WHAT ARE YOU DOIN' NEW YEARS???

Don't you hate that question? As if you don't have something gloriously and carefully planned, you're some kind of loser.  How could you possibly be doin' nothin' on New Year's Eve?  It's the grandest, most exciting of all evenings--- they would have us think---yes, full of laughter, comradie, lots of food and drink, all wrapped up in hopes for better days ahead. But the hype often does not live up to real life---the food is usually always over priced, the drinks way too many, the laughter a bit forced, and the company, if not carefully chosen, not the best.

Some of the worst New Year's Eves I've spent have been in public places, with everyone dressed to the hilt---the men in tuxedos, too small and too old, and the women gowned and dripping in jewelry.  The champagne flowed, the chatter was stiflingly polite or boorishly loud, the food a welcome respite from the chatter, followed by the requisite dancing done on a crowded postage stamp floor, all to be climaxed by the midnight kiss, which somehow always seems over done, presumed, and not at all romantic.

I love romantic , dinner out of the house New Year's Eves, and I've had a few, but in general, I find that New Year's Eve, and especially parties, rarely live up to the expectations of fantastically good times. Much better to spend it intimately with friends or family. Some of my best memories are of when the children were still of an age when we would gather around the dinner table and insist that everyone come up with a new year's resolution---I don't remember any of them, but I do remember their little faces and hoping fervently that their futures would be bright.

So, while I hope you're not doin' nothin', staying in, and all alone this New Year's, take note that sometimes it's not so bad, because it's not always so great out there---at least you won't have to nurse a hangover the next day, or worry whether you've said the wrong thing at the party the night before.  I recently did when I asked a man how his wife was---only I used the name of his former wife, not the present one.  So, now one of my many resolutions is to rehearse myself and all names before allowing myself out in public again.

Cheers, everyone---2012 is coming round the mountain, and is bound to have within it some good times.  No one promised us a rose garden, did they? Just a chance to live in one----weeds and all. It may not be Eden, but it's all we've got for now.  May you find a few roses among the thorns, and may the garden gate swing open to wonderful new vistas, full of promise, love, laughter, and good health.  Isn't that all we really need??

Once while visiting Israel, I learned from some Jewish friends an old favorite Hebrew toast---"L'chaim"--"-to life!!! " They, of all people, know the true secret of life---life! Happy New Year!!!