Instead of providing a generic list of things of the decade, here are some personal observations that I jotted down in one sitting about the past decade:
- Monday Night Football not only went through plenty of new announcers, but it moved from ABC to ESPN.
- John Madden and Pat Summeral are no longer broadcasting.
- I never thought the Tampa Bay Buccaneers would ever win a Super Bowl.
- The Cowboys didn’t win one playoff game and have went through more head coaches than I expected, and ten years ago I would have never thought that by decade’s end they would have a new stadium.
- I bought a brand new 35″ CRT television in the year 2000 thinking televisions couldn’t get any larger or flatter.
- I thought the DVR would never catch on.
- Before this decade I have been to a U2 concert, now I have been to three.
- Long distance calling plans are really no longer a player but you would see all sorts of long distance commercials ten years ago.
- I was a devout Baptist.
- I use to have the Christian radio station set to the first preset on my car stereo.
- I picked a bank ten years ago by the amount of ATM’s around town, now I don’t ever need cash.
- You don’t see as many pay phones anymore, I’m not sure when was the last time I actually used a pay phone.
- I thought mobile Internet browsing would never take off thinking that no one would want to stare at a small screen.
- I didn’t own a cell phone until this decade.
- The Mavericks have become a good team this decade and ever have a nice place to play in.
- I live in a house. Better yet, I’m married and have two fur-children.
- At the beginning of the decade, I never thought I would be managing my own webpage.
- I’ve gained about 40 pounds in the past ten years.
- I’ve lived in Irving (Valley Ranch, Las Colinas, back to Valley Ranch), Grapevine, Mineral Wells (needed a place to stay for several months before marriage), and Lewisville.
- The begging of this decade started with a very controversial election which I thought no matter the winner, would only be a one term president.
- I eat more vegetables and actually like to eat beans. Also, I’ve embraced Mexican food.
- I pretty much have no ties to my home town.
- I am parentless.
- I’ve done my fair share of church-hopping and my faith has developed to point I never thought it would – more mature and confusing all wrapped up in one.
- My income has more than doubled, but then again, I was straight out of college in an entry level job.
- I’ve changed my voice mail greeting only once.
- At the beginning of the decade all my music came from Napster.
- I never thought I would willing pay for HBO.
- Two of my friends, people my age, have been through cancer.
- A few of my friends, some very close to me, have died.
- I have spoken at two funerals but have not been in a wedding other than my own.
- An extra value meal at McDonalds use to cost $3.24, not it will cost well over five bucks.
- I use to love playing video games and just couldn’t wait until the next version of Madden came out. Now I no longer play video games, probably because I spend so much time on this here website.
- It’s been a very tragic decade – 9/11, space shuttle disaster, wars, recession, how fragile American auto makers have become, no Cowboys playoff victories, the Bush Administration.
- Lance Armstrong stared the rubber wristband trend then it just went crazy.
- Before this decade I never heard of the word ‘chipotle’ and now it is everywhere.
- Running seems to have become more popular.
- I did not know one homosexual personally, now several are close friends.
- The Atkins diet seems to have come and gone.
- I’ve bailed someone out of jail.
- Brett Favre played the entire decade as a starting QB in the NFL.
- Growing older never made me less insecure.
- I thought people that sought counseling and took antidepressants were weak, now I understand I was weak for thinking such a thing.
- NBC use to be a powerhouse and CBS was a bit of a joke.
- Currency has changed designed and value.
- I no longer think Guess jeans are cool.
- I actually buy and wear clothes from Wal-Mart.
- How I spend the holidays have dramatically changed.
- Tom Brokaw, Dan Rather, and Peter Jennings are no longer the big three anchormen.
- I’ve changed job positions several times, but have only worked full time for two different companies.
- The only reality TV I can remember was MTV’s The Real Life, now there’s great reality TV shows like Survivor and The Amazing Race.
- I no longer like to listen to sappy love songs.
- I use to look forward going to the movie theater, now I try to avoid going because I enjoy watching things at home much better, and I’m married to a woman that falls asleep before 9:30 PM everyday.
- I thought Jason’s Deli and Chick-fil-A were very feminine places and avoided them, now I love to eat at those places.
- For the first time in my life I have been out of the country.
- I now floss everyday.
- I use to wear a necklace everyday.
- I’ve learned to set my expectations for other people’s behavior, especially those close to me, pretty low, because I was only setting them up for failure without them even knowing it.
- Talk radio is now a big influence in my life.
- I have not held one single baby this decade. A while back I told myself the next child I will hold will be my own.
- In this decade, all within a year’s time, I saw the sun rise on the east coast and the sun set on the west coast.
