Best of 2010

Best Smackdown: No contest. The honor goes to George Takei’s video response to Clint McCance.  “Mister McCance, you are a douchebag.

Best Book Read: I’m gonna go with The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms [B&N | Mysterious Galaxy | Amazon] by N. K. Jemisin.  I commented briefly on this one here.

Best Family Trip: Windycon.  This was my first convention with my wife and kids, and it was great.  We don’t get much vacation time, so it was wonderful just spending a few days together.  They all enjoyed the con, but I think my favorite part was Friday night before everyone else arrived, just goofing around in the pool together.

Best Random Artwork: Anime Snoopy vs. Ninja Cats, by socchan.

Best Discovery: Doctor Who.  (David Tennant in particular.)  In my 36 years on this Earth, people have introduced me to Monty Python, Red Dwarf, and so much more … so why didn’t anyone tell me about the Doctor?  I blame ALL OF YOU!  Fortunately, we have borrowed several seasons worth of DVDs, and are remedying this oversight as quickly as possible.

Best Convention: World Fantasy Con.  Four whole days, and so many wonderful people to meet and catch up with.

Best Realization in Sanchin-Ryu: Holy crap!  I don’t know anything!!!  (Thank you Master Faught for this lesson.)

Best Moment with my Son (Age 5): Having dinner with friends, and watching him play with their five-year-old for hours without any problems or conflicts.  It eased one of my biggest fears following his ASD diagnosis earlier this year.

Best Moment with my Daughter (Age 10): Seeing her in deliberately mismatched socks, two T-shirts (one tied with scrunchies), & a thin braid of hair clipped back over one year, and realizing she’s exploring how to express herself and who she wants to be.  And that who she’s becoming is pretty darn cool.

Best Writing Moment (Business): Getting the offer from DAW for the Magic ex Libris series.  Book deals are always nice, but this one represents a significant step up in my career.  Plus it’s a series I’m really excited about!

Best Writing Moment (Creative): Figuring out how to end The Snow Queen’s Shadow [Amazon | B&N | Mysterious Galaxy].  Without spoiling things, it felt right.  It felt honest.  And I’m pretty damn proud.

Best LEGO: Transforming Optimus Prime.

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Feel free to add your own!