With Thanksgiving less than a week away, it is necessary that I show how grateful I am in my life. And instead of focusing on one subject and leaving some not thanked, this list of 38 persons, places and things counts down what I am most thankful for:
38. The La Verne Fire Department for its quickness in the Davenport Dining Hall fire last month.
37. The La Verne Police Department for doing its job with great concentration and passion, especially on ULV’s campus.
36. The Financial Aid Office because the last three years, the University has taken care of me.
35. The Associated Student Federation (ASF) Forum for spending my money on worth-while events like Monte Carlo Night.
34. Warehouse’s pizza and garlic sticks.
33. The snack machine at the San Gabriel Valley Tribune.
32. My job at the Tribune.
31. Vans, for making such comfortable shoes.
30. My new cable package.
29. Good hair days.
28. Getting that “I voted” sticker after voting.
27. Jesse “the Body” Ventura, the newly elected governor of Minnesota.
26. “Hollywood” Hulk Hogan, who announced he will run for President in the year 2000.
25. Canada for producing wrestling talent like Chris Jericho and Bret Hart.
24. The World Wrestling Rage Association (WWRA).
23. WWRA owner Landus Rigsby for allowing me to be a broadcast journalist on his great programming.
22. The entire WWRA roster.
21. Home football games at La Verne.
20. ULV head coaches, like Don Morel (football), John Hallman (swimming) and Rex Huigens (golf), who are media-friendly and good conversationalists.
19. Vinny Testaverde, the New York Jets quarterback, who is leading my fantasy football team to victory every week.
18. Keyshawn Johnson, who is also on the Jets and my fantasy team, for catching the damn ball.
17. Monrovia High School football.
16. KULV’s contests.
15. Jim Rome’s constant smack on subjects like the NBA lockout, NASCAR and clones.
14. Vic “the Brick” Jacobs for his attempts to convert every baseball fan in Southern California into a Los Angeles Dodgers fan.
13. Living in the Garden of Eden – Southern California.
12. My 21st birthday, which is less than two months away.
11. Future trips to Las Vegas.
10. Future and current trips to bars, clubs, Mexico, etc.
9. The paycheck that pays the bills every month.
8. MasterCard and Visa for the credit limits.
7. My three dogs (Rollin, Moira and Casey).
6. The readers who make all of this possible.
5. The entire staff of the Campus Times for its patience and understanding.
4. God.
3. My brother, Ryan.
2. My mom, Linda.
And last but not least:
1. The 1999 World Series champions, the Dodgers, assuming that Fox and General Manager Kevin Malone buy Kevin Brown and Randy Johnson. But that may be more of a Christmas present than a reason for giving thanks.
Greg MacDonald, a junior journalism major, is sports editor of the Campus Times. He can be reached by e-mail at gmacdona@ulv.edu.
Journalism operations manager at the University of La Verne. Production manager and business manager of the Campus Times.
