This is the time of year when people like to make lists, blog lists, check lists (twice) and hopefully, read lists. So, as we say goodbye to the
Aughts I present the Coffeeon3rd edition of the decade that was:
Best Sports Moment: 4/07/03: 3rd and Long. New York, NY

The answer to this question is relatively easy for this Orange alum (considering my baseball, football and basketball teams of choice all failed to win it all in the '00s). Since I graduated in '02, the Syracuse run to the Men's Basketball National Title Game could still be enjoyed with the enthusiasm of an undergrad. To prove it, I watched Syracuse knock out Oklahoma in the Elite 8 in person as my friend Greg and I woke up at dawn in New York City, drove to Vermont to meet a guy at a Burger King with tickets we bought on Craigslist, then drove through the snow to Albany to watch the 'Cuse take out the Sooners. And if that werent enough, I decided to make another drive north, this time all the way back to the Salt City to watch the Final Four matchup versus Texas on campus, which was followed by an impromptu race to M Street to celebrate. So when Monday, April 7th came along, it seemed destined that my view of the Championship would pale in comparison to the previous two games. I was mistaken as more than a dozen of my fellow Orange alumni met at our favorite New York watering hole, 3rd and Long in Murray Hill, to watch G. Mac, Melo and Hakim Warrick swat the Jayhawks en route to a National Title. Beer was flowing, both in our mugs and over our heads as we reveled in the victory. If you didn't know any better, you would have assumed we had class the next day.
Best/Worst Sports Moment: 12/03/07: M&T Bank Stadium. Baltimore, MD

The Patriots were undefeated. The Ravens were 4-7. The Patriots had Tom Brady. The Ravens had Kyle Boller. The Patriots were on their way to the Super Bowl. The Ravens were on their way to a 5-11 season and a coaching change. BUT BUT BUT for one night, we stood toe to toe with destiny's darling on the grandest stage of all, Monday Night Football. Just a week after New England squeezed out a win vs. the Eagles, the Pats headed to BMore for a MNF game against the down trodden purple and black. The season was lost, but hopes were high as a game against an 11-0 team looking to rewrite history, in front of a national audience no less, brought an air of excitement to the Charm City all week long. This was 'our' Super Bowl. The game itself somehow lived up to the hype. At halftime, we were tied! Hope. As the 4th quarter began, we were winning! And then, in a moment I'll never forget, as Lauryn and I knelt on the sidelines with snow flurries beginning to fall, we smiled at each other with a knowing look as if to say, "Can you believe it? We're going to take this thing!" At that very moment, with more than two-thirds of televisions across the country tuned in (and presumably rooting for the Ravens given we were playing the role of David in this performance), Boller threw an interception on the way to what appeared to be a game clinching drive. Brady proceeded to lead the Patriots down the field in the opposite direction despite their best efforts to give us the game (the Ravens called timeout before a would-be 4th and 1 play that we had stopped - thank you Rex). The game went on and led to a Jabar Gaffney TD that no Raven fan could forget, nor could Bart Scott as he took one of the referee's flags and threw it into the crowd. I later learned that ESPN asked the Ravens PR team if they could interview Ray Lewis and Ed Reed on the field following the game, only to see Rodney Harrison eventually give the post-game presser. The highs and lows defined in a single night. In the end, this one ranks at the bottom.
Top Life Moment: 8/20/04: Lincoln Financial Field, Philadelphia, PA.

As most of my readers know, there is a better half to this blogger whom I was lucky enough to marry in June of '05. However, as great as the wedding was, the best moment of the decade for me was the point in time that I decided to ask her to marry me. It was during a preseason game in Philadelphia as she traveled with the Ravens up I-95 to The Linc. I trekked east from New York after work to catch the seemingly meaningless preseason game for the chance to see her during halftime for a few minutes and to take in a little football of course. We met in the concourse behind my seats. Shared a few stories of the day, talked about when we'd actually get to see each other next, and that was it. A hug and she was off, down the stairs, back to the field. And then it hit me. I knew that deep down that I wanted to spend the rest of my life with her. I didnt want to let her go again, whether it was down to the field, or anywhere else without knowing that we'd be back together. Cue the violins, but its the truth. And since it happened in a sporting venue, relevant.
Best (5) Movies:

Cheating here I know, but its hard to pick just one. So in order:
#5 - Lost in Translation (Welcome back Bill Murray, hello Mrs. Johanssen)
#4 - Juno (welcome to moveistardom Michael Bluth)
#3 - Anchorman/Old School (combined, maybe the best movie ever)
#2 - Almost Famous (Almost #1, but Cameron Crowe's masterpiece)
#1 - The Matrix (the two sequels diminished the greatness of the first)*
* I've been informed this came out in '99 (thanks Dev) but I'm keeping it on there.
Best TV Show: LOST

I absolutely love The Office, Arrested Development, and The West Wing. I'm a huge fan of Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, The Sopranos, The Big Bang Theory, Entourage and Mad Men. But by far, the show that changed the way I watch TV over the last ten years is LOST. Flashbacks and flashforwards. Suspense and science fiction. Equal parts Mark Burnett and Dan Brown, the show game me a reason to not only use a DVR (pause, rewind, slow-mo, pause, holy crap!) but also to google (i.e. book titles you see in the paused screen-grabs) and check the blogosphere (i.e. to see the screen-grabs you missed and what they in-turn meant). The perfect 21st century show and I can't wait for the final season to kick off the next decade of entertainment.
Best Vacation: June 2002: California Coast Road Trip

A post-college, pre-career road trip should be a pre-requisite. For this brief moment in time, its possible to live life to the fullest, without fear of running low on vacation days or finishing a paper. Now of course taking such a vacation with my girlfriend (now wife) and spending two weeks along the California Coastline didn't hurt, but being able to plan as you go, with seaside motels and San Francisco hotels mixed in to the same itinerary was truly a special time in my life. San Diego to LA to Santa Barbara to Hearst Castle to Pebble Beach to Santa Cruz to Monterey to San Francico and Napa Valley is a drive unlike any other in the country, and perhaps the planet.

We first went to Mama's on our honeymoon. And when youre on youre honeymoon, everything tastes betters. In fact, the sun shines brighter, the people are friendlier and, well, the food just tastes better. But, on our return trip to Maui last winter, we went Mama's again...and AGAIN. Almost primarily for this dish:
Mahimahi caught by Shawn Boneza along the north shore of Maui Stuffed with lobster, crab, Maui onion and baked in a macadamia nut crust.
It's unbelievable. We've had amazing sushi (Nobu, Izak-ya by Katsuya, Fat Fish), steak in New York and Chicago, fish in the Caribbean, crabs in Maryland and legendary culinary favorites from San Francisco to Charleston, but Mama's main meal is an entree like no other and worth the trip inland from the Ocean whenever you find yourself in Maui.
Best Dessert: Unknown Creperie. Paris, France. February 2001.

We were 20 years old. We were in college. We were backpacking across Europe and we had very little cash. But despite the bread and cheese diet we maintained while in France, we found a favorite little spot along the River Seine that became a daily staple, no matter what time of day. It was a creperie that featured a crepe with mint ice cream. I don't know if it was the crepe batter, the chocloat, or the French cows they used to make the cream, but they tasted like no desert we'd ever had before. And given our one attempt at a nice meal ended with prawn eyes staring back at us, we stuck to the sweet stuff during our Valentines Weekend trip to Paris. Fitting.
Best Coffee: Toast. Los Angeles, CA.

My barista on Beverly would be pissed. Despite the fact that I enjoy a Grande Iced Skinny Vanilla Latte every morning on the way to work (and a Peppermint Mocha on nights we happened to be caffinating) the coffee I enjoy the most is made right down the street from our apartment in Los Angeles at Toast. Toast is a bakery. Toast is the place to be seen on a Sunday morning (which isnt too hard since you have to wait outside on the corner for at least 30 minutes before you get a table). But Toast also has the most delicious Iced Vanilla Latte that tastes more like a vanilla milkshake. Not to mention, Toast was our first love in LA as we picked our apartment almost solely based on the proximity to the brunch haven. So when we sit down for omelets and lattes on weekends at Toast, the coffee tastes better than any other.
Not a bad decade, from Syracuse to London to New York to Baltimore and now Los Angeles, but I cant wait to see what the Twenty10s have in store for us. Stay tuned to coffeeon3rd to find out.