Our end of the year lists continue and we move on to the Worst Things About 2018. There were a lot of things that weren’t very good this year,and this is the top 10. I do want to mention as always that like all of our other lists,this is meant to be taken semi-seriously and for entertainment purposes. Who knows? You also might learn something from all of this.

10. Toys R Us closing

One of the bummers about this year was a part of my childhood coming to a close in seeing Toys R Us close. I know they had overpriced toys towards the end of their life,but still, that was a part of many of our childhoods. The TV commercial with the memorable jingle about being a Toys R Us kid and even the toy catalog that we got right before the Christmas season that myself and my brother would look at over and over to see what toys we wanted for Christmas.

All of those great memories that are just that now,memories. Kids these days have less options as far as looking at toys in a store to buy and have fun with right there in the store,and I can guarantee you that this is going to be missing from our culture all because we buy everything online now. Part of going to the toy store was the thrill of seeing what was in store. Kids these days won’t understand it and that’s very sad.

9. The Democratic Party still doesn’t have a spine

While the party made a lot of strides as far as gaining seats in the midterm elections, they have a long ways to go before they prove to me and other people who actually go and vote that they have a winning agenda that can beat Donald Trump and the crazy ass right wing.

Why do I say that? Because they time and again have proven to be much like the other side in terms of taking corporate donor money and ignoring issues that real people like you and me care about. Not only that,but they do too much compromise and anything that doesn’t resemble what they call resistance. Really? Voting for Trump’s cabinet picks and helping to authorizing to give him more military spending is resisting him? Please!

They’re showing some backbone right now,but it’s taken them a long time to even do that. They have an extremely long way to go to prove to me that they’re a true opposition party to the awfulness that exists now. They need to stop taking whore money from lobbyists,start embracing issues that the people want and start standing for something.

Until they do,they should probably count on losing more potential and current voters.

8. CATCH-ALL: People becoming the biggest crybabies ever over everything and Boycotts of outrage

There are many things people became in 2018 and crybabies was one of them.

So many people get offended over so much nowadays that it gets to be damn near comical,and it happens on both sides.

Whenever there’s a joke made about Trump on Saturday Night Live (more about them tomorrow) or Nike decides to make a blackballed quarterback the face of their brand or they cancel a sitcom that they loved because the main character and the person that plays her loves Trump or a Christmas carol sounds a little like rape. Enough!

I am tired of seeing how offended these people get over such little things. Something else I’m tired of is the boycotts of outrage that people have over anything and everything. We get it,you hate the NFL and Nike and Hobby Lobby and Keurig and (insert thing you hate here),and honestly,we don’t care that you do. Burning your sneakers and tossing your coffee machine off the roof in a video only makes you look more foolish as well as an overall asshole. Keep some of this to yourself,we don’t want to hear it!

7. Warriors-Cavaliers Part IV

The NBA Finals continued to be stale again this year when the league “magically” got the Warriors and Cavaliers yet again in them. It was not only unwatchable,it was of next to no interest of fans like me who long to see parity in this league.

When it’s the same two teams in the championship round every year,it’s not going to be of much interest to fans outside of the two markets playing. Also, who didn’t think the Warriors were going to win? Every Finals series they’re in now is a practically gifted championship to them.

I know it’s not going to happen anymore now that LeBron James is ESPN’s “King of L.A.”, but damn,it was a stale series to watch four years in a row. Time for something else now.

6. The death of the Watts family

One of the stories that broke my heart was the murder of the Watts family of Frederick,Colo. in May.

Shannan and her kids, Bella, Celeste and unborn Niko were killed at the hands of the family patriarch,Chris. He had killed his family after his wife discovered he was having an affair and had requested a separation.

Chris Watts was charged with five counts of first-degree murder, including one count per child cited as “death of a child who had not yet attained 12 years of age and the defendant was in a position of trust”; unlawful termination of a pregnancy; and three counts of tampering with a deceased human body. He was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

It amazed me that a guy who had a loving family such as his would do everything and anything to hurt them. It makes me grossly sick. Just knowing that this family won’t be here anymore and were robbed of life so early is downright sad.

5. The allergy season

This was not a good year for helping to get your allergies under control,at least for me.
I have to say that in my nearly 37 years of existence that this was the worst allergy season of my life. I spent quite a bit of money on allergy medicines and tissues,and I still am. A lot of the cause was the ups and downs in the weather along with the high pollen count we had this spring,not to mention a long rainy season brought on a lot in how bad allergies got.

They were seemingly getting better as fall was coming on,but the wildfires my region experienced in November (more on that later) reignited them and made matters worse. This is one season that I hope goes away as we enter 2019.

4. More school/mass shootings and nothing being done about it

This year was another record year for mass shootings in this country,1,135 people have died as a result as of press time. To me,that’s 1,135 people too many that were needlessly killed.

The most notable shootings were the shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland,Fla., the shooting in Thousand Oaks,Calif.,and at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. If I left one out,it’s probably because these happen all the time now it’s hard to keep track of something so tragic.

As I said last year,the worst part of it all is that nothing has been done about it,and don’t tell me that there’s nothing you can do about this. We’re the only country where this kind of thing regularly happens and I,for one,am tired of us being known for that. There are a lot of things we can do to make sure the next record-breaking mass shooting isn’t around the corner. Unfortunately, I don’t believe enough in us as a society that it will change. anytime soon.

3. California Wildfires of November

Yes,California has wildfires a lot,especially during the summer,but back in November we had the Camp Fire in Paradise which was unlike any I’ve ever seen as well as in Ventura County in the Woolsey fire. Paradise was wiped off the map as a result of the Camp Fire and it claimed 86 lives.

The fire was so bad that the air in the region was awful to breathe and we were all trying to get whatever masks we could find in order to cover our faces. While the Woolsey fire didn’t claim as many lives,it did burn more structures as the Camp fire.
While the people of the region prepare to rebuild,what’s surprised me is how many of the people I’ve come in contact with who have hopeful and high spirits with all that’s happened. It’s also a reminder that this can happen to anyone and anywhere and to remember that material possessions are almost all replaceable,people are not.

2. CATCH-ALL: White people calling the cops on black people for being black and the growing racism in America

As we mentioned in the Most Bizarre Things About 2018,this didn’t need to happen,but it did,and it was awful.

Whether they were having a barbecue on a nice spring day in Oakland or selling water to baseball fans on their way to a game or mowing someone’s lawn or trying to use a coupon at a CVS or accidentally brushing someone with their backpack, the unnecessary 911 calls came in and the cell phones were set to record to capture how racist we as a country are and have become.

Yep,I said it. We’re a more racist country than we were when I was born. From the aforementioned activities to the racist statements of people like Steve King,Tucker Carlson,and Donald Trump to the way migrants were treated in custody this year and how citizens want to fund a racist border wall,it’s just gotten way bad,and with how little faith I have in our society as it is,I don’t see it improving anytime soon. I want to,but history is showing me otherwise.

1. Donald Trump as “President”

America’s own disease has returned to the top of the list,and it’s not a secret as to why.

From everyone leaving his administration because of how bad he is to his racist policies to his embarrassing statements to his stupid tweets to the horrible way he treats the press because they’re doing their jobs to his love of dictators, this guy is an embarrassment to this country.

I don’t think he’s mentally capable of being in office and I wish the rest of Congress knew this and would invoke the 25th Amendment and get him gone for good. Most of us who are sane and aren’t drinking the Kool-Aid know how bad he is,why don’t they?