Big Noodle Lou’s Top 5 Moments Of 2016!

I've been hearing over and over again these past few days, from so many folks, at how much "2016 sucked". And if we're talking about all the Celebrities we lost, then indeed, it wasn't the greatest year. However, from a personal standpoint, I thought that 2016 was a GREAT year!  I had a lot of wonderful things happen to me this year. So much so, that I decided that I would compile THIS list, of BIG NOODLE LOU'S TOP 5 MOMENTS OF 2016! I easily could have listed MUCH more, but I'm keeping it to down to 5 because I have a court date tomorrow and I can't be late. So, let us begin.....

5) My Girlfriend, Lisa, Buys Me A New Guitar!: My Lady is simply THE BEST! She's a Sweetheart, My Best Friend, and  A Saint!, (Trust me, it takes a special kind of Woman to put up with me all these years).:-)  There's so much I could say about her, but I'll narrow it down to THIS story. Back in April, we decided to hang in Atlanta for the day. Of course, that meant hitting a Guitar Store or two. Anyway, I walked over to this particular guitar, picked it up, played it for awhile, and simply couldn't put it down!  Lisa said, "That's pretty, you should get it". I said, "Maybe next time". She said, "Well, if you don't, I will". Sure enough, she whips out the credit card, and next thing I know, it's coming back to Alabama with us! Something I'll never forget for sure!  Anyway, a few months later, I went into the backyard, and recorded THIS video on The 4th of July, of myself playing "The Star Spangled Banner" on the guitar that she bought me....Check it out!

4) 2016 California Vacation!: My whole life I've ALWAYS wanted to go out to Los Angeles and visit, but I've never had the opportunity. Finally, we were able to fly out there on Labor Day Weekend, and stay for a week! We even got to watch Alabama Beat USC while waiting for our Rental Car.....ROLL TIDE! (You should've seen the looks we got from others at the airport while we were all decked out in our Alabama Apparel). The whole trip was simply AMAZING!  Rodeo Drive, The Sunset Strip, The Hollywood Sign, The Hollywood Walk Of Fame, The Pacific Coast Highway, Malibu Beach, The Santa Monica Pier, The San Diego Zoo, etc. We saw it all!  Loved it so much that we're planning on going back again in 2017! The people out there were FANTASTIC, too! In fact, here's the first video I took when we were being transported from the main terminal to pick up our Rental Car. Our Bus Driver was a SCREAM! Here he is in action, as I played some "TV Trivia" with him.....

3) Back On The Radio Airwaves On Star 101.7!: After a year and a half hiatus from radio, in October, I was hired by the wonderful folks at Townsquare Media to do Afternoons here on Star 101.7. They also gave me the opportunity to reprise my "Saturday Nite Regrind Show" which successfully ran for so many years, and the support from listeners has been UNBELIEVABLE! The staff here at Townsquare has been so wonderful to work with, and I can't thank my boss enough, David DuBose, for giving me the opportunity to play on the radio again! I'm having A BLAST! 

2) Bucket List Moment, I Visit A Hero's Childhood Home!: As I mentioned earlier, my California Vacation was a DEFINITE 2016 Highlight!. However, there was ONE place I HAD to visit, to call my vacation COMPLETE. On Sunday, September 4th, 2016, I was finally able to achieve my GOAL, and visit a place which I think, SHOULD be considered a HISTORIC NATIONAL LANDMARK! I shot THIS video which tells THE STORY!

1) The Chicago Cubs WIN The World Series!: As a Life-long Cubs Fan, I never thought I would LIVE to see the day that this happened....BUT IT DID! After a 108 year drought, MY CHICAGO CUBS FINALLY WON THE WORLD SERIES IN THE GREATEST GAME 7 EVER! I still get CHILLS thinking about it! My Cubbies came back from a 3-1 deficit  to win THREE STRAIGHT, and bring a World Series Trophy To Chicago! Here is the moment it FINALLY happened!

And there you have it, My Top 5 Moments Of 2016! I'm looking forward to 2017 like everyone else. But I have to say,in my world, 2016 DID NOT Suck! :-)