Happy Oo Near

I hate the expectation that New Year's Eve has to be a big wonderful party with someone to kiss at midnight. No matter where I am, or who (if anyone) I am with, it seems to be disappointing, like my life doesn't live up to the fairy tale presented to us by TV and movies.

So, for the past few years, I've opted out of New Year's Eve. I buy myself a half-bottle of champagne, turn on the TV and try to stay awake until midnight. If I'm particularly tipsy, I'll crank up some tunes and dance around the living room (which happens on an alarmingly frequent basis, actually). Sometimes I'll even make myself a decent meal (perhaps even a meal that requires the oven and the stove to be used).

It's a ritual that I've gotten fond of, and it never even occurred to me to do anything else this year.

I had the big idea that last night that I was going to write a wonderful, meaningful year-in-review type blog posting. Something in tune with the reflection we all go through at this time of year, whether we want to or not.

So, I sat down with my glass of wine at 4 pm and proceeded to read a bunch of my own archives. It has been a crazy year, and a certain amount of reflection is actually kinda necessary. But, I never got around to writing that post.

At about 8, I called my study buddy in Regina to touch base on our assignment (which I have not even done the reading for, so needless to say, I was no help, whatsoever), and we wound up yakking for four-and-a-half-hours.

That's right. I spent four-and-a-half hours on the phone with a man I met once (a week ago, on Christmas Eve, because he happened to be in town and wished to have a face to match the name). And, you know what? It was a freaking great way to spend New Year's Eve - sharing stories and discovering common areas of interest with a potential new friend. It was a very special end to this particularly craptastic year and an awesome beginning to the new one, where things can go nowhere but up.

Happy New Year, everyone. I hope that wherever you are, you are doing what you want to do.