Thursday, December 31, 2009

In With the New

At the Family Christmas Party
Staring boldly into 2010. Note the festive holiday garb--you will be seeing more of this sweater vest shortly, I promise.

Goodness, me, look at the time! It's December 31. Anything you still need to do before the end of the year? I was going to take a bunch of stuff to Goodwill, but instead I took Hank to the doctor. He has an ear infection in both ears. His cold was finally going away, very slowly, but then he woke up this morning complaining that his ear hurt. I'm very glad I took him instead of starting into the long weekend with a sick kid. And did you know that the Publix pharmacy gives free oral antibiotics? There's a list of several common drugs that they will give you, up to a 14 day supply. Awesome. It's how the world should be.

I do love New Year's Eve. A long time ago I had the realization that I love this occasion so much because I never have any particular expectations for it. You can celebrate with many other people or just one, and it can be lively or it can be a little solemn. More than Christmas or other holidays, I love hearing people's stories of what they did.

For some reason, one New Year's celebration that is sticking in my mind today is years ago, I can't remember what year it was turning. We were up on the rooftop of the Pickle Barrel in downtown Chattanooga. This must have been in the late 90's because we hadn't moved to California yet. The town fathers had promised a display of "European Style" fireworks--my my how sophisticated!--so we were all up on the roof getting merry. I sat down on a chair that had a puddle of ice water in it. Two people were making out near us. One had yellow hair and one had blue, and Matt leaned over to me and said, "Their baby's hair is going to be a lovely green." At the stroke of twelve the fireworks began. Hmm, we thought. They must be just getting warmed up, because these are rather underwhelming. No big explosions or shapes. Like a slightly less exciting Roman candle, and kind of fizzly. And then they were over and the air smelled like a poot. So for years, in our household, anything that should be cool but kind of sucks is dubbed "European style." Sorry Europe, you are awesome, but what I saw that night from the Pickle Barrel did not do you justice.

I need to scurry to the kitchen and start fixing our New Year's Eve supper. Salmon cakes are a big favorite around here, and I just realized that I could have been calling them "galettes" all this time, thus upping our fancy quotient. Thanks, Mark Bittman. So we're having salmon galettes, y'all! Also champagne, and I am certain, pitchers of our usual cosmo potion as the night wears on.

Happy New Year to you from the Suburban Matron family! Have fun and lemme know what goes down at your place.

Oh, and to quote Garrison Keillor, from his anti-boastful family Christmas letter, "We hope to be able to meet the challenges of the coming year, but we are by no means confident."

12 comments:

Coffee with Cathy said...

Hope you have a wonderful celebration, Becky. And I do believe we were there in C'nooga for that New Year's Eve, too -- or at least one sometime that sounds very like it. I'm spending my New Year's Eve in my husband's newspaper office -- sports doesn't care that nobody else is working tonight, you know!

Bren said...

For the big 2000 turnover, some band was playing in the downtown square for the big small-town celebration, and the lead singer yells "Happy Birthday America!" at the stroke of midnight. So we've tended to wish our country a happy birthday if we're still awake.

Anonymous said...

thanks for reminding me that i love garrison keillor. i have forgotten about him.
we are playing wii and having champagne later. it's all good with me.

Hootie said...

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMERICA! That was great... the band was called Big Sky.

I do remember NYE in Kissimmee. At midnight you could go outside and hear celebratory gunshots. I kid you not. As if they were saying, "We survived another year without getting hit by random gunfire!"

Anonymous said...

My New Year's celebration style seems to be clashing with those around me. Last night there was a raging party downstairs in my house, but I chose to stay in my room and watch True Blood reruns, then went to my fiance's place of work just before midnight to clink flutes of Great Value ginger ale. Then I came home and went to bed.

Amy said...

More pics please! That is hilarious about the "European style"! It reminds me of your first disappointing experience with a "continental breakfast".

HNY!

The Stiletto Mom said...

Goodness, you two are so cute!!!

Hope you had a great holiday season Matron...and I hope I have the pleasure of seeing you again in 2010!

Anonymous said...

I always had these big expectations of New Year's Eve, actually. When I was single, at least. I always hoped that I would meet this beautiful guy that night that had somehow eluded me 364 days of the year and we would kiss when the clock struck 12. So when we counted the seconds down in a friend's hot tub this year and the snow glistened down around us, I felt very grateful that I had my beautiful husband sitting right next to me. Happy New Year.

Zion said...

What a fun memory. Love the hair color comment! That Garrison Keillor quote is great too, I had never heard that one before.

Sara said...

ha! My mom had a very regrettable Christmas vest gifted to her this year.

"European Style" excellent!

We watched the 3 Stooges marathon with family & friends on the eve, then spent all morning January 1 in bed (blissfully un-hungover) with coffee, watching the Looney Tunes marathon wondering if it could 'get any better than this.'

Yay 2010. Only 2 more years til the end of Mayan civilization. Let's make the most of it!

Michele R said...

Happy New Year Becky!
I always like 12/31. No matter what we do. It is after 1/1 that I don't like...taking down the tree..all the excitement over...going back to work...dealing with middle school...

Amy said...

Jeez, I guess leaving for the unconnected FL cottage on Jan 1 is why I missed this the first time round. That's such a great photo... and I love the reminisce. European style, yes... isn't that what the cheap-o cabinets, white laminate with fake wood trim and NO HANDLES are called? Further evidence!!

That Matt is, like, stand-up funny.