My Top 5 Moments of 2014
By Tyler Cox
#5 Moving to Dayton Ohio
I have lived in Northern Kentucky my whole life and I loved every minute of it, but like most good things they come to an end. I never thought I’d be living in Ohio, but this is where life has taken me, and I’m just hoping that I haven’t made a bad mistake. As far as bettering my life moving here to Dayton, Ohio, it’ll be better for my spirituality and it will be cheaper on me in the long run. I do, however, plan on moving back to “My Old Kentucky Home”.
Yes, I will continue being a Kentucky fan. I will do so for the rest of life. I will not root for any teams in this area, except for maybe if they were playing Louisville or Duke.
#4 Losing a Family Member to Heroin
Generally speaking, when you think of your “top 5 moments” in any category, you think of your top 5 best moments in that category. In my opinion, moments mean what affect you the most, it doesn’t necessarily mean that it has to be a good moment. For this one, obviously by the title, is not a best moment but one that has affected me a lot negatively.
When I mean I lost a family member to heroin I mean they are going to be locked up for awhile and I won’t be able to see them for several years. My family member did however pass away to heroin and was later revived in the ambulance on its way to the hospital. The fact of the matter is, is they will be gone for awhile and to me it feels like I have lost them. Though it was ultimately their decision to go down that path knowing they have 2 kids, heroin is still a problem and we need to take care of it and get it off the streets not only in Kentucky but nationwide.
#3 Watching My Best Friend Graduate from College
My best friend, Alan Smith, graduated from The University of Louisville. Now I know what you’re thinking, “this guy is friends with a Louisville fan” and that’s not the case. He chose to go to Louisville in Panama because that’s where some of his family is from, it’s a lot cheaper there and plus they have a campus in Panama. He moved to Louisville, Kentucky after his sophomore year and continued his schooling in the states. On December 18th of this year he graduated with a degree in Political Science. Unlike myself, he finished his schooling and worked hard to get to where he’s at. I do plan on going back however to finish my degree in Sports Media and Broadcasting.
As I was stating before, Alan is a Kentucky fan through and through, it’s just where life led him. I couldn’t be more proud to call him a friend and a brother. Congrats again Alan. (@_ASmith21)
#2 Seeing Garth Brooks Live in Concert in Chicago
This was by far the best concert I have ever been to. Garth Brooks just gets it. He’s one of, if not the best entertainers there is. I have never been to a Garth Brooks concert, mainly because he hasn’t toured in over 15 years, but I’ve been to a lot of concerts and this was by far the best I’ve ever been to. You ask anyone to finish this sentence “I’ve got friends” and they’ll with “…In low places”. If you’ve never seen him in concert I strongly recommend trying to find yourself to get to one, even if you aren’t a country fan you’ll enjoy it.
Plus actually going to Chicago for the first time was really neat. A lot of history behind the city and plus I like seeing old buildings and being around things like that. A couple of my friends and I, Sawyer (@sawyerbarlow), Ryan (@ryantromm) and Jarred (@m_bulldog), had a really good time seeing the Bean, and the face water fountain and eating at Geno’s East Pizza. It was a really fun experience. I also recommend going to Chicago if you’ve never been, the traffic sucks though and you pay $20 in tolls just to go 3 miles. Other than that, a really cool place to go. Plus, it’s “Just People Loving People”.
#1 Watching The Kentucky Wildcats During Their Tournament Run
How about them Wildcats?! I was griping and complaining the whole season. How could a group of talented freshman such as themselves lose that many games, I thought to myself, then they turned it on come March. They had me scared going into the SEC tournament. Then they really stepped up their game and looked so poised and really just looked like a different team. It was cool to see them mature right before your eyes like they did.
They got a horrible seed in the tournament, getting the 8 seed. But the won their first game against K-State and the sore loser that is Bruce Webber. Then came the excitement, the Wichita State game. It was by far the best game of the whole tournament including the regular season and the championship game. It was back and forth till the end when James Young and Aaron Harrison made 2 clutch 3-pointers that essentially gave Kentucky the win over then undefeated Wichita State.
Then the sweet 16 game was just, well, sweet. Anytime you beat Louisville in the tournament is a great time. Aaron Harrison making that 3 to give Kentucky the win was awesome. Then Aaron did it again against the Michigan Wolverines to give Kentucky the win. Then he did it AGAIN against Wisconsin this time while Kentucky was down by 2 and gave the Wildcats the narrow 1 point victory. A couple of my friends and I drove down to lexington and parties on state street with everyone else that night. Then came the championship game, though they lost I honestly hadn’t expected them to make it as far as they did. I was extremely proud of that team.