Random New Year Thoughts

Some people have traditions for New Year’s Eve and the day after.  Not me.  There’s never been a trill or a tradition or anything.

I confess that in my adulthood, I’m kind of a sucker for traditions.  I like to add meaning to things these days.  It’s probably a sign of old age, but at 28-years-old, I’m starting a little early with that.

So, last night was a little different then past New Year’s Eve nights for me.  When I was a kid, the ball dropping was a sign that I had about 5 minutes to run to my bedroom and get to sleep.  When I was married, we always talked about going out but doofus didn’t want to drive with “all the drunks” on the road and always said we should book a hotel room or a resort or something.  One year we did go to Vegas, but I was sick and, honestly, by then I was already not digging the fact that only one of us was working and only one of us was interested in gambling – not the same one.

Last year, what I call year 0 in my new freedom, I had a few drinks with some of my tamer friends and then went home to my aging dog and the fact that in a few days my mother would be heading in for aortic valve replacement. 

This year, things were a lot less stressful.  This year I had time to imagine how they got Dick Clark back in front of the camera.  Spray paint hair…check.  Animatronics wired and charged….check.  I imagine the sounds of the doors opening to where he’s kept the other 364 days of the year and I confess the sound effects and the image of this in my head are eerily similar to Dracula with Bela Lugosi.  Dick Clark doesn’t drink….wine.  I get that the guy wants to do this and it’s admirable that he does get out of bed in the morning (at least one day a year), but shouldn’t he retire already?  I don’t want to make fun of the guy, but it’s really hard not to:  stick your tongue out, then without pulling your tongue in start counting backwards from 10….okay…tell me you didn’t laugh, just a little.  Impossible!!

Anyway, last night I enjoyed an evening with good friends.  We played some games, ate some food, laughed a lot.  Each of my friends is unique and quirky and a little “different.”  That’s probably why they’re my friends.  I love them all.  I went home, played with the dog, turned on the police scanner and listened to the cops responding to calls of “there’s a passed out woman in the bathroom at (BAR X), owners request assistance and ambulance.”  Which of course makes me laugh, because I’m mean.  Just the thought of someone spending the first few hours of the new year, passed out with their hose around their ankles and sitting on the john with vomit trickling down the front of their nice “going out” shirt makes  me realize that no matter how much life throws at me…at least I don’t have to wake up in the ER after being rescued from THAT.

Today I put the Christmas stuff up in my attic for another year, cleaned the house, did some laundry, made a Chinese stir fry.  Would have taken the dog to the dog park, but the thought of the mud scared me.  Now, I’m sitting here at my computer writing this blog and letting the weight of my New Year’s resolution crush me.

Yes, that’s right.  Today is the first day of “training.”  I have to get up and take the dog for a walk still….a “brisk five-minute warm up walk” followed by more walking.  Tomorrow I head out to my friend Nancy’s for a few hours.  Have to buy some shoes, possibly some other appropriate running attire as I will be running/walking outside.  Onward to the 5k in July. What in the hell was I thinking?