Ask Slashdot: What Is Your New Years Eve Tradition? 256
skade88 writes "What does the Slashdot community do to celebrate New Years Eve? Does your city do something cool and unique to celebrate? Do you celebrate with fireworks in front of your house, or in your favorite MMO (WoW, Minecraft, etc.)?"
None of the above...maybe (Score:4, Interesting)
A day to relax (Score:4, Interesting)
Today's Devil's Panties [thedevilspanties.com] said it best I think.
"We could stay at home and drink hot coca in our pajamas."
I would add 'while sitting on the couch watching movies with my wife' to that though...
Waiting... (Score:4, Interesting)
Two things... (Score:5, Interesting)
2. Use a handheld spotlight I have to signal a house on one of the hills around me, ever since about 4 years ago, I randomly shined my light up there, and they signaled back.
I call it "Monday Night" (Score:5, Interesting)
Today is Monday, tomorrow is Tuesday. Tonight marks one complete rotation (roughly) of our planet around our sun.
I have no idea what my community is doing, but I plan to treat it as any other night, with the exception that I get tomorrow off. As I've grown older (27, for reference) and gotten out and lived on my own I find that annual celebrations hold little meaning to me, including my own birthday. If I'm going to celebrate, it's going to be for a relevant, contemporary event. If I'm going to make changes to my life, it's going to be when I realize those changes need to be made, not some arbitrary date. If I want to get together with loved ones, I'll do it when the urge strikes (at least, in so far as those I want to spend time with are also available.)
(Of course, I've no friends, no close relatives, and am anti-social, so my view could be skewed.)
ritual cleaning (Score:4, Interesting)
It's dull, but I usually spend the evening at home with a bottle of wine, cleaning the house, rearranging the furniture... generally getting things ready for another fresh start on a new year. Tomorrow morning I'll probably fix pancakes, take down the holiday lights from the front porch, and... begin.
Re:being older and wiser... (Score:5, Interesting)
Me too. It's a tradition in my immediate family not to travel during the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year. Those are dangerous times to be on the road, and you don't want your holiday memories to be of sitting in the emergency room or dealing with a death in the family. (Been there, did that, never again.) We take time off in January to see close relatives and May to see the ones that are further away.
Re:.. yay :) (Score:4, Interesting)
This. I don't have any traditions, really. The wife makes a big deal out of cooking black eyed peas and cabbage, tells us that it's good luck. I think she's just spent all the money on Christmas, and doesn't have any money left to cook a real dinner, but I'm not arguing with her.
Mostly, I just reminisce about where I've spent previous New Year days. A bar in Daytona, hanging with bikers. Smashing through mountainous waves in the North Sea. Palma Mallorca, Spain. Indian Ocean. Adak, Alaska. Winter Harbor, Maine. Oh yeah, the bar on Long Island, where they kicked me out for asking a woman - well, let's not go there, LMAO!!
And I wonder where all those people from my past are today, which of them are alive.
The new year isn't the same once you pass your 50th birthday.
Tonight, I'm just browsing the internet, hoping my dumbass kids aren't doing anything very stupid. At least I talked the youngest into leaving his motorcycle at home. He's driving my car. If he should meet a drunk, the car is much more survivable.
Re:My Dad shot rifles into the air on New Years... (Score:5, Interesting)
So if you want to celebrate your 2nd amendment rights, do a Cheney and aim at someone, rather than doing an afghan and shooting in the air?
Well, as my old drill sergeant said, "Do not ever pull the trigger unless you are aiming it at a target. Ever."
What about warning shots, one of the guys asked. He was told that this applied to warning shots too - you aim and fire at the ground, and better not miss.
The same rule held for blanks, "full family" setting, suppressive fire and empty chambers. Woe be unto any poor sod who pulled the trigger without aiming.
I think it was a very good rule.