New Year’s Eve 2023

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The last day of the year was such a pleasant one for me. I had no expectations and just enjoyed the day’s unfolding. There was only one service at church, and it was later than usual for me. I knew David was running the sound board. He is always quick to notice when a mike should be muted or turned on. I wondered why he was later than usual coming home. He said people were saying goodbye to him. He intends to move as soon as he finds a place, wanting to be more independent.

We wanted to go out to eat at a nearby restaurant and juggled our choice of three. Barbecue won. The franchise owner was there working and welcomed us warmly.

During the afternoon and evening I talked or texted with all my blood relatives. I’m sure that’s a record. Most unusual was welcoming the new year six hours ahead with Lise. She stood at her window and aimed the camera at her street where people were setting off fireworks. Danes are addicted to fireworks, especially at this time of year. They were using powerful ones that we would reserve for football fields or riverbanks. Dangerous? Oh! My! Yes! Cars and pedestrians wove their way around the explosions. Ash and debris rained down, which is why Lise kept the window closed. This began at dusk and continued beyond the usual 4:00 a.m. quitting time. Street cleaners pick up all the spent casings starting at 5:00. It was all exciting and fun from across the ocean.

I chatted with Kate, and David came in while we were on the phone. They talked shop for a long time, while I was making a quiche. Both work full time in supermarkets. As they talked, David was watching the Danish fireworks with Lise and telling his mother what was going on. I texted with John $ and Rose, three hours behind me. I didn’t wait up for their new year.

Neighbor Joyce had driven four hours from her daughter in Nashville to get home. She must have been quite tired from the visit with grandchildren in Texas – the jumping off point being Nashville. She came over to visit with me until almost midnight. I enjoyed hearing about her car trip to Texas and the flight back. I was more content than ever to sit in an armchair to listen. I forgot to take a photo to mark the occasion.

I was alone for the last fifteen minutes of the year and thought about what I had done at midnight most of my life. We always looked at the ball dropping in Times Square. Amazingly, I found live coverage through the internet on the iPad. To mark the occasion, I took a video of the last few seconds with a camera. What a good way to end the year laughing!

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Published by Anne Mehrling

I'm a retiree who loves to write about life in the mountains of North Carolina.

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19 thoughts on “New Year’s Eve 2023”

    1. I think David will stay in Western NC. He is 28 years old and wanting to live on his own — understandable at his age. I let my children go, and now it’s his turn.

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  3. How fun to watch the same fireworks as Lise in real time all those miles away! I can remember my parents watching Guy Lombardo on New Year’s Eve. I don’t know what age I was allowed to stay up to bring the new year in. We watched Dick Clark’s Rocking Eve until he no longer did the event after his stroke. New Year’s Eve I heard fireworks outside around 11:45 p.m. and lasting until 12:45 a.m. and they were loud! When I got online late afternoon today I was reading in our neighborhood Facebook forum that people were warning how unsafe it was shooting guns on New Year’s Eve and equally unsafe launching mortar rockets firecrackers, since gravity can cause either to come down in an unintended place. I was clueless sitting inside the house, minding my own business, that it was gunfire or mortar rockets firecrackers. Nice. What the heck happened to sparklers? About an hour ago, I heard more loud pops – perhaps because University of Michigan won the Rose Bowl. Whatever to that – the gunfire worries me. Our curfew for fireworks is 1:00 a.m.; 4:00 a.m. – those Danes really whoop it up! Happy New Year Anne!

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    1. My parents NEVER stayed up for midnight on the 31st. I probably didn’t until I was married.

      I laughed when you asked what happened to sparklers. They were tame, indeed, but still a slight hazard.

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      1. My parents only stayed up late for Guy Lombardo. I don’t recall fireworks being part of New Year’s Eve in neighborhoods until the last five or so years. Now you can buy huge packages of assorted firecrackers at the grocery store. Yes, sparklers were hot if they burned down to your fingertips and you couldn’t throw it then as it might catch the grass on fire. I guess kids want a little more excitement than a sparkler these days.

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  4. What a lovely way to mark the ending of another year. I am glad you had your neighbour and David to spend some time with you. Happy New Year, Anne

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  6. What a great way to end the year, Anne. The Spanish are also addicted to fireworks and they went all night too. My dogs don’t like them but are OK as long as they are in the house with us. We watched a movie and ate our 12 grapes at midnight. It was a good way to end the year as well. All the best for 2024!!

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