My New Year’s Through the Years

Is it as exciting as it used to be?

Here comes the New Year again (I should call it the Western New Year to differentiate from other cultures’ New Year celebrations). Are you eagerly awaiting the getting together with friends, the partying, and waiting for the countdown? Or are you just going to stay at home and celebrate? Is it as exciting as it used to be? I remember ‘back when I was young’, how my friends and I looked forward to it. There would be house parties to go to, in fact several, on the same New Year’s Eve night. That was before the disco and club scene for us youths took off. Back then, ‘nightclubs’ were the places that only grown-ups could go to. For us teenagers it was house parties, and we’d make the rounds driving around with a friend who managed to borrow the family car (I use the word “borrowed” somewhat loosely), checking in on three or four of them, and there would be the one house that we would aim to be at for the countdown.

House parties, disco, club scene were the go-to places for countdown then.

A little later on house parties became less popular and we’d meet up at a disco instead, again stopping in at a couple before ending up at the current agreed-upon hotspot to end the night. Those were different times when places weren’t so crowded, with no strict enforcement of the legal drinking age, and no police roadblocks checking for drunk-driving. I must say, though, that we were generally quite responsible and stayed out of trouble. At twenty-one I was a working musician and for the next 15 years or so, New Year’s Eve was a regular night on the job for me, entertaining people as they partied. It became a night like any other on the job, and if any friends came over I only had time to catch up with them during band breaks and often they’d move on to another place while we were playing.

As musician for over 15 years, I entertained people as they partied.

Even when I wasn’t working that night, going out wasn’t as enjoyable as it was before. Clubs had become overcrowded, and after squeezing your way through to the bar it took 10 minutes or more to order and get a drink, and another 20 minutes to get your change after paying. That’s if you could get to the club in the first place and get through the door. People would be stuck for hours in traffic and end up welcoming the New Year sitting in their cars.

If it seems more appealing to have a few friends over a fairly quiet evening.

So now, fellow seniors, how will you be welcoming in the New Year? I reckon boozy partying till dawn isn’t that high on the list anymore, right? The idea of having a few friends over for a fairly quiet evening probably seems more appealing. I’m sure there are some who don’t even bother waiting up until midnight any more. Get a good night’s sleep and see what the next day brings, there’s nothing wrong with that either. Happy New Year!

Let's cherish every precious moments with our families and loved ones.