So This is the New Year

"So this is the new year." That's one of my favorite lines from one of my favorite groups, Death Cab. I'm not a big fan of New Year's Eve or Day. I just don't really get what the big deal is or what exactly we're celebrating – the passage of time? Sure it's fun to remember all the highlights of the year and talk about hopes for the upcoming year. That's what Z and I did while we drove 3.5 hours to "celebrate" NYE at our friends' apartment in Huntsville. We thought about the good times in our families – a new baby, a new marriage, engagement, new houses, new jobs, our first anniversary; and we also remembered the trying times – the financial difficulty of the summer, breakups of friends, moving away. We then talked about the things we'd love for '09 to bring – a job to our friend who's been looking since he graduated law school with Z in May, a happy marriage to our friend Candace, a puppy for us, a great job for my sister when she graduates, etc. Those are some lofty hopes, to be sure, but if you can't hope on New Year's Eve, when can you?

I am not usually a resolution maker, but this year there are some specific things I'd like to get better about. I'm going to be healthier in '09, read more, bloom where I'm planted, make more friends here in Prattvegas, dwell less on the negative. What are your goals for 2009?

Even though NYE wasn't as much fun as I thought it would be (approximately 7 hours of driving and an allergy attack) and it caused me to spend more than half of my off-day in the car, I suppose it is a little exciting to think of the opportunities a new year brings. You can put the bad parts of '08 behind you and leave them in the past. Even though it sucks that the summer with no income really screwed up our finances and we still haven't recovered, we have devised a new financial plan for '09 and in '10 we are declaring war on the law school student loan.

It feels good to have a plan and know that anything's possible in the new year, even though I still think it's a silly holiday and doesn't in any way compare to Christmas, Easter, or other holidays with a purpose. I'm just saying.