I had some good moments in 2014, but all in all I am happy to see it go. And I couldn’t be more excited for 2015!!! This past year I got to travel to some great sporting events and some great concerts, but in this upcoming year I will once again be traveling On the Road with U2!

2014 started off with U2 winning the Golden Globe for their song “Ordinary Love,” from the Nelson Mandela biopic Long Walk to Freedom. But unfortunately U2 did not win the Oscar for their Mandela tribute losing to a cartoon – that song from Frozen. A sad commentary on our society when a cartoon song wins over a song about a great leader. In between the Golden Globes and the Oscars, U2 made an appearance on Jimmy Fallon’s new Tonight Show playing both of their new songs “Ordinary Love” and “Invisible.” With all this momentum, it seemed U2 was going to release a new album and go on tour but then everything stopped … until September (more on that at the end of this post).

2014 was a pretty good year for my favorite sports teams – at least for me getting to see them play. I was able to fulfill a lifelong dream of mine – to see my Denver Broncos play in the Super Bowl, but unfortunately they lost … big. It was still a great time though. Great just to be at the Super Bowl. I saw my Broncos play again in October in the same stadium as the Super Bowl, but this time we won – defeating the Jets 31-17. I saw my Memphis Grizzlies play four times. I saw the Grizzlies win in DC versus the Wizards and in Philadelphia twice versus the 76ers. I once again saw the Grizzlies play in Memphis for game 6 of the first round of the playoffs, but unfortunately this time they lost. But I still had a great time in Memphis going to the Beale Street Music Festival, hanging out on Beale Street, visiting Graceland and Sun Studio and playing the slots in Tunica. The Baltimore Orioles had a great year, and I was there for most of it. I was at Opening Day, the last game, two playoff games, the 60th anniversary game with Brady Anderson and other former Orioles, the Social Media Night debacle with Adam Jones and a few other games.

2014 was also a pretty good year for concerts. I saw Black 47 and O’Malley’s March in Baltimore, Toad the Wet Sprocket in Virginia, NKOTB in Vegas, Eminem in New Jersey, Shindig Music Festival (featuring Lucero) in Baltimore, and the Nick and Knight Tour (as in Nick Carter and Jordan Knight) in Philadelphia and Baltimore. Of course of all of these, the three NKOTB shows I saw in Las Vegas were my favorite. Not only because I love NKOTB, but because I love Vegas! A close second was meeting Jordan Knight in Baltimore and the great Nick and Knight show. I tried to scale back on my concerts a bit this year to save up for the upcoming U2 tour.

2014 also saw the start of my social media business – DeenasDays Social Media. It was also the year I turned 21 … again (in other words, I turned 42). I celebrated this milestone birthday with a beautiful weekend in Ocean City, Maryland with my mom. We had a great time! And 2014 finally saw the release of the new U2 album Songs of Innocence with a surprise free release on iTunes and the announcement of the new U2 iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour 2015.

2015 is going to be the year of U2 – U2015, and it’s going to be magnificent! I am going seeing 12 concerts in three of the best cities in North America. In May, I am going to the tour opener in Vancouver, seeing two shows and spending four days there. I’ve always wanted to go to Vancouver. I love the North Pacific like Seattle and Portland, so I am very excited to spend time in Vancouver – and did I mention it’s the tour opener?! In June, I’m spending a week in Chicago, one of my favorite cities! I will see four U2 shows there with many of my new U2 Chicago friends. In July, I will be spending 10 days in New York City seeing six U2 shows! Ten whole days in the city that never sleeps. It’s going to be an amazing summer! During this time, you might want to follow my other blog On the Road with U2.

But before the tour starts, I must finish my U2 memoir On the Road with U2: my musical journey. I have finished the first draft and currently on the second draft, reworking it a bit. It will be on sale on Amazon by May. So that is what I’m doing for the next four months – writing my book. But I will make time for a little basketball. I’m going to Brooklyn in January to see my Grizzlies play the Nets, back up to New York City in February to attend the NBA AllStar practice, and to DC in March to see my Grizzlies take on the Wizards. Also in March, I am seeing the Ryan Bingham / Lucero show in Baltimore – two of my favorites in one show! Then six weeks later the U2 iNNOCENCE + eXPERIENCE Tour starts May 14 in Vancouver!

Happy New Year! It’s going to be a great one!