Welcome 2010, twenty ten, Two Thousand Ten – rolls off the tongue much better than 2001 through 2009 did. But what will we call the first decade of the 21st century? The 10’s doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue like the 50’s, 60’s, 70’s, 80’s, and 90’s does. Maybe we should have a contest to decide what to call it. Any suggestions?
I can’t believe it has been 10 years since we all waited with bated breath for the chime of midnight December 31st to strike so we would know if our Y2K fears of all the computers shutting down because their programs would not go past the date of 1999 would actually happen. It didn’t! We made it. The fears were belayed and all was right with the world. But who would have known what we would face in the next 10 years? The worse economic climate since the great depression involving a housing market crisis, stock market losses, recession and the government faced with bailing out major companies or watching hundreds of thousands of citizens lose their jobs; International terrorists flying planes into both the world trade towers in New York city, the pentagon and a third plane crashing prematurely in Pennsylvania thanks to the brave sacrifice of the passengers; Continued threats of terrorism; Scandals and prosecutions of public figures, corporate leaders, military personnel and men of the cloth (clergy); Record breaking natural disasters such as 16 hurricanes including the devastating Katrina that practically wiped out New Orleans and the Sumatra-Andaman earthquake Tsunami responsible for taking some 275,000 lives; The first decade of war since the 60’s; The spread of aids, swine flu and a US epidemic of obesity. It has been a tragic decade in many ways. Time Magazine is said to have named this first decade of the 21st century as the “Worst Decade Ever”. As a baby boomer, I joined many others who lost more than one favored teacher, friend or parent during this decade. Was there anything good that happened in the last 10 years?
There were some achievements: cell phone technologies, video gaming systems, breakthroughs in high definition television and videos, Digital camera technology, Mobile technologies allowing us to conduct business anywhere, anytime. Social websites like facebook and tweeter have put us in daily touch with friends and family members we either haven’t seen in decades or would normally only communicate with once a year. Internet usage has gone from almost zero to trillions (if not more) of megabytes downloaded every day. Google Earth allows us to actually view any place on the planet any time of day or night. And let’s not forget the historical moment when an African American became President of the United States and the first woman also ran for US President, making a pretty good showing.
Medical Science saw some pretty amazing advances over the past 10 years. It was this decade that saw the complete mapping of the human genenome, the key to our genetic heritage, a breakthrough accomplishment with monumental potential for future applications. Research of the 25,000 apparent individual genes may take several more decades.
Advances and controversy continued in the first decade of the 21st century with cloning of individual cells. Stem cell research is critical to many patients with paralysis due to spinal cord injuries. They wait in hope that one day science will find a way to end their pain and allow them to walk again. We can probably thank Christopher Reeve for a bit of this, at least certainly the awareness of the devastating effects of spinal cord injuries. But, should we be trying to play God and clone a complete animal or a human being? What do you think?
Here are some of the other medical advances we saw over the past decade:
- HPV Vaccination which prevents two types of human papilloma virus that causes cervical cancer and genital warts.
- Robotic surgery is much less invasive than traditional surgery with diminished entry wounds and healing time.
- Treatments for HIV/AIDS in the way of antiretroviral drug therapy can extend the life of a patient by decades
- Public bans of smoking has reduced the number of heart attacks more than ever expected.
- Cancer advances. New imaging processes, blood tests that can detect cancerous DNA, new drugs and new surgical techniques.
- A new blood clot busting drug reduces treatment time for heart attack victims from 90 minutes to 5 seconds.
- Advances in surgical techniques using drug coated “stents” while performing the cardiovascular procedure angioplasty has revolutionized the treatment and further prevention of blocked arteries.
Sports, Earth Science, and Astrology must have seen records broken, discoveries made and improved tools sculpted over the last 10 years though I don’t include any here. Were there as many advances, inventions, discoveries and positive events as there were negative ones over the past 10 years? I don’t know.
What will the New Year and the new decade bring us? As a Realtor I can’t help but draw on the old bible parable about building our house on the rock as opposed to the sand. It is much more likely to withstand the rain, floods, and winds if built on a sturdy foundation. Furthermore, a brick wall is only as strong as the cement or mortar that holds the bricks together in formation and like the story of the three pigs, a house made of brick is much more likely to withstand severe weather than a house built of sticks. So it is with our lives. Life happens; we need to be prepared.
Soooo, enter the proverbial “New Year’s resolutions” – Change my eating habits, exercise, spend less money, go back to school, read more and watch less TV, put away the X-Box, open the WII I got for Christmas, stop smoking, go to church. All good solid suggestions for forming that rock solid foundation and almost all are on my list. So what is stopping us? I know I can find a lot of excuses for not doing each of those resolutions. But there is something else about that brick wall that is important to remember. It takes more than one brick to make a wall. All the bricks put together make the wall. Like the familiar statement by that female Presidential candidate, “it takes a village to raise a child”, we need to work together to accomplish our goals, be successful, productive and happy. You need me and I need you. I think this forms another new concept from the last decade: NETWORKING. Let’s do it!
Happy New Year
This Holiday season take a trip back in time to 1921 Bedford Falls to visit the Bailey family and the endearing story of “It’s a Wonderful Life”. Directed by Joseph Wallen, this adaptation of the beloved Christmas film graces the Riverside stage combining a rich orchestrated score superbly performed by a talented cast with both traditional and new twists sure to please the most ardent “Wonderful Life” film fan.
A touching story spanning the years of 1921 to 1945 in hometown America, Wonderful Life is a basic tale of building a life and the choices young people have to make as they face the struggles of events and economic conditions around them; A perfect example of how some things never change. Wholesome and endearing, the whole family will love this sweet, sentimental live performance.
I urge you all to make your reservations soon. Running from December 1st through January 2nd, many shows have already sold out. Don’t forget the annual New Years Celebration that includes dinner, the performance of “It’s a Wonderful Life”, champagne, dancing and lots of fun till the wee hours of the morning. This special New Years celebration has special pricing. 
Kathie Abercrombie's Blog 