Day 69 – December 31st (5 Defining moments of the year)

Today is New Year’s Eve and 2007 will soon draw to a close, rather than post about today, I’ll write about what has defined the year……..if you look back upon your year and there aren’t at least 3 or 4 occasions that bring you tears of sadness or tears of joy are you likely to have grown as a person, probably not. In no particular order are 5 events that defined 2007 did they bring tears (in the most part yes), joy or sadness…..I’ll let you decide that:

Leaving the Wellington Club – The decision to remove squash from the Wellington Club in downtown Toronto was in my opinion a mistake, obviously I have a biased view given the club has been my second home for the last 6 years, and numerous of my friends have now splintered to clubs across the city.

The squash member, is different to an average gym member in that they are loyal, once you find a club that you enjoy you are likely to stay there for years and only a relocation is likely to result in a move. Are you likely to get such loyalty from a member who has been enticed by a promotion of two months at $15 each probably not. This event impacted me so much I dedicated an entire post to it.

The Promotion – I am not really supposed to post about work, so will be exceptionally brief on this one, when I was promoted at work this year, why did the decision give me sleepless nights, and make me physically sick, why was I unsure until right at the end if I was making the right decision. It should have been an easy one, the chance to finally get back to the position in the organizational hierarchy that I had prior to leaving the UK, even now a few months on I am still undecided if this was the right move or not.

Eva – For someone I barely met to make such an impact is remarkable, and to be fair despite everything else that has happened, the year can pretty much be catagorised as things that happened pre and post Eva. The full story is written here, although she is referred to as Ella. I learnt a lot from this experience mainly to not build my hopes up either too high or too soon, and secondly no matter how much we have in common with someone else if the chemistry is missing the relationship is destined to fail.

In the past I have focused more on compatibility and less on chemistry but going forward will attempt to strike a happy medium between the two. In the months since August a number of people have come into my life, who I have either led on, treated badly, didn’t give a fair chance to…….or a combination of the three. Why did I do this, I don’t know but I think it relates to wanting to move on from this specific incident before I was ready……..I intend to learn from that mistake.

Fear the Red - The Toronto Raptors once the laughing stock of the NBA are back and as a die hard Raptor fan this is indeed a welcome return. What proof is there that they are back in 2007…….take your pick from any of the following: NBA Coach of the Year, NBA Executive of the Year, Atlantic Division Champions, All-Star Starter and we’ll also throw in a couple of rookie all stars as well.

It is remarkable how quickly this debacle has turned around and in April playoff basketball has returned to the ACC. For those unfamiliar with the term “Fear the Red” it relates to the passionate Raptor fan base, and if you’ve never experienced it in person clicking on either Fear or Red will give you a taste.

The Root Canal – Ever since I had my first root canal done almost 8 years ago I feared when I would have to have it done again, unfortunately again proved to be this year, and to say it was painful would be an understatement and half……….hopefully “touch wood” I will not have to undergo something such as this again. I am sure you can easily deduce what kind of tears this event resulted in, or maybe my readers are not quite as intelligent as I thought.

All in all 2007 has been a mixed year and I remain restless about the world and my position within it, I am not entirely sure what exactly I am looking for but am pretty certain I have not found it yet. For the first time in my life I will be starting a New Year feeling as though I am now ready to embark on a long term relationship rather than a series of dates. Is a relationship what I am looking for maybe it is maybe it isn’t…….I would certainly rather be on my own than in the wrong relationship, I will await to see what the life chapter known as 2008 will bring.

Wishing everyone a happy New Year……..stay safe and of course don’t drink and drive.