Fast Fiction

This is probably not a good topic for me. I know that many people really like New Years, but I find it actually a more made up holiday than Valentine’s Day or Mother’s Day.

I like the day off and all, but really, we’re just marking the change of one revolution around the Sun. I’m not sure why that’s a big deal any more than the Moon going once around the Earth. I guess maybe that it only happens once a year is a big deal - since that’s they way we’ve designed holidays.

Anyway, I digress. So here are the questions and answers.

1. Did you make plans before last minute this year?

Boy howdy! We had plans in August. This year, as a special divergence from our usual have a few people over for New Year’s and all doze off in the living room before 11 from the rich food, The Man had a small high school reunion. We went to an Inn in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania (practically took over the place) on the 30th and spent three days there.

2. What were your plans?

We had a lovely dinner at the fine restaurant on site and then retired to the parlor where we sat around reading off Trivial Pursuit questions from the 80s edition, drinking fine wine and then around midnight we held up someone’s cell phone (no TVs) for the countdown. I was in bed by 1AM.

3. Have you ever sprung for a New Year’s party at a club/restaurant? If so, where?

Well, there was the “Milennium.” That year The Man was touring the globe with Disney’s Fantasia 2000 - which was performing with a live orchestra to the film. For New Year’s they did a huge party at the Pasadena Civic where they did the film/orchestra performance (I’d seen it in NY at Carnegie Hall a few weeks earlier, and then they went on to London, Paris & Tokyo). Dinner/Movie/Party. Chicago played the party, which was very nice. The Man was of course busy with the lights but managed to sneak me into the light booth a few minutes before midnight.

Other than that (and one time when I was on a plane going back to college after break where we celebrated two changing’s of the year), I like to keep things low-key.

4. Drinking this year. In excess, in moderation, not at all?

Well, a couple of years ago I made a resolution to start drinking. It was a big deal for me, as I really had never had much to drink in my life. I’m trying to shed my abstinence ways and integrate myself a little more into society. So now I drink and swear regularly. Of course I go through long periods where I don’t drink (months at a time), so I’ve never truly developed a tolerance for the stuff and one drink can get me quite buzzed. (I’m a cheap date!) I’m looking forward to martinis this year. I’d call 2004 the year of Gin. While out to dinner with my sister I had a great lemon martini which was just lemon vodka and limoncella - a little sweeter than the typical recipe, but really packs a whallop.

5. How were you feeling New Year’s day?

We had a great time. We went to Hershey Park and Chocolate World. Say what you will about the commericialization and industrial chocolate, it was fun. It was really a good day, we had spent several days with The Man’s oldest and dearest friends (whom I consider my friends as well) and had just come off a great visit with my family and I was looking forward to leaving the next day to return to Los Angeles.

6. Rose Parade. Still interesting, played out, or a tradition that will never die?

I’m rarely interested. No TV the whole trip, so I missed it completely. I’ve always had a personal policy to avoid Pasadena from December 30th through January 2nd. One of these days I want to go look at the floats though, up close.

7. Rose Bowl. Game worth watching, or just a good excuse to rub our sunny (then) weather in the face of Michigan fans?

Snooze. I can’t say that I’ve ever actually watched a bowl game. Hell, besides a few games The Man watches each year, I have seen very little football in my lifetime. There’s a resolution for you. Less football.

8. What resolution have you made that you have no intention of keeping?

I haven’t really publicized my resolutions. Keep fit, more charity, be nicer, be firm (I have a tendency to overextend myself), don’t throw up, enjoy the things I have. (Okay, there was no order to that at all.)

As was pointed out to me by Russ, I really shouldn’t resolve to not throw up, as it’s often necessary for the body to expel things. So maybe I need to clarify that I’d like to not need to throw up, which is really a useless resolution because either you get food poisoning or stomach flu or not. We have little control over these things. Maybe I’m just saying that I won’t be bulemic, which is a silly resolution, because people who know me know that I’m probably on the low side of body-obsession. (Of course I’ve already got a hot bod, why would I have any body shame?)

Of course I regard 2004 as a crappy year. I mean, I came out of okay but there are hundreds of thousands in Asia that didn’t. My grandfather passed away. I had the worst case of bronchitis in my life that went on for two months (what a way to start 2004) and the torn intercostals lasted for eight months. Car accident. Dog freaking out. Then surgery. Long recovery. Overextended. Food poisoining.

In all of this, there were great things though: Wonderful vacation. Deeper relationships with those around me. Whalewatching class. Another novel under my belt.

So, I have high hopes for 2005. As The Man has coined it - 2005: The Year of Fun!