Now that we got that out of the way, I want to wish all of you a Happy New Year. For me, 2016 was a year of surprises and stability. Not only surprises in the political realm, but also in the personal one for me.
It's been a year where....
- I've actually been able to stay with the same employer for an entire calendar year, which according to some is a minor miracle.
- I was able to see growth in my family
- I was able to take my mom on a trip to Toronto, re-living and creating new experiences based on my family's last vacation when all 5 members were alive 30 years ago.
- Have felt and seen experiences where I have come to see the Almighty's hand at work more than ever.
Let's just quickly go back to my predictions at the beginning of this year:
1) After attending three weddings in 2015, I will attend one wedding in 2016 and that's because I'll be asked to work in that wedding. I did not recall attending any weddings in 2016, so either I didn't or I have a steel sieve for a memory.
2) The SG BUTR will experience changes in 2016, but will have the same number of members at the end of 2016 as it does today. The BUTR did experiences changes, ... for now....
3) I will come close to achieving a significant life milestone by the end of 2016. Hmm, I have made significant progress over the past year to becoming debt free. Enough to say that's my financial goal for 2017.
4) Donald Trump will not win the GOP nomination as he experiences a Howard Dean type meltdown a la 2004. The Presidential Election will come down to Marco Rubio vs. Hillary Clinton and will be a bitter fight where the difference will be Clinton's experience and age working against her in combination with a slowing economy, providing for a Rubio win. The GOP will also hold on to Congress with the tailwinds of Rubio's success. 2016 was an odd year to say the least and I was wrong about this one as all political orthodoxy was thrown out the window as the Donald showed shrewd political instinct and an efficient communication style to become our President-elect.
5) The Uber trend of cheaper cost taxi-type travel will drive consumers to demand even more automated version of transportation - robot controlled cars - by the end of 2016.
This idea has momentum, but now is also is facing government intervention. So stay tuned for 2017.
6) I will make predictions on how the Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Golden Gopher football teams success in 2016, with 50 percent success. I predicted successful for seasons for each, the Gopher football team was much more successful.
For 2017, I'll just have three predictions:
1) I will attend 3 weddings in 2017.
2) I will be debt free by the end of 2017.
3) The SG BUTR will not have the same number of members at the end of 2017 as it does today.
Ok, enough of the predictions, how about some food for thought? I was looking through a book by Edward McClelland titled "How to Speak Midwestern" where he writes about the linguistic differences in lingo amongst Midwesterners for an outsider. Here's some terms he found interesting:
Minnesota:
Cake Eater: Edina resident, generally stereotyped as an affluent Twin Cities suburb.
The Chimney: The Northwest Angle, the isolated part of the state that is the only part of the continental US north of the 49th parallel.
612er: Twin Cities native traveling in outstate MN
Nodaker: North Dakotan
oh, sure: Less emphatic version of "you betcha"
Wisconsin:
Mud Duck: a Minnesotan
Over Dere: That place being pointed towards
She: An inanimate object, often mechanical. "She's running good"
77 Square Miles Surrounded by Reality: Madison, Wisconsin
Michigan
The Soo: Sault St. Marie, a border city of Canada on the north edge of Michigan
The Thumb: The area, shaped like a thumb, between Saginaw Bay and Lake St. Clair
TOOT: A Michigan Tech student who's not from the area. Michigan Tech is located in Houghton, MI, a place in the Upper Peninsula where I have visited a friend going to school there in both the summer and the winter. I'll just say I'd rather go there in the summer.
Urban Pioneer: A young white professional that moves to Detroit.
So there is some words for thought for now. I pray you all have a happy and blessed 2017.
1) After attending three weddings in 2015, I will attend one wedding in 2016 and that's because I'll be asked to work in that wedding. I did not recall attending any weddings in 2016, so either I didn't or I have a steel sieve for a memory.
2) The SG BUTR will experience changes in 2016, but will have the same number of members at the end of 2016 as it does today. The BUTR did experiences changes, ... for now....
3) I will come close to achieving a significant life milestone by the end of 2016. Hmm, I have made significant progress over the past year to becoming debt free. Enough to say that's my financial goal for 2017.
4) Donald Trump will not win the GOP nomination as he experiences a Howard Dean type meltdown a la 2004. The Presidential Election will come down to Marco Rubio vs. Hillary Clinton and will be a bitter fight where the difference will be Clinton's experience and age working against her in combination with a slowing economy, providing for a Rubio win. The GOP will also hold on to Congress with the tailwinds of Rubio's success. 2016 was an odd year to say the least and I was wrong about this one as all political orthodoxy was thrown out the window as the Donald showed shrewd political instinct and an efficient communication style to become our President-elect.
5) The Uber trend of cheaper cost taxi-type travel will drive consumers to demand even more automated version of transportation - robot controlled cars - by the end of 2016.
This idea has momentum, but now is also is facing government intervention. So stay tuned for 2017.
6) I will make predictions on how the Minnesota Twins and Minnesota Golden Gopher football teams success in 2016, with 50 percent success. I predicted successful for seasons for each, the Gopher football team was much more successful.
For 2017, I'll just have three predictions:
1) I will attend 3 weddings in 2017.
2) I will be debt free by the end of 2017.
3) The SG BUTR will not have the same number of members at the end of 2017 as it does today.
Ok, enough of the predictions, how about some food for thought? I was looking through a book by Edward McClelland titled "How to Speak Midwestern" where he writes about the linguistic differences in lingo amongst Midwesterners for an outsider. Here's some terms he found interesting:
Minnesota:
Cake Eater: Edina resident, generally stereotyped as an affluent Twin Cities suburb.
The Chimney: The Northwest Angle, the isolated part of the state that is the only part of the continental US north of the 49th parallel.
612er: Twin Cities native traveling in outstate MN
Nodaker: North Dakotan
oh, sure: Less emphatic version of "you betcha"
Wisconsin:
Mud Duck: a Minnesotan
Over Dere: That place being pointed towards
She: An inanimate object, often mechanical. "She's running good"
77 Square Miles Surrounded by Reality: Madison, Wisconsin
Michigan
The Soo: Sault St. Marie, a border city of Canada on the north edge of Michigan
The Thumb: The area, shaped like a thumb, between Saginaw Bay and Lake St. Clair
TOOT: A Michigan Tech student who's not from the area. Michigan Tech is located in Houghton, MI, a place in the Upper Peninsula where I have visited a friend going to school there in both the summer and the winter. I'll just say I'd rather go there in the summer.
Urban Pioneer: A young white professional that moves to Detroit.
So there is some words for thought for now. I pray you all have a happy and blessed 2017.
