I found that existential angst and ennui would hit me hard on new year's; and spending it in crowds of drunk people attempting to have the time of their lives only made it worse, so I would stay home and be anti social instead. I can't recall when the ennui and angst stopped visiting on NYE, but my habit of staying home and avoiding all the peoplely places is locked in.
I've now reached the stage of life where I don't even bother to stay up and watch the new year tick over, I just finish watching whatever I've chosen to amuse myself with for the evening (last night it was Carry On, which was a delightfully non cerebral (literal) airport thriller on Netflix) and retire to bed with the feline overlords. Bliss.
ABSOLUTE bastards. I lucked into the luxury of working from home full time a couple of years ago and you will drag me back into an office kicking and screaming.
I got cured of the "seeing in the new year" thing years ago when I was still (relatively) young. We lived next door to the local haymaking contractor - which meant our property was his first job after Christmas at home with the family. Long story short it meant that our hay got baled on either the 31st or the 1st. Either way you were totally knackered after a hard day in the sun getting all the bales in the barn on New Years Eve, or knew you couldn't tackle the job on New Years Day after partying hard past midnight. When we finally quit the country life for a city apartment we discovered the joys of long lunches in the sun and early nights. And yeah - getting up early the next day and having the world to yourself while everyone else sleeps it off - never gets old.
I have to say that AI generated pic is close to the balcony at the North Bondi RSL Club!
I too ceased making an utter knob of myself at NYE a while back. Have gone into town with the family for the fireworks - to the ticketed event at the Observatory twice (good!) and the Maritime Museum (also good!). Even got home on the bus ok. The other option with the (then) kids was to walk up the road to a local vantage point above the Bondi Golf Course looking toward the Harbour Bridge for the excellent view and enjoying the spectacle of a young lady visibly showing she had hit the drinks limit by spewing her guts out nearby (got that twice too!). I've tended toward less drinking too due to doing the morning patrol with the surf club a few times on New Years Day, with the smattering of poleaxed punters laying on the beach!
ahh, i'm in that old person boat as well. My bday is 3 days later so that kind of takes precedence. And its a big one this week #50!
I think we started not caring about nye a while ago. They dwindled to nothing. Plus, like you said, there is nothing better than getting up before the sun on this most arbitrary of dates and watching the new world rise (and realising its just the same as yesterday except you have to try and remember that the 4 becomes a 5 when you write it down)
The nye that sticks in my mind was before kids. We were living in the inner west and decided to trek in for the harbour fireworks. But we had a metric shit tonne of time (this was in the days before you had to line up 24hrs to stake a spot). So we decided to wander in and watch return of the king in the seedy George st cinemas. It was daylight and fairly normal when we went in. But when we came out it was like we'd passed through some kind of portal into a zombie apocalypse. It was that disorienting light when you go in twilight when you come out. Instead of zombies there were drunk people everywhere. Vomiting in the streets, rubbish blowing around like tumbleweeds, groups of guys harrassing anyone getting too close. It was like 2hrs before the first lot of fireworks. And it only got worse the closer you got to the north end of town (we foolishly decided to stroll to waste more time). By the time we hit circular quay it was horrendous - we jumped straight on the train and went home where it turns out we could see the fireworks from our balcony.
I found that existential angst and ennui would hit me hard on new year's; and spending it in crowds of drunk people attempting to have the time of their lives only made it worse, so I would stay home and be anti social instead. I can't recall when the ennui and angst stopped visiting on NYE, but my habit of staying home and avoiding all the peoplely places is locked in.
I've now reached the stage of life where I don't even bother to stay up and watch the new year tick over, I just finish watching whatever I've chosen to amuse myself with for the evening (last night it was Carry On, which was a delightfully non cerebral (literal) airport thriller on Netflix) and retire to bed with the feline overlords. Bliss.
You and me both mate. If I do go out on New years eve, it's to a mate's place for a bbq, and then home by 9pm, as most of my mates have kids etc.
I have zero issue spending time alone. I'd like more of it, but work insists we come into the office 4 days a week. Bastards.
ABSOLUTE bastards. I lucked into the luxury of working from home full time a couple of years ago and you will drag me back into an office kicking and screaming.
I got cured of the "seeing in the new year" thing years ago when I was still (relatively) young. We lived next door to the local haymaking contractor - which meant our property was his first job after Christmas at home with the family. Long story short it meant that our hay got baled on either the 31st or the 1st. Either way you were totally knackered after a hard day in the sun getting all the bales in the barn on New Years Eve, or knew you couldn't tackle the job on New Years Day after partying hard past midnight. When we finally quit the country life for a city apartment we discovered the joys of long lunches in the sun and early nights. And yeah - getting up early the next day and having the world to yourself while everyone else sleeps it off - never gets old.
I leave my fireworks experiences to the nutters who find some quiet street and ‘bomb’ the place before scarpering.
I have to say that AI generated pic is close to the balcony at the North Bondi RSL Club!
I too ceased making an utter knob of myself at NYE a while back. Have gone into town with the family for the fireworks - to the ticketed event at the Observatory twice (good!) and the Maritime Museum (also good!). Even got home on the bus ok. The other option with the (then) kids was to walk up the road to a local vantage point above the Bondi Golf Course looking toward the Harbour Bridge for the excellent view and enjoying the spectacle of a young lady visibly showing she had hit the drinks limit by spewing her guts out nearby (got that twice too!). I've tended toward less drinking too due to doing the morning patrol with the surf club a few times on New Years Day, with the smattering of poleaxed punters laying on the beach!
ahh, i'm in that old person boat as well. My bday is 3 days later so that kind of takes precedence. And its a big one this week #50!
I think we started not caring about nye a while ago. They dwindled to nothing. Plus, like you said, there is nothing better than getting up before the sun on this most arbitrary of dates and watching the new world rise (and realising its just the same as yesterday except you have to try and remember that the 4 becomes a 5 when you write it down)
The nye that sticks in my mind was before kids. We were living in the inner west and decided to trek in for the harbour fireworks. But we had a metric shit tonne of time (this was in the days before you had to line up 24hrs to stake a spot). So we decided to wander in and watch return of the king in the seedy George st cinemas. It was daylight and fairly normal when we went in. But when we came out it was like we'd passed through some kind of portal into a zombie apocalypse. It was that disorienting light when you go in twilight when you come out. Instead of zombies there were drunk people everywhere. Vomiting in the streets, rubbish blowing around like tumbleweeds, groups of guys harrassing anyone getting too close. It was like 2hrs before the first lot of fireworks. And it only got worse the closer you got to the north end of town (we foolishly decided to stroll to waste more time). By the time we hit circular quay it was horrendous - we jumped straight on the train and went home where it turns out we could see the fireworks from our balcony.