Looking back over the last year, a lot when on in my life. I learned many lessons, made many friends, and had a lot of fun experiences. This past year has really been a blessing. God has been so good!

Today is a big day in the life of
my blog, as it’s the one year anniversary of Unfinished Business. It’s unbelievable that it’s been a year! I’ve had so much fun blogging here, and the time has gone by so fast.

On June 23, 2008, my parents were talking about letting me get a blog. For a good part of the first few months of that season, I had been doing little write ups about the games. I had heard of MLBlogs, and when I showed it to my parents they gave me the go-ahead.

So, I created Unfinished Business: The San Diego Padres’ 2008 Season. It was quite a mouthful! I wrote my first entry and got my first comment that day. My first entry was merely a few sentences, but it was a start. My next entry was, of course, defending Trevor Hoffman. Guess what? He blew a tied game the next night! Here I was, defending Trevor, saying that he wasn’t washed up and still had it in him, and he goes and gets the loss.

I’ve been looking back over my blog for the last few weeks preparing for this entry. It is so cool to look back and see how much I’ve improved in my writing. It’s pretty amazing. My first entries were very short. I didn’t have a solid commenter’s base like I do now. “Back then,” I was pretty much just writing for myself. Now, I write good-length entries every day, and it’s amazing how much better they are than they were!

When I first started, I couldn’t touch type. I had tried for a long time to do the typing programs, but it just wasn’t working. Now, I can touch type very well. Because I was forced to type a lot, I learned it easily. Finally being able to touch type is something I am very pleased to have accomplished.

It wasn’t until the offseason that I started getting a lot of comments. It was very exciting for me to find a lot of comments on my blog every day. I started commenting more on other people’s blogs, and that boost my readership a ton. For all you bloggers who keep getting told to comment and comment on other blogs, believe me, it really works.   

After the season ended, I shortened the title to Unfinished Business. Over the offseason, I kept blogging, almost every day, and it seemed to go by a lot quicker. I also “met” a lot of great bloggers, and made a lot of great friends.

I joined MLBlogs because I love to write about baseball, but this place has also given me the chance to interact with baseball fans all over the world. I do not have any friends who I can really talk Padres with. Sure, I can talk to them about it, but they aren’t die-hards like me. This place has been great for me to talk baseball.

“On your front page of Unfinished Business you reference Corinthians in your header. What significance does it represent to you having it there?
I’m a Christian. I have had problems with being too obsessed with the Padres, but that verse reminds me that sports aren’t everything. Winning the big championships is one of the most important things in sports. But just look at the players who have won the World Series or the Superbowl. Everyone’s super excited and happy for a while, but then it just fades away. Trophies collect dust. The fans turn to the next season, wondering what the team will do next. I really want the Padres to win the World Series someday, but I know I won’t be happy for the rest of my life when they do. I’ll always feel like there’s something more. This verse also encourages me to look ahead, to see that I am living for a huge gift, the gift of eternal life. I’m living for a crown that will last forever! ” 

This was one of the questions in my Timeout (which I will mention later). I’m sure you’ve all seen the verse on the top of my blog, but you probably don’t know the meaning. Well, I covered it pretty well in that question above. There are so many things we look forward to, and we think that we won’t be happy until we have a World Series for our team, for example. But these things really don’t last. They just don’t. Sure, Phillies fans are super happy about their World Series win last year, but they are concentrating on this season now, wondering how the Phillies are going to do and if they will make the playoffs this year.

I love the Padres, and I love baseball, but in life, baseball just has to be a second priority sometimes. As I run this blog, I try to write God-honoring entries. I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but even when I’m terribly frustrated, I never use PG (or higher)-rated language. That’s just not the way to do it. My parents have raised me well. And though I do get very angry at my team sometimes, it’s an anger of love. God’s given me this gift of writing, but it’s still really His. I am so thankful for this gift, and I’m trusting in Him to take me where He will.     

This past year has been so much fun. I’ve learned a lot, and grown tremendously as a writer and a Padres fan.

OK, here are some stats:

RANKINGS:  MLBlogs Latest Leaders Lists: 44, 30, 21, 25, 24, 31, 23, 22, 36, 29, 31, 31, 21, 19, 15, 17

MLBlogs Top 100 – #74

ENTRIES (as of today):  297

COMMENTS (as of today): 1468

Here are some of my favorite entries from the past year. I’m sorry that there’s so many, but these all are pretty amazing.

·         Enough Said – 8/14/08

Enough said indeed.

·         Ping-Pong With the Padres – 9/3/08

My description of the way the Dodgers and Clayton Kershaw treated the Padres in a certain game.

·         Season’s End – 9/29/08

A review of a very important lesson I learned in 2008.

·         Game 163: A Fan’s Perspective – 12/9/08

My experience of the most devastating game in my fanhood.

·         Music and Baseball – 12/19/08

Some of the songs that remind me of baseball whenever I hear them.

·         Less of a Fan – 12/30/08

Am I less of a fan because I don’t have season tickets and can’t be out at the ballpark all the time?

·         Why Trevor? – 1/10/09

My rant to the front office about why on earth they had to let go of Trevor. One of the best things I have ever written.

·         KOOOOOZ!!! – 1/29/09

A tribute to my favorite player in MLB. What a cutie!!

·         A Tribute to Trevor – Yes, ANOTHER One – 3/3/09

One of the last tributes I rolled out to Trevor. This is another one of the best pieces I have ever written.

·         A Letter to My Father – 3/23/09

My attempt to get my dad to let me go to the Padres’ Fanfest – and it worked!!

·         I ♥ San Diego – 4/3/09

My expression of love for my beautiful city J

·         From Death into Life – 4/10/09

My Easter entry in the wake of Nick Adenhart’s death.

·         Me and My Gang – 4/15/09

My boys J

·         An Ode to Kouz – 4/16/09

Hahaha, a funny little tribute to my baby!

·         Live Together, Die Alone – 5/13/09

With the team falling apart (and the season finale of LOST just around the corner), I tried to help the guys out a bit.

·         You Guys Need Help – 5/14/09

One of my all-time favorite entries, Bob the psychiatrist tries to help the Padres break out of their losing streak.

 

There are some other special entries that involve my blog. I was interviewed in the second installment of Tom’s Timeout at the Plate series. I had so much fun doing it, and it was great to see my blog get some publicity.

 

There was also a support group meeting for me after the horror of Trevor Hoffman’s departure from the Padres. It was so funny, and it definitely helped. It was great!

 

The third feature I wanted to mention was when my blog got a spot on the front page of MLBlogs with this amazing recognition. It was so much fun for me to see my blog featured like that, and it was a great picture too!

 

Without further ado, I would like to thank some of the people in the blogosphere.

 

First of all, of course Mark. This guy does so much for the blogging community, and if he wasn’t at the helm, I think the blogosphere would be in chaos. Thanks so much for featuring my blog in the featured blog section, the front page of mlblogs.com, and in MLBlogs’ spot on mlb.com and helping it grow!

 

Big thanks to Amy, who is not longer blogging with us, but was my first commenter on that day one year ago. Her blog was always a great read, and I definitely miss having her in the community.

 

I would also like the thank Dean, who is also no longer blogging with us. He was a Padres fan and author who was my sole commenter for a while.  He was pretty cool, but then I think I scared him off. Oh well. But I really appreciate his support for my blog over the 2008 summer.

 

Thanks to my parents, who let me get this blog. It has been so much fun! If I didn’t have this blog to rant on, I would drive my sister crazy and she would probably move out into the backyard. Thanks so much for everything!

 

Thank you to Julia, who has probably commented on every entry I’ve written since she joined the blogosphere. She’s been a huge part of the blogosphere, and it wouldn’t be the same without her.

 

Thanks to Tom, who gave me the chance to get the word out on my blog with the Timeout, and for giving me some great therapy with the support group. Also, he graciously endures a lot of ragging from me because of the Rockies (about that guy who didn’t touch the plate…), so I’m thankful for that J  

 

Thanks to Hyun Young, my Padres buddy J I loooove reading her blog, and it’s so much fun to have a Padres fan in the blogosphere who practically has the same thoughts as me. It was a lot of fun meeting her at the Fan Fest, and I can’t wait for the game we’re going to!!

 

I would also like to thank Jen. I was the first commenter on her blog, so she’s probably eternally grateful to me for that J It’s always great to read her blog, and it was really nice of her to let me take control at the Fan Fest and drag her all over the place and make her sit and wait for Jake Peavy for about an hour. At least things worked out though J

 

Thanks to Elizabeth. Both of us struggled through chemistry, and I think she came out better than I did. This girl is going to be an amazing journalist, and I look forward to “working” with her in the business someday.

 

Also, thanks to Jane. I remember the first time she commented on my blog, I was so excited because a real author, a lady who had published a book about baseball, commented on my blog!!  She always leaves a great comment, and her entries are so funny!

 

Thanks to my Heavenly Father, who has blessed me with this incredible gift and given me the chance to minister to baseball fans all over the world. I am eternally grateful to Him for every breath that I take. He is in complete control of everything that happens in my life, and I’m trusting in Him. He alone is AWESOME!! 

 

Thanks also to Happy, Bob, Jeremy, Russ, Jimmy, Ben, Darion, Melissa, Kylie, King of Cali, Jenn, Sue, Emma, Cat, and all my other commenters and readers. You guys have been so amazing to me, and I really appreciate the support. Like I’ve said so many times, this blog had no purpose without you guys. So thank you!!

 

Since this is a “birthday” party, we have to “eat” some cake.

 

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday to you

Happy birthday dear Unfinished Business

Happy birthday to you!!

 

 Again, thank you guys so much. This year has been so much fun, and I hope there are many more to come!!

 

Feel free to leave “memories” (haha) about this blog of the past year as we celebrate!!

 

 

GO PADRES!!