A QUICK LOOK BACK AT 2003

How fast the year happens, and how soon we forget all it encompassed. It was a year filled with benchmark events - some very serious and others merely an escape from the day-to-day reality of the world. The best selling book was a child’s story and one of the best pictures of the year is a fantasy. And, if you are a star gazer, the “Red Planet” put on a spectacular display. Let’s look at a few quick highlights of 2003.

TOP NEWS STORIES - February: the U.S. loses the Challenger in flight; March: first alert of the SARS virus in Hong Kong; March: U.S. launches attack against Iraq; April: Baghdad falls; and December: Saddam Hussein is captured (San Francisco Bay News). For those of us in California, the October wildfires that burned in Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, San Diego and Ventura counties. Mars, the Red Planet, orbits closest to the Earth in 55,000 years. No more shots, thanks to a nasal flu mist invented by Hunein Maassab and MedImmune Vaccines.

BEST OF 2003 - The hybrid car of the year was the Toyota Prius (Motor Trend). The best cars of the year included the Acura TSX, BMW 5-Series and Mazda RX-8 (CNN Money). Number one and number two colleges in the West: Linfield College in Oregon and Oklahoma Baptist University (US News). Top three hospitals: Johns Hopkins in Baltimore, Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota and UCLA Medical Center in Los Angeles (US News).

ENTERTAINMENT - Bestselling books of the year: J.K. Rowling’s “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” followed by “The Da Vinci Code” by Dan Brown. Best selling albums of the year: Norah Jones “Come Away with Me” and “Chicago: the Soundtrack” by various artists (Amazon.com). Top films: “American Splendor” and “Fellowship of the Ring, Return of the King” (Newsweek). Sexiest woman in films: Halle Berry (FHM). Sexiest man is Johnny Depp (People Magazine). Whether you agree with (or even know) all these selections or not, there they are.