This was originally posted last year but with my hiatus and New Years right around the corner, I thought a re-post (with some small changes) was appropriate

Yeah, that is right, you heard me. When did New Year’s Eve go from just some friends getting together at a house to welcome and ring in the new year, to us spending $100 – $300 for tickets to some hotel “party” or downtown disco tech, only to stand in line at the bar for 30 minutes at a time and attempting to find someone you know in a sea of drunken idiot? It could be a week away and we feel compelled to “have plans” for this holiday. Heaven forbid that you should be home alone or in bed asleep, no you must be out in public!

While attempting to come up with plans (so I could be one of those silly people among the masses) for the evening, I stumbled upon rituals and traditions people participate in during the new year. It seems that most countries have the similar celebration of firecrackers and noise makers, but when compared to the rest of the world, the United States looks kind of foolish. There are a few non U.S. websites that try to explain how we celebrate and I couldn’t help but laugh because the we sound like big dopes, all gathered round watching some big electric ball drop, while other countries have long standing customs and traditions usually involving family. And then there are the superstitions! Superstitions for this holiday go from anything to eating black eye peas, to opening the window to “let the old air out”, to kissing at midnight. We are the only country to have the midnight kiss. Where do we come up with these things? When did old wives tales turn from one moment in time into something that we must compare ourselves to each and every year, and if we can’t reach those standards, are met with 365 days of doom?

I sure hope not! Being a single woman on New Year’s isn’t as depressing as the movies make it out to be. When most people think of a single woman ringing in the New Year by herself, we cut to a clip of Bridget Jones Diary, with Renée Zellweger belting out “All by Myself” sloshed on cheap champagne but it can be different. Don’t get me wrong, that may have been how I have felt on the inside in past years but just because we single people lack a significant other, doesn’t mean we are alone.

I believe that I have only had one midnight kiss in my life, maybe back in 2002? Every non lip locking year since then has not been cursed because just like wine, each year keeps getting better and better! If you happen to be alone and a little bit down, just remember, it is just one night. Tomorrow is a new day. Don’t stress about making it a “perfect evening” and “this New Years Eve is going to be the best” because you are only setting yourself up to be let down. Whether you decide to spend this holiday home in bed before 10pm, having a family game night or hitting the dance floor shaking your groove thing, enjoy yourself and celebrate the way YOU want to! Be safe! (No drinking and driving!)