This year, I promised myself - months ago - that I would not sit home, rent a movie and pop in a deep dish pizza on New Year's Eve.
Not that there's anything wrong with that.
Last year, I watched Forgetting Sarah Marshall with my AP while I planned how things were going to be different in 2009 - I was going to have more fun and get more stuff done that personally meant something to me... like write a book.
It was an awesome night because I literally laughed my way into 2009. And it proved to be great medicine for a year that had been quiet and contemplative.
But this year, a movie was out of the question. There was too much to celebrate.
Nor did I wish to play cards with my parents while taking shots of whatever liquor there was in the house.
Not that there's anything wrong with that either.
But like I said to my stepmom:
"No offense Ma, but... I just can't spend New Year's Eve with you guys playing cards. And I don't see myself playing Kinsman Jackpot Bingo again next Saturday either."
Not that there's anything wrong with either of those.
She just laughed and said:
"Good".
Because she understands.
It's New Year's Eve.
And this year it was particularly auspicious because not only were we ushering in a new decade, but...
1. It was a full moon.
2. It was a blue moon (two full moons in the same calendar month - the last one that occured on New Year's Eve was in 1990, the next one will be in 2028).
3. It was also a lunar eclipse - the first one to take place on New Year's Eve in 353 years.
Call me superstitious but WOW.
If the National Geographic AND the L.A. Times are writing about these galactic events then maybe I wasn't that crazy to think that this New Year's Eve I should convince my friends to attend some sort of a formal gathering dressed in as much bling as we could muster on short notice.
After all, the next biggie will occur on New Year's Eve 2012. That's three years away. Given all the build up, the entire planet will no doubt be partying that we actually made it to 2013.
I'm gonna have to start planning for that one like, NOW.
And that party's gonna make every other New Year's Eve bash look like the birthday parties in a Jehovah's Witness family. (And for those of you who don't know, they don't celebrate birthdays).
Oh yeah, 2012 is gonna be somethin' else.
Everyone will be breathing a sigh of relief that we made it through all those Nostradamus predictions and horrible, fear-mongering specials on T.V. that predict the end of the world without so much as a glimmer of conscience as to what it might do to the psyche of the general population that seem to crave drama in their lives to function, let alone for entertainment.
But I digress. Back to New Year's Eve 2009...
We (me n' my two girlfriends) entered our evening with great flair and anticipation, hot curling our hair, donning our frocks with panache, covered in bling and wearing shoes that were bound to hurt our feet after the first hour.
We were doing it up right.
The idea was to dazzle each other and perfect strangers with engaging conversation, star-worthy attitudes, Ginger Rogers dancing finesse and a general sense of well-being that exclaimed (without a hint of reservation):
LOOK OUT 2010! I'M READY FOR YA!
Well, the party I chose was forwarded to me by a dear friend, whom I trust implicitly.
Well, at least I DID.
There were to be singles galore, it was at a nice venue and the dance was reasonably priced.
Perfect.
And it wasn't so much the singles venue as the fact that it was a 'formal' occasion. Not a bar, not a house party, and not a 7/11. (And yes, sadly I've been at one of those buying chips n' a coke when the clock struck twelve).
And best of all, given that this was a last minute decision, there were still tickets available.
Perfect.
Or was it? Maybe that should have been my first clue. I am however, an eternal optimist.
As we made our grand entrance, the scene before us turned out to be... slightly different than any pre-conceived notions I had that I'd missed my calling as the New Year's Eve version of a great wedding planner.
We walked into senior night at the prom.
And I'm not talkin' grade 12.
Now, I'm no spring chicken, but I think I'll let another woman's comment (who was my age) speak for me:
"I don't know about you guys, but I feel like a newborn out there," she said, in the washroom while reapplying her lipstick to impress God-knows-who.
But once the shock wore off - which took all of 5 minutes and one drink - we had a marvelous time.
Because really, it doesn't matter where you are. All that matters is who you're with and what you make of it.
And that's the truth.
The funny thing is, all of us who had made a point of going out that night because we wanted to be 'with the girls' were all texting and phoning the people that mattered to us at midnight to celebrate the New Year with them anyway.
Ain't that the way it goes :)
-----
Cheers to the magic of 2010!
Next - getting down to business - the experiment continues
