December 31, 2009

Today is the last day of the year. The last day of 2009.

So what's the big deal? The only memorable thing will be that from now on for days we will be writing the 2009 dates on our checks and everywhere else. It will be hard to get used to the new date. We had 365 days to get used to this one.

Otherwise this day will be gone just like any of the thousands of days in our lives.

Right now it is snowing in New York. I am starting to write this at 10:30 am and there are already people staking out their grounds on Times Square for tonight's events. It is absolutely stupid to the nth degree.

They are restricted into police created corrals. Once they leave they can not return. There are also no toilet facilities. In this cold that is unbelievable. What one does when he/she has to go?

And still, people are there already. Human stupidity knows no boundaries.

Anyway, back to today. I realized how lucky I am that I am a Jew. We can wish at least twice a year a Happy New Year. That should mean double luck, right?

When I worked, I had Indian and Chinese colleagues. They went by their own calendars. That meant two more New Years. For a total of four Happy New Years a year I still had to leave and retire.

Maybe too many Happy New Years don't really add up to a really Happy New Year.

In Hungary New Year's Eve is called Sylvester (or Szilveszter in Hungarian). Sylvester was a pope from from 314 to 335. He died on December 31 and that day is when he is celebrated. Thus the name for New Year's Eve in Hungary and in many other European countries..

And I was always in the belief that his claim to fame was that he invented the New Year's Eve Party.

I am continuing the writing at 6 pm. The snow stopped much earlier, it is 34 degrees outside but the crowd grew on Times Square. I went to relieve myself a few times since I wrote the first part. Those people are still holding it in. It is an unbelievable human feat.

I figured out that this is my 72nd Szilveszter. After a while they become kind of monotonous. As the saying goes 'there is nothing new under the sun'.

Why do people need an excuse to get filthy drunk, to make total fools of themselves and party until they collapse? They can do it any other day just the same. They do it on Super Bowl, Spring Break, Fourth of July and whenever they want to.

We can't say this was an uneventful year.

We have a new President, our economy collapsed, GM went bankrupt, a top golfer's score card shows several birdies and my wife and I got the cold. By the way, we still have it.

So, I honestly hope and wish that next year will be better for everybody.

I am taking this opportunity to wish to all our friends a Happy and Healthy New Year.


P.s: I would love to be a neutered fly on the wall at the golfer's New Years Eve party. A young fly because my old heart wouldn't be able to take the excitement.