True confession: I was never into it. When one of my friends posted in her Facebook status that she was dreading tonight, I completely understood.
New Year’s Eve is a lot like Valentine’s Day, a supposedly fun holiday that rarely is. It puts entirely too much pressure on us. Go out! Get drunk! Party your ass off! Oh, and you need to have someone to kiss at midnight! If you don’t like to stay out late, or you don’t drink, or if you’re single, or if you’re just not inclined to hang out in big crowds having loud celebrations…all that pressure sucks.
In my twenties I tried to love New Year’s Eve—I really did. I went to bars. I went to costume parties. I made the rounds in Manhattan and paid ridiculous cover charges and wore cute dresses that were never warm enough. I sipped colorful cocktails that made my head ache. I knew everyone was going to ask me what my plans were, and I couldn’t bring myself to say “Meh. Might just stay in.” In retrospect, I think my brain had been addled by too much chick lit and “Sex and the City.” I felt like I had to have something fabulous lined up—something that would let me keep my street cred as an hot urban twentysomething. But once there, I was checking my watch, calculating how soon I could make a break for it without seeming boring or ungracious.
Then, in 2004, I got strep throat over the holidays. Going out was not an option. I was positively gleeful that I had a valid excuse to stay home in my jammies. I watched the fireworks from my living room window, and went to bed at approximately 12:03. It was fucking awesome.
After that, I resolved to embrace low-key New Year’s celebrations. A small dinner party at someone’s apartment? Sign me up. Having some friends over to eat fondue and watch movies? Great. It turned out that a lot of my friends were happy not to dress up and go out on the town. A lot of them admitted they had felt the same pressure to have a rollicking good time, and secretly hated it, too. Last year I celebrated New Year’s in Udaipur, India, with my family. It was amazing, but I couldn’t convince them to make it a yearly tradition.
Tonight I’ll be starting 2011 on the deeply snowy rooftop of my building. Some friends are coming over. Some other friends who live in the building are cooking. It will be super-relaxed. I’ll watch some fireworks and look forward to a happy, healthy new year, which is what I wish for all of you.
What are y’all up to? Outrageous festivities? Lounging at home? Got any good stories of New Year’s Eves past? Tell us how you’re ringing in 2011 in the comments….
I’m with you – I quite enjoyed house parties at one stage but i’ve never been one for standing in freezing crowds waiting for midnight. Increasingly I am also old and curmudgeonly and thus get really annoyed by amateur drinkers on New Year’s Eve, which is completely unreasonable of me.
This year as I have many children and no babysitter we’re staying in and having a good meal. I am very happy about this. I will also probably be sadly asleep before midnight as I am crap (and seven months pregnant).
Most of my Christmas celebrations have happened in Puerto Rico, at my parent’s home with plenty of food and drink and no dress code. One year I stayed in DC and had a stomach flu and stayed in bed watching the Twilight Zone marathon. That is the New Year I remember best.
I make sure I am working New Year’s Eve just so I don’t have to deal with this issue. I would love to just hang out at a friend’s house but it never seems to work out thqt way so I simply skip it. Plus then
I get the bonus sympathy and brownie points from management ^_^
Word, Becky. It’s such a contrived event. If you live where we do, it’s cold and miserable and doesn’t feel like anything new is happening, unlike with Rosh Hashanah, which happens close to the change of seasons. And not being a drinker or enjoying watching other people get wasted means the major activity is out. We used to go out for dinner with another couple, but that has fallen by the wayside, which is fine with me. Overpriced meals, backup staff cooking them, bad roads and bad driving…a combo to avoid.
We went to a couple of First Nights when our kids were younger, and they were okay but I don’t miss doing that.
Best New Year’s celebrations:
a friend’s wedding, which was small and beautiful
Las Vegas, where no one even noticed that it was midnight until 10 minutes later
So I join those who will be going to bed early, and wish all of you a happy, healthy 2011!
My husband is working this weekend, and since he has to get up at 4 a.m. to be to work by 6 a.m. for a 12-hour shift, he’ll be in bed sleeping. I’ll be on my computer, on Pogo, with online friends, playing games and ringing in the new year with them. Which suits me fine, I’m not one for parties and drinking, and I don’t think there’s going to be anything exciting going on in our very small town tonight anyway
You know, unlike Valentine’s Day or even Christmas, I actually find that New Year’s Eve expectations are usually met. I’ve never felt any pressure besides, “Have fun and look good.” It’s like Halloween—as long as I have somewhere to go, it usually works out. The past couple of years we rented a lake house in Austin with a bunch of friends and stood around the fire for New Year’s. But I’ve also gone out to bars and that’s been great. One year, I saw Man or Astroman? play at midnight, and that may have been the most fun ever. There was setting of instruments on fire, champagne, multiple kisses at midnight, and everything.
@Amanda: GIRL, HOLD UP. Setting of instruments on fire? Did Jimi Hendrix manifest for the occasion? Do tell!
Meh. Having an autoimmune condition since I was 10 that responds adversely to lack of sleep, I tend to be in bed way before midnight. Except the year I thought I was going into labor with my 2nd child (who was actually born Jan 3rd). That night I was up counting contractions while neighbors shot off fireworks.
Also, my family tends to treat winter solstice as the beginning of the new year, so the calendar new year seems anticlimatic.
I find that there’s an positive correlation between my enjoyment of a boisterous, minidressed, late night out and my interest in drinking a hell of a lot ~ whether on New Year’s Eve or not. These things all coalesced interestingly in my 20s, but ever since then, the quiet rituals at home and/or with a couple of friends have been so much more enjoyable. And now that I’m nursing, real drunkenness is not an option, so tonight it’s a low-key dinner at the home of neighborhood pals…just perfect.
Marvette, one of the things I miss most about living in the States is the NYE Twilight Zone marathon!
Preach it. Ms. Sharper! I always thought New Year’s was such a hyped holiday, and a total let-down after Christmas. And if you’re not invited to a party, or don’t want to party, you’re a loser. I’m recovering from surgery this year and so of course actually got invited to a party I can’t go to. But my husband, sweet mil and I are just going to nibble on appetizers, drink champagne and watch Snooki go in the ball. Still, I feel like I’m letting new year’s eve down, or something.
It’s true! The keyboardist ended their amazing set by setting his keyboards on fire. It was a classic Gen X moment—a semi-ironic/semi-sincere tribute to Hendrix. The entire night at Emo’s in Austin was pretty great. Daniel Johnston played on the inside stage. I was 23, so, yeah, ten years ago. A male friend of mine kissed all the girls at midnight, whether they had dates or not. I ended up sleeping in a friend who was out of town’s bed.
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by eccentric yoruba, Pursuit of Harpyness. Pursuit of Harpyness said: Why I’m Over New Year’s Eve. http://bit.ly/h43sxZ [...]
Thank you so much for saying that Becky! I was never a NYE celebrator. I much prefer the mundane – a great meal with loved ones, watching some tv and playing “parlour” games (you know, cards, chess, scrabble, trivial pursuit etc). So this year it was the SO and myself eating, drinking (not very much), and playing cards, outside, when the new year was heralded in.
The closest I came to a NYE celebration “on the town”, was a friend I worked with organised a private celebration in a scout hall near one of the prime locations to watch the Sydney (Australia) Harbour fireworks. We ate, danced, drank, talked, and when the fireworks were about to start we could either watch from the hall itself (it was a high rise hall) or join the hoi polloi on the harbour front.
Where I live at the moment, I can see the major fireworks of the harbour from my loungeroom window, if I look north, and I can see the eastern suburbs fireworks, if I look east. So I get to watch (the insanely expensive!) fireworks displays from the comfort of my loungeroom.
I don’t feel like I miss out at all. Navigating drunken crowds and drunken people, waiting 5 hours to get home because there are no taxis and the public transport is congested.
I’m quite happy to have always enjoyed the mundane. Besides, for me, another year begins on my birthday.
I always watch the NYE Twilight Zone marathon. It’s my favorite part of the holiday without a doubt. I used to watch it with my best friend, staying up all night (when we were teenagers), and now I watch it at home, sometimes with my family and sometimes just on my own. Though apparently today SyFy is showing WWE Smackdown from 8-10, which is pretty annoying.
I’m home watching Sesame Street videos in my jammies, it’s awesome and I can’t stop laughing at the Yip Yip aliens.
My best NYE was in HS, when I didn’t drink and felt no pressure to have a night out because I wasn’t allowed to. I had a bunch of geeky friends over and we had an Evil Dead marathon full of MST3K-style commentary. It rocked.
I stopped either wanting to go out or making myself go out for NYE after I moved to NYC, went to a “safe” little neighborhood pub and was drugged and raped and had to go to work the next day being asked constantly how fun was my New Year’s. Not fun at all. I didn’t even want to hear the word New Year’s for years.
Now it’s more neutral, but I’m just putting this out here because I never ever read anything about people being sensitive about how many rapes go down on this night and what people’s association with it might be – a lot more women than just me.
I’m in Montana with my s.o. and my family (his first true foray into redneck-ism). We never did anything here because, quite frankly, there is nothing to do here! 500 people without absolutely nothing around us! It’s sorta fun.
New Year’s in the city is always promoted as more fun, but it’s also where the most pressure exists to “have fun.” At midnight, I intend to be outside, in the middle of nowehere with a totally unobstructed view of everything above and on all four sides. And for the most part, silence. It’s wonderful.
I think the key to going out is to just do things your way. Like, I don’t dress uncomfortably, I don’t do shots, and last night, I left at 2AM instead of 3AM. Makes all the difference.
Yes-boo hiss to NYE and V-day popcult expectations. Last year a friend and I had a party so we wouldn’t have to worry about being invited somewhere (it was a success) and this year I had invitations to three small and fun gatherings. At the smallest (four of us) we laughed so much and so hard mostly about bad dating experiences that my stomach muscles still ached this morning.
@Amanda – that is so true, and I think applies to going out generally…
We’ve been doing quiet NYs for ages. I’m guessing there is a lot less pressure here on partying hard. We go to the occasional house party, but we are also perfectly happy sitting at home, chowing on nibblies, and watching a couple of movies. This year we had a friend over from out of town, so we visited Buchart Gardens for the lights, hauled out the telescope to look at the stars, and ate nibblies and chatted until midnight hit and we could go to bed. lol
I have been sick on New Year’s for probably five out of the last six years (I’m prone to nasty colds), and I honestly have to say that I almost enjoy it now. I like to stay in, watch movies, and sip soup–plus it gives me a great excuse to go to bed early! This year I didn’t even have the usual cough aspect, so it was even better. I may be odd for liking being just sick enough to lay low, but that’s just how I am.
[...] oh, three days ago, when BeckySharper declared that she is over New Year’s Eve? I am too. I am also over resolutions. More specifically, I am over people asking me what I am [...]
@veganmarcy – I’m so, so sorry. And you’re so right – people really aren’t aware of this.
Thanks elibard