2012 Top Twelve Highlights

With Hostess liquidating its assets, I find solace in a seasonal donut memory: My mom used to tuck a box of Donettes, those little chocolate-covered treats, in the refrigerator of her Colorado kitchen. Just for me. So when I’d fly home for the holidays or other occasions, those magic minis were good and crunchy.

Alternating whole donuts and sips of orange juice, I felt peaceful and loved.

Although Mom and Hostess have passed away (Mom to Donut Heaven and Hostess to be reincarnated in another brand), I remain grateful for those wonderful retentions. So, too, am I thankful for the gifts of 2012.

1.      The New AMHL Web Site: “Come for the hockey; stay for the donuts” is now the official tagline.

2.      Hockey (and donuts), Pittsburgh Style: The Bridge City, where the rivers Monongahela, Allegheny and Ohio converge, might consider adopting the AMHL mantra, especially for fans like my wife and me. The Bruins lost to the Penguins (on NBC), but witnessing Marty Turco’s save against Jordan Stahl eased the pain. (So did the little donuts, man.)

3.      Great Goal: “That’s what it looks like when 18,000 stand as one…” said Mike “Doc” Emrick after Chris Kelly scored in OT. The Bruins beat the Caps, 1–0 in Game One of the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, as my wife and I watched from North Station. We had left the arena to catch the commuter rail back to the ‘burbs but were on our feet for the game-winning goal.

4.      Overdue Award: Patrice Bergeron, a league-leading plus-36, won the Selke Award.

5.      Donuts and Up from Down Under: An Internet friend from Australia was in town to visit Fenway (and eat donuts). We drove him to Kane’s Donuts in Saugus, MA. Fascinated with the round things from the first time his father took him to a Dunkin’ Donuts, our slender guest sampled several types of these big-as-a-fist treats. We ate outside the shop, blue sky abounding. He was in heaven as the sunlight glinted off the Honey Dipped. Mmm Doughnuts (that’s how are visitant spells them).

6.      A Familiar Character: The pondering, wandering mind of J.P. “Puckbite” Plouffe. His artwork and authenticity are unrivaled.

7.      Canadians on the Cape: Talking hockey with a lovely couple from Quebec, Habs fans on holiday at the 1750 Inn at Sandwich Center; chatting with the friendly Albertans in Cotuit, who gathered to watch Cape Cod Kettleers Adam Nelubowich play ball.

8.      New Internet friends: Add Bruce “Toronto’s Tour Guide” Bell and Monika Moravan, a storyteller extraordinaire, to the long list of hospitable Canadians I’ve written about.

9.      Fictional characters: Seamus J. O’Sheenah, Kieran, Grainne. Oh what an unexpected adventure and pleasure it has been getting to know you. Ditto for Wynnchel and Duncan, the top cops in Wreck-it Ralph.

10.  Roland Merullo: A hockey scar and a dream that references a donut earn but honorable reference in the author’s Breakfast with Buddha. Although Merullo teases us with morsels of these beloved topics, he serves a literary feast to anyone seeking to live a more purposeful life. (A heart-shaped donut hole graces the cover of his A Little Love Story)

11.  From Sea to Shining Lake: Thoughts of our West Coast trip to watch the Bruins and a road trip to Buffalo and Beyond linger with me. Dennis Seidenberg: Sorry for mistaking you for Rich Peverly in that San Jose hotel elevator; my mix-up, though, has provided my wife with immeasurable bliss. And to the East for another adventure: Shamrock hockey and donuts in Tonawanda, Great Big Sea at the Danforth, Niagara Falls at night…taking the wrong road back to Tonawanda.

12.  Home for holidays: Thinking of Colorado, of course, but also enjoying AMHL old home week and the chance to document AMHL actions, as well as partake in the post-game frivolity during Championship Week.

I’ll stuff this last gift into the 2012 memory box. A baker’s dozen, eh?

 

A trip to PEI and “the Maggies.”