New Yeas is something that I have never really bothered with, and now since having 2 kiddos - can't even make it to 12pm!
However 5 years ago I did do a couple of traditions - like wearing the red undies to bring in new love and eating the 12 grapes to ensure 12 good months ahead. And 2 weks later, I met my now husband Mark.
Here are some interesting facts about New Years and some fascinating traditions from around the world.
- According to statistics from the National Insurance Crime Bureau, more vehicles are stolen on New Year's Day than on any other holiday throughout the year.
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- The Time Square New Year's Eve Ball came about as a result of a ban on fireworks. The first ball, in 1907, was an illuminated 700-pound iron and wood ball adorned with one hundred 25-watt light bulbs. Today, the round ball designed by Waterford Crystal, weighs 11,875-pounds, is 12 feet in diameter and is bedazzled with 2,668 Waterford crystals.
- Due to wartime restrictions , the New Year's Eve ball was not lowered in 1942 and 1943.
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- Throughout the year, visitors to Times Square in New York City write their New Year's wishes on pieces of official Times Square New Year's Eve confetti. At the end of the year, the wishes are collected and added to the one ton of confetti that showers the crowd gathered in Times Square in celebration of the New Year.
- Food plays a big role in New Year's traditions. Eating black-eyed peas, ham or cabbage are thought to bring prosperity. However, stay away from bad luck foods like lobsters, because they move backwards, and chicken, because they scratch in reverse. It is believed that eating these on New Year's day might cause a reversal of fortune.
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- In Colombia, Cuba and Puerto Rico families stuff a life-size male doll called Mr. Old Year with memories of the outgoing year and dress him in old clothes from each family member. At midnight he is set on fire - thus burning away the bad memories of the year.
- According to this survey , 40 to 45 percent of American adults make one or more resolutions each year. The top New Year's resolutions include weight loss, exercise, quitting smoking and better money management. By the second week of January, 25 percent of people have abandoned their resolutions.
- One New Year's theme that resonates across borders, ages and ethnic groups is feasting on foods in an effort to boost your prospects for the future. But the menu varies from place to place.
- Cabbage represents money and sauerkraut is for living a long life for some of Northern European ancestry, for instance. People in Spain and many Latin American countries down 12 grapes, one each to "guarantee" a month of happiness. In parts of the American South, year-round favorites black-eyed peas, ham and collard greens carry special importance over the New Year's holiday.
- People in the nation of Georgia don't count on a chef for good luck. Rather, they rely on the first person to come through their home's door after midnight -- a person who, theoretically, will bring them fortune for the following year. Snacking on candy on New Year's Eve is another way, in the former Soviet territory, to ensure that 2013 is likewise sweet, and not bitter.
- Brazilians try to optimize their prospects for the coming year by jumping waves or, if they are not near the beach, eating lentil soup or handing out money. Besides raucously banging together pots and pans, Filipinos eat round fruits to bring good fortune.
- Some New Year's traditions have nothing to do with luck. A front stoop littered with broken plates in Denmark, for instance, suggests that the person inside has a lot of friends since, each New Year's Eve, people throw their old dishes at the doors of their friends' homes.
- The agenda for funin Canada depends on where you are, from partying at a "reveillon" in Quebec to imbibing Screech rum in Newfoundland to savoring "beaver tail" -- a Canadian fried dough treat-- in Ontario.
- Still, for all those who partake in grand New Year's events, there are many more who make their own traditions.
- It may be a small gathering of family and friends, watching the Times Square ball drop on TV, or loudly running through the neighborhood. Some may simply go to sleep early, so they can be energized for an early New Year's Day hike -- perhaps while wearing underwear that suits their mood, and wishes, for 2013.
