Question for everyone: Where the heck did this decade go?
Doesn't it only seem like yesterday that we were humming along to "The Thong Song" and wondering if Homer Bush was going to be the Blue Jays’ second baseman of the future?
This decade began with Garth Snow as the Vancouver Canucks starting goalie and ended with him being the GM of the New York Islanders.
But can anybody really account for the time that elapsed in between?
Now usually, when a decade comes to a close, we are subjected to numerous "Best of Lists" to commemorate the previous 10 years. But with just 10 weeks to go in this decade, I've yet to see a single person look back with a nostalgic eye at the decade about to pass.
Maybe it's because we don't have a catchy name like the ‘80s or ‘90s. We've had 118 months to come up with a popular name for the first 10 years of the 2000s and all we've got is…"this decade."
Pathetic.
Regardless of our lack of a name, it's time to start looking back at this decade. And with that in mind, here are my Top 5 Stories I Wouldn't Have Believed at the Start of This Decade.
(As always, please feel free to submit your own)
5. Boston Red Sox fans will become the most arrogant and annoying in sports:
They started this decade as the most insecure fan base, always convinced that the baseball gods were out to get them. But after breaking an 86-year curse in 2004 and then winning another World Series title three years later, Red Sox Nation has become so arrogant, they make Yankees fans seem humble.
The fans now demand a World Series title every year, making them the baseball equivalent of those Habs fans who still say "I will only accept the Stanley Cup."
Thank goodness Cubs fans are still lovable losers.
4. The Oakland Raiders and Arizona Cardinals will go to the Super Bowl, while the Dallas Cowboys, San Francisco 49ers and Green Bay Packers will not:
The Cowboys, Packers and 49ers were so busy debating who was the real "Team of the ‘90s," that none of them really showed up this decade.
And it's okay if you forgot about the Raiders going to the Super Bowl back in 2003. They've only won 25 games in the six seasons since.
3. Vince Carter will become the most hated athlete In Toronto:
I just never saw this one coming after Carter won the NBA Dunk Contest in 2000. I mean, doesn't it seem totally out of character for the city of Toronto to build up somebody to a God-like status and then run them out of town?
2. Cito Gaston will be the Blue Jays manager at the end of the decade :
I figured Cito's return was about as likely as Candy Maldanado coming back as the every day left fielder for the Jays. Next manager to be re-hired by the Jays: Tim Johnson. I hear he's updated his resume.
1. Daniel Briere will be the highest paid player in the NHL:
Imagine sitting at a Springfield Falcons game 10 years ago and somebody comes up to you and says, "See that little guy over there? In a few years, he's going to be the highest-paid player in the NHL. Oh sure, he can't make the Phoenix Coyotes roster right now, but just you wait. He's going to be a $10 million player."
No way you would have believed it.
