The Many Faces of Eve

New Year’s Eve, that is.

I’ve done it all, I think. At first it was those party-hearty New Year’s at a bar wearing a goofy hat. We then moved on to New Year’s with a group of friends that included nice clothes, good food, too much booze for our usual little-drinking selves. We’d wake up in the morning in our sleeping bags at the host’s house and take our amateur hangovers home with us. Next came our move to a house and then kids and we started hosting a neighborhood-wide New Year’s party. We’d roll up the living room rug and dance, kids would scamper up and down the stairs, no one would have to worry about driving home.

Then one New Year’s Day I woke up to a huge mess and decided I was done with that for a while. Worried about people just showing up on our doorstep, we grabbed the kids, a few other families, and took off for the beach as the sun went down. Appetizers, boxes of fire fuel, and blankets were trucked out of the cars and to a fire ring on the sand. It was a glorious way to spend New Year’s Eve night, ending with burning the previous year’s Christmas tree (I used this real-life experience in my book Must Love Mistletoe). We would get home way before midnight, but feel we’d done something special. It became our new tradition.

But then we were rained out one year. The next everyone had a bad cold. And so we stayed home and did nothing two years running. And it was good. Very good.

Son 1 is talking about having a New Year’s gathering this year. Okay. I’ll vacuum, get the ice, stock up on sodas. But don’t count me in for the countdown. I have Maureen’s Beyond the Boardroom to read, as well as Susan’s The Unexpected Millionaire and her latest single title, Sizzling (I just bought it yesterday!). I’m planning on settling in my room with some cheese, crackers, white wine, and my books. Happy New Year to me, indeed.

What about you? What are your New Year’s Eve plans?

P.S. I have a book out too, and the title captures my current feelings about the date--it's called Not Another New Year's. I tried to upload a cover image, but blogger has foiled me again! I hope you'll look for it.