It all started back in gradeschool with my first New Year's Eve sleepover at my best friend's house. The countdown would be on while we'd blast some music and dance around on the bricks of the fireplace, singing into a hairbrush like it was our microphone. And once the ball dropped, we'd pop the Martinelli's apple cider for a toast and then run up and down the street banging pots & pans. (The neighbors must have loved us.) Then we'd crawl into our sleeping bags on the living room floor and gossip till we fell asleep. We'd wake the next morning still exhausted from the night before. We'd stay snuggled up in our sleeping bags, wearing our jammies as long as we could, and would watch the Rose Parade on the tiny color tv until my mom came to collect me for the day. If I was lucky, I'd get to head straight home and curl up on the couch and continue to watch the Rose Parade. And one year my mom even took me to see the floats in person that day. I felt so tiny next to those floral creations, and was awestruck with the notion that just hours beforehand, I had seen these floats on tv!
The years passed, and the New Year's sleepovers continued until we finally got too old/got boyfriends/started hanging out in different circles. But we never forgot the fun we'd had. And after all these years we're still best friends, and both have very fond memories of that time in our lives.
But I never fully let go of our tradition. Every time I hear the song "Bust a Move," I'm instantly transported back into time when a hairbrush was my microphone. And every year, I still make plans for New Year's Day to sleep in, stay in my jammies as long as possible, and watch the Rose Parade.
This year was a bit different since the parade was on the 2nd instead of the 1st, but tradition is tradition. And so, I slept in, stayed in my jammies, and watched the repeat telecast of the Rose Parade... and this year I was joined by one of my other best friends.
Happy New Year to you all! May 2012 bring you lots of joy. Be sure to make lots of memories... and don't forget to take pictures along the way!
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