So I have to go back to work on Wednesday. Instead of enjoying this week, I keep counting down the days in my head. I actually woke up this morning and thought, today, Saturday, Sunday, Monday, Tuesday...5 more days. Is that sad?

I drank coffee this morning from my new favorite mug, an over-sized red one with a white reindeer. It was originally filled with fun-size Snickers and Hershey's Kisses, but those have been stored out of sight due to an overload of Christmas goodies this month. One of my favorites, gingerbread, has been made into a latte at Starbucks that tastes like a liquefied cookie (in a good way). If it isn't clear enough, winter brings together two of my absolute favorite things: coffee and gingerbread. Last year I actually baked and iced gingerbread cookies with my sister, then we gave them out to family and friends throughout the holiday season. While I made the standard 3-button gingerboys and pink-lipped gingergirls, my sister actually made an entire set of gingerbread superheroes - Superman, Spiderman, Hulk, and Batman...all in gingerbread form. It was a little disconcerting, which may have been the goal all along. But the tiny gingerbread heroes made my uncle very happy...he has collections of comic books that would make Comic Book Guy jealous.

But as we all glide past the Christmas season, one of my least favorite holidays appears on the near horizon. As someone who doesn't drink or enjoy raucous party themes, New Year's Eve is possibly the most awkward holiday of my year. Let me explain:

1. New Year's Eve 1998 - My first boyfriend and I spent the evening at the church's "Watch Night" playing Monopoly and listening to the sweet tunes of N'SYNC...with about twenty senior citizens singing hymns and eating diabetic desserts.



2. New Year's Eve 1999 aka "The Millennium" - My family went, with members of our church, to a local truck stop for dinner. Then we returned home and I spent the evening watching CNN's New Year's special.



3. New Year's Eve 2002 - I stay at home with my parents. At midnight people in my neighborhood actually shoot guns into the air to celebrate the blessings of the coming year.



4. New Year's Eve 2005 - I succumb to the temptation of Ryan Seacrest's debut as the "New Year's Rockin' Eve" host on ABC.

As this is officially my first year as an independent adult, I feel compelled to celebrate the evening. And yet, I don't enjoy any aspect of the dancing/drinking combination. A hero of mine, Anderson Cooper (whom I have found incredibly attractive since the 1999 celebration - see above),also abhors the evening. In his book Dispatches from the Edge, he says "I've always thought that New Year's Eve is proof that humans are essentially optimistic creatures. Despite hundreds of years of pathetic parties and hellish hangovers, we continue to cling to the notion that it's possible to have fun on that night. It's not. There's too much pressure, too many expectations, and too few bathrooms." I find this ironic, because he hosts the CNN special every year. So, in respect of Anderson and his moral discrepancies, I think I should probably spend New Year's Eve with him....you know, so he doesn't have to host the show in vain.