We predict the future. And the best way to predict it, is to invent it.

It’s 2007, and what better time to make predictions for the year. Just as in every year, Sage and I make 5 predictions for the coming year. My 2006 predictions didn’t turn out so hot…I went 0-5, though only because Brokeback Mountain was robbed at the Oscars! Sage did better with her predictions, squeaking out 1 correct with President Ford’s death, 2 days before the end of the year. Lucky! This year I have five “official” predictions (the first 5 listed), then ten bonus predictions, because I felt like it. Without further ado, here they are:

1. Martin Scorsese will win the Oscar for Best Director
Nothing would make me happier than this coming true. I loved The Departed, and while it’s not his best work, it really cracks right along. This Oscar would be way over due.

2. Chelsea will win the European Champions League
This would not make me happy at all, but Chelsea has been the class of England the past 3 years (though they trail Manchester United in the Premiership this year), and even though they have a lot of injuries right now, I think they will start to peak in March and April, during the toughest Champions League games. It just feels like their year.

3. Red Sox will win the American League Pennant
I could have gone the “easy” route, and just said they’d make the playoffs. Or I could have jumped all the way and said they’d win their 2nd World Series title in 4 years. But I decided to hedge my bets a bit and just say the pennant. And isn’t it easy to see why? Schilling, Papelbon, and Dice-K leading the way, Big Papi & Manny backed up by newcomers JD Drew and Julio Lugo, and maybe a surprise or two still to come. I’m liking this team more and more every day, though I’d LOVE it if they had a closer.

4. Lady Bird Johnson will die
Of course I would never wish harm on any first lady, but Lady Bird is 94 and I doubt she’ll be able to hold out much longer.

5. The Pettengill Tree Farm will sell at least 10 trees in 2007
I believe they sold 8 this year, and I have no doubt they’ll be able to push a few more out the door in 2007. And if not, I might have to drive up to NH and buy a few myself to ensure I get this one.

6. Helen Mirren will win Best Actress Oscar
She will have some competition, most notably from Judi Dench in Notes on a Scandal, Kate Winslet in Little Children, and Meryl Streep for The Devil Wears Prada, but Mirren’s work in The Queen was stunning, and I think the Academy will finally honor her with an award she’s never won.

7. San Diego Chargers will win Super Bowl
They look like the class of the NFL coming down the stretch, and there just aren’t any other teams out there that seem interested in playing consistently this year.

8. San Jose Sharks will win Stanley Cup
I thought about picking Anaheim, but it seems that the best regular season teams never seem to make it to the Cup final. The Sharks are balanced with scorers, playmakers, and 2 solid goaltenders. And they have Jonathan Cheechoo. “In Cheechoo We Trust”.

9. Sidney Crosby will win the NHL's Points Scoring title
Not really going out on a limb on this one, but I guess he always could break his leg.

10. Dice-K Matsuzaka will win at least 15 games for the Red Sox
The Sox’s signing of Daisuke Matsuzaka (I just had to add that to my Word Dictionary) is a huge risk. He’s never pitched against Major League talent, he has a long of miles on his arm already, and he’s being thrown into the fire in Boston. But maybe the combination of the Boston and Japan media onslaughts will off-set each other, and he’ll glide into the season with a Zen-like mastery of his off-speed pitches. Konichiwa!

11. Roger Clemens will pitch for the Red Sox
I’m not sure how I feel about this one, but something tells me that the Sox will make a huge offer to Clemens in April or May, and Clemens will decide, for some reason I can’t yet comprehend, that he wants to end his career in Boston. And most of the fans will welcome him back with huge ovations (though there will still be plenty of boos and chants of “traitor” as well), but if he helped them win 10-12 games and gave the lineup some depth, I doubt anyone will be complaining.

12. Doug and partner will win The Amazing Race-Concord
Two years in a row I’ve come in second (with 2 different teammates), and I’m just not satisfied with second place. I might have to do some recruiting to come up with A-list talent for my next partner.

13. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Snape will die but Harry, Ron & Hermione will all live
(SPOILER ALERT! If you haven’t read Books 1-6 of the Harry Potter series and don’t want to ruin the surprises, skip to #14 immediately.) Many have speculated that Snape will sacrifice his life to save Harry in the last book, and I for one agree. I still believe that Snape is loyal to Dumbledore, and he killed him because a) Dumbledore told him to do it, and b) he had to in order to keep Harry alive. And since it’s Harry that must kill Voldemort, not Dumbledore, Dumbledore’s death was almost a necessity to set up the final confrontation. However, I do NOT agree with the speculation that Ron, Hermione, or Harry will die in the final book. First off, it’s a given that Voldemort will be destroyed and Harry will be the one who does it. (If not, then Rowling needs to go back to the drawing board in the whole “good vs. evil” genre.) He’ll get help doing it, from his two most trusted friends, but how could Rowling possibly justify any of them dying at this point? After all, these are kids books…we need to have a little hope for the future.

14. Virginia Tech's Men's basketball team will make the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament
I made this prediction last week BEFORE the Hokies lost to 4-8 Marshall, and I have serious doubts about it now. They have a very talented team with a lot of experience. But for some reason they just can’t play consistently enough in the first part of the season. But here’s hoping they beat Duke this weekend and turn in a good February and March.

15. Tiger Woods will win the Masters and US Open
This is another prediction I made last week, before I heard that Tiger’s wife is preggers and is expecting in the summer. If she’s due in June during the US Open, I don’t see him hanging around to win.