we give ourselves credit for. I often talk to people who are much different than I am and it turns out the other side isn’t so bad if you just listen to them and you hope they can and will listen to what you have to say. I realize what I’m saying is a pipe dream,but in the end, we all want the same things,whether you agree or disagree is entirely up to you,but overall I think we need to do a much better job of acceptance. We took several leaps back this year and that’s not okay.

Thank you all for reading what I had to say for my yearly affirmation, may all of you have a safe and happy new year wherever you may be.