2008 is here

Speaking as a person who once partied hardy until the wee hours of January 1st, last evening was definitely fun (with family) but the wild dancing and singing part is no more…at least for me. My wife and I went over to our daughter's house (she has three kids), and celebrated the New Year's arrival by eating home-made turkey noodle soup (Christmas Day leftovers), during which I had exactly two beers (Labatt Blue), shared a bowl of shrimp with my oldest granddaughter (we left some for the others), gorged ourselves with chips, dip and veggies, and then went into what has become our normal New Year's routine…play board games until 11PM, when we shoot off as many confetti "poppers" as we can, with each of us wearing paper party hats, then promptly at 1145, we move to the TV to watch Dick Clark ring in another year. His health has declined over the past year, but I was amazed that he's still "the only one" most people want to recite the countdown. My wife had her digital camera ready to take a shot of the TV as the hour struck midnight, capturing the 2008 logo image for her scrapbook. In past years, she was not always fast enough to get the "right" image. But this year, thanks to a digital video recorder box, I was able to rewind the picture and then pause it right where she wanted it. Afterwards, we opened a bottle of champagne and toasted the new year…one glass each. We arrived home at 1 AM, well past my normal bedtime, but much earlier than when we used to roll in back "in the day" when we partied with Army friends at various locations in the U.S. and (our favorite) with those we served alongside in Germany in the 32nd Army Air Defense Command (80-82), and 18th Engineer Brigade (86-88). I guess this has been said way too many times already today by lots of other bloggers, but it's hard to believe 2008 is here…already.