12/31/04’s illustrious band:

A Very Good Year

Without further ado: 2004 -- BND's year in review! You've heard it all before, but here are the moments I found noteworthy, in no particular order.

Celebrity Encounter: I got legendary boxer Sugar Ray Leonard's autograph in January (no relation to Rockapella lead singer Scott Leonard). He could have had mine, too, had he but asked.

Blasts from the Past: I got back in touch with several old friends this year. That was interesting and very enjoyable. Gotta do more of it.

Stuff that Broke Down: Plenty of stuff failed to work as expected this year. In January, I had problems with my sewer and DSL provider. In March, the fridge died, and I replaced it. In June I was singing the debit card blues for quite a while. Then there was my blondest moment ever, escaping from my car through the trunk when the power locks failed. And now I've just learned that the transmission on the Subarushi has given up the ghost after a mere 93,000+ miles and needs to be replaced.

But for some reason it still seems like it's been a really good year. I must be keeping good company.

Best Road Trip: Easy: my trip to Victoria and Seattle with G-Doc and Sister Amy Sunshine -- who is in the process of becoming Canadian as we speak. Congrats, Amy & Jazret! It was a long vacation: chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8,. 9, 10, 11.

Biggest Dorkfest: I made my annual pilgrimage to MarsCon in March, where I encountered balloon animals, belly dancing, whip cracking, and map lights. Oh yeah, there was some sci-fi involved, too. And daiquiris.

Personal Bests: This fall, I was promoted to Senior Editor of our award-winning magazine. That was terrific. And then on September 13, I got the best job in the world: I became an aunt! I got to go visit my new niece Jocelyn in early November, and she and her parents have come to me for Christmas, bringing loads of joy, and New Year's.

Most-broken Resolution: To quit drinking Coke. From New Year's Day until my birthday in May, I did great: not a drop of cola passed my lips. Once that milestone had passed, I figured I could go back to having one on a Friday, maybe one on a Saturday. That quickly devolved into one almost every day, and I could feel the enamel on my teeth eroding with every swallow. Unfortunately, my waistline is not eroding at a similar pace, so I'm back on strict rationing. Starting tomorrow.

Biggest Remodeling Project: Mother Media spent a couple weeks at Sensational Acres this summer painting like a madwoman. She returned a month later to house-sit and completed a few more projects. The place has never looked so good!

Best Concerts:

Small-scale: Datura 1.0. Bone-shaking noise music from circuit-bent toys doesn't get any better than this. I'm a groupie for sure.

Large-scale: Rockapella, the antiDatura. I've been a fan of this group for years and finally made it to a concert in person. Then I spent a week's worth of BND blathering about it (chapter 1, 2, 3, 4, 4+, 5). What can I say, it was a lot of fun.

Best Thing Ever: This one's a no-brainer. The birth of Princess Jocelyn easily tops the lengthy list of great things that have happened this year. And as if being an auntie weren't cool enough, I get to be her fairy godmother, too. It's been a delight hosting her and her parents for Christmas and New Year's. The Acres are going to seem awfully quiet when they've gone.

Starting 2005 Off Right: A few weeks ago, I got an e-mail from the General saying --

Whoops! That's all the time we have for this year. Thanks for a fantastic 2004! See you next time around.

Today around the world: December 31 is New Year's Eve.

E-mail the Media Sensation: BandNameoftheDay@hotmail.com

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