(My Annual Page to Give Thanks, Reflect and Show My Best Pages of the Year - December 31, 2008)
For many years, I recounted age 15 as the hardest year in my life.
Peer pressure, dealing with bullies, insecurities and teenage confusion all came to a gloomy head.
Well, I think age 36-37 probably surpassed it. Life has been hard!
Work/career matters, deciding whether to move (and if so, where to live?), understanding God's will,
financial struggles, loneliness, self-esteem matters and depression have all been in the mix this year.
And this is not even taking into account my father's death. My Dad in New Jersey
was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in June and died in November.
It is the hard times that shape us into better people. If we can persevere through things like
disappointment, failure and heartache, it will make us
more compassionte and less judgmental people. God uses us for great things when we are weak.
Ultimately, thank God my strength and spirituality comes from what God did for me ...
and not ever based on what I can possibly do for God or myself.
I share all this tough stuff and yet I genuinely can not complain. In 2008, I
bicycled across America,
climbed some mountains,
made some new friends and spent some precious
quality time with my Dad during his final weeks. Special thanks
to all of you who have been part of my life!
All the best,
Steve
Photos Above: Me standing on the summit of
Mt. Elbert in July 2008.
2008 - My Year in Pictures
Left Photo: On a lonely stretch of highway in New Mexico.
Right Photo: The odometer on the new bike at the Atlantic Ocean.
Bike Across America 2008
It took 45 days, 2,465 miles, two bikes, eleven flat tires and eight states to bicycle across the southern tier of America.
Special thanks to Marcus and Lacey, Jennifer in Oklahoma, Krista, Jae,
Monique, Anna, Derrick and one anonymous friend. Each helped in great ways.
Read more about them on my Thank You Page.
A photo of my parents and I in front of Mt. Princeton.
I also created a modest video tribute to my father. You are welcome to watch it.
The awards go to:
Champion - Glenda (Texas Dirt Storm)
Manager of the Year - Kent (Mr. Potato Heads)
Newcomer of the Year - Stephen (Evil Yeti Midgets)
Fantasy Football
The 2008 ColoradoGuy.com fantasy football season was a great one!
Glenda (Texas Dirt Storm) was crowned the world champion when she defeated Kent
(Mt. Potato Heads) in Week 16. Myself (Garbage Cans) and the Phoenix Slam
(Phil) lost in the semifinals.
As for the Garbage Cans, we started the year strong at 6-0
with the great play of Tony Romo, Marion Barber, Greg Jennings,
Plaxico Burress and Matt Forte.
The pick-up of running back Steve Slaton greatly helped too.
Then the Garbage Cans went on a four game skid
before winning the remaining four matches to finish at 10-4. Unfortunately, my studs at the beginning of
the season cooled off in the latter part.
I was no match for the Texas Dirt Storm in the semifinals.
(This was the second year in a row I lost in the semifinals!) :(
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New Videos
You may have noticed a flurry of new video clips since late summer. It's my latest form of expression! :)
Adjacent are four videos I really like and am proud of. My
Piece of Garbage page has many of my older videos,
but my YouTube page has all of my newer ones.
Click the image above to visit my high point web site or go here: U.S. State High Points.
High Pointing
I became quite interested with high pointing! This is the growing worldwide
hobby of standing on the high points of towns, counties and states.
In 2008, I visited 13 U.S. state high points to bring my total to 14.
14 down, 36 to go! :)
In the latter half of the year, I have embarked on the journey of writing a memoir
(a book) about my long bike trip. There are so many factors and issues to contend with,
but I am confident I will reach my self-imposed deadline of
April 1, 2009 to have a final written copy. (Then I'll worry about publishing.)
Special thanks to Kelley in Georgia for being my matter-of-fact editor and research assistant.
Her encouragment throughout this lonely and sometimes painful process has been very valuable.
Four Good Guys
Every year this web site attracts new visitors. This year, there are a few
guys around the country that I'd like to single out for
being such great people. Their e-mails and interactions over the year have helped more than they probably realize. They are:
Bill Hale (SC), Joey Hartsell (TN), Michael Bauer (IN) and Shawn Martin (KS).
Let's just say these are the type of guys who love pretty much
any photo I take of Colorado.
I'm sure the adjacent Mt. Princeton photo (taken in
Nathrop) will be something they'll appreciate.
Some of my extra web sites took off in traffic.
The autumn,
snow
and christmas lights sites get a lot of traffic when those items
are frequently searched during specific times of the year.
Also, I spent quite a few evenings photographing the sunset at Cottonwood Pass. The one on
June 16 was a decent one.
This summer, I came upon an offer I could not refuse.
I sold my '93 Accord and spent that money to buy this beautiful baby blue
1964 Cadillac. She is a dream! :)
I made a few modest changes to the web site. I turned the web cam toward the view outside my living room window.
Altitude Snob is a new web site that ranks my friends based on their altitude. :)
(Click either photo to go to their respective pages.)
I made some other changes in 2008.
I cancelled most of my annual Colorado Guy holidays, closed the
forums for five months (although they are open again!),
and did not host a "Colorado Guy Festival."
As for next year, I will definitely be celebrating Drama Queen Day
and hope you will join me in making a strong stand against drama queens and the crap they pull!
(Adjacent photos: Candles are traditionally lit around the world to celebrate the holiday.)
