Countdown to 2009: Your Favorite Phillyist Posts of 2008

Every weekday of December (except for December 25, that is), Phillyist will be counting down to 2009 with our highlights from the past year and our predictions for the next. If you have a list you'd like to submit, let us know!

One of the best things about blogging is the instant feedback you can get. The most instant feedback we get on Phillyist comes via that "Recommend This!" link on the bottom of every post. And here are the ten posts that you recommended most in the last twelve months. Don't see your favorite Phillyist posts here? Remember to recommend everything on the site that strikes your fancy, and maybe next year, the posts you deem worthiest will make it to the top!

10. Liveblogging My Latte at La Colombe on Rittenhouse Square: One of funnyman Don Montrey's first contributions to Phillyist, this installment found our hero trapped in a metaphysical world of coffee, art, and time travel.

9. 15 Years in the Making...IT'S SHOWTIME!!!!: Mike Muller was at Game 1 against the Milwaukee Brewers, and despite the abnormally cool October temperatures and the healthy dose of rain, it was one of the best nights of his life—an early precursor to the best Fall most Philly sportsfans could have hoped for.

8. Topsy-Turvy Philly: As the Phillies made their playoff run, Mike Muller turned his attention to that age-old question that's bothered many a Philly sportsfan this year, but he did it first: WTF is up with the Eagles?

7. Phillyist Interviews... Meg and Rob: Don Montrey's interview with Philly-based sketch comedy duo Meg and Rob was our most popular, and arguably our funniest, interview of 2008.

6. What a Crock of...: Mike Muller reminded us that although The Curse of Billy Penn can't be blamed for the weather, Bud Selig can be blamed for just about everything.

5. The Way We Were: Mike Muller's highest-ranked post on this countdown (what, no love for the World Series victory?) took a very personal look at the Phillies' pennant win before turning toward the future. And what a future it was!

4. Days Before Death: An Exploration of the Tidewater Grain Elevator: Shortly before the Tidewater Grain Elevator was imploded last year, former Phillyist Matt Johnson took a tour of the decaying structure and nabbed some really beautiful shots of the building.

3. American Commerce Center: "This Changes Everything": Matt Johnson's other post on this list was the almost-breaking news (Brad Maule got it first on phillyskyline.com—but we still beat the major media outlets) that, just days after occupants began moving into Philly's newest high rise, the Comcast Center, a new tower was being proposed for the city that would dwarf it. The American Commerce Center is now looking more and more like a reality, and remember: you heard it here first.

2. Parking Wars: Stephanie Mannis was on the scene (and by scene, we mean interweb) to let us know that some—and perhaps most—of our parking tickets may not be valid. While we'd imagine that the PPA has fixed this problem since March, but hey, if you've got the time and/or energy to fight your tickets, maybe there are still a few uncertified parking meters out there.

1. Asshole of the Week: Joseph Genovese: When 53-year-old Cindy Grassi, a tourist in town from Missouri to catch the Cardinals play the Phils, was killed in Philadelphia by a drunk driver, it was a tragedy. When we learned more about that drunk driver, 18-year-old Joseph Genovese, it was a travesty. Bill Hayes offered scathing commentary about the teen after his MySpace page made national news.

Image Credit: Matt Johnson, SkyscraperSunset.com, March 13, 2008.