A Shotgun, A Case Of Whiskey, And Some Beef Jerky

How many outstanding New Years Eves have you had?

I’ve had a few, but I’m certain that none of them happened after the age of 26. Over the past decade there have been nice nights spent with friends (both of the buddy and special lady varieties), but nothing wild or crazy or particularly memorable. And I’ve been happy with those because the alternative (paying a big cover charge to hang out with strangers in places I probably wouldn’t visit while sober) were never better.

Way back in that other millennium, as we getting ready to crash into the year 2000, there were a lot of people who really believed every single computer would malfunction and reign chaos throughout the world. I’m not sure of the exact figures, but if you had looked in the water or battery aisle of your local supermarket on December 31, 1999 you would have found little or none of both items.

I remember saying that I was going to barricade myself on the balcony of my apartment with a shotgun, a case of whiskey, and some beef jerky. I believe Dennis Leary says something to that effect in one of his songs, and to me it sounded Right. But for some reason (maybe it was the 30 day waiting period for the permit . . . ) I ended going back to Massachusetts for that “special night”.

Well . . . sadly, the global computer crash never materialized. New Years Eve 1999 was mostly like ones that preceded it. An okay time.

I have ambivalent feelings about New Years Eve. I’m not one of those people who piss on it and say it means nothing, but neither do I believe it’s a night where I MUST have plans. Although it can just be viewed as an arbitrary date, the beginning of a new year is something to toast for its symbolic meaning. It’s a rebirth, with new chances to make things right.

Of course that only works if you really believe it. Resolutions can be a good thing if you’re able to convince yourself that you have a “do-over” to make things right. Whether it’s lose weight, save money, drink less, eat better or whatever, most people give-up because they forget why they decided to begin a goal on January 1st. Eventually people will say, the New Year really doesn’t mean anything, I’ll do it later . . . which negates any the good feelings of the clean slate you were supposed to give yourself.

“If you will it, it is no dream.”
- Theodor Herzl (and Walter Sobchak)

But now we are getting into metaphysics, and that’s a tangent for another time and place. What I’m really trying to get to here is that it would be nice, every few years or so, to celebrate New Years Eve in style. It would be wonderful to gather all my friends together and party like it’s 1999 . . . but the logistics are of course impossible. There’s vast distances and babies and competing commitments and all sorts of forces aligning against a party where all my friends of the last 20 years get together for a night.

So tonight in San Francisco, I’ll just have to settle for the whiskey and beef jerky.

Here’s to being better in 2008.

*****

And with that, the blog is officially closed for the winter.

I must board up the shutters. Under the umbrella of “being better”, I need to focus all my free time on completing my 2nd novel. And with new responsibilities at work and taking classes at Berkeley, my hours available for creative ventures are scant. So I thank everybody who spent time reading my blog.

You stay classy.