Getting Ready for the New Year

Well friends, it's almost time to ring in 2007. I can't believe this year is almost in the books. New Years has always been one of my favorite holidays, even before I knew what gay meant and I was just a little kid getting to stay up late and watch the ball drop. Living in Northern Wisconsin, there wasn't a whole lot going on. But my parents would always get some special treats (jeno's pizza rolls were my favorite back then!) I remember one year I went through the house and found all of the unusual hats I could find so we would each have a party hat. Of course there was a cowboy hat, a sombrero one of my uncles had brought from Mexico, my grandpa's old derby. Dick Clark was counting down from Times Square and all was good. My first real party-time New Years was also spent "up north." My friends and I were home from college and we all told the parents we would be spending New Years away from home that year. (That was a pretty big deal for me, as my parents were very strict and my mom *hates* drinking.) We had a party at one guy's house whose parents were away. I remember listening to the year-end countdown on the radio, and at some point we went outside and were sliding around on the slick wintry roads (no not in cars, just on our feet - there may have been dogs pulling us, I can't quite recall.) Flash ahead to college, and the year Wisconsin played in the Rose Bowl.In Wisconsin, the bars stay open all night on New Years. So, we partied all night, I went home and took a shower and changed into my Badgers gear and went back out and partied all of New Year's Day. I don't think I could make it if I tried to do that now! But, back then I had two hot men fighting over me. So, that was cool :) During my Green Bay years, I usually had friends over for dinner or went out to dinner before going out for the night. One year, a friend made reservations for us at a restaurant, but failed to find out they were having a special 5 course meal that cost 125 bucks a person. Now, back then, this was a problem as that was way over many people's budget for the night. So, we ended up skipping out on the restaurant, going to our favorite watering hole and ordering pizza from our limo. (My best friend was part owner of a limo company so we always went out in style.)It's always fun finding someone to kiss at midnight. There were a few years when I had a boyfriend. In 2000, we all had to work at the tv station in case Y2K rolled around and disaster started breaking out. Of course, it didn't but we all brought our significant others to work with us and I snuck into the nearest broom closet with my boyfriend to get a little midnight action. The thrill of the midnight chase is always kind of fun, though, when you don't have a boyfriend. However, there have been years when I've only had a few chaste kisses from friends, instead of a good lip-lock with a hottie. I'm sure we've all been there! Last year was one of my most exciting New Years, as I went to visit a guy I knew down in West Hollywood.It was fun, but you might all be surprised to find out that for a wild time, the Wisconsin boys could take 'em. We know how to party in the cheese state. Of course, the Portland boys were all predicting that I would have a horrible time, and the boys in weho would all be stuck up and no one would speak. This couldn't have been farther from the truth. I had a great time, and I met many fun boys and I had no difficulty finding several to kiss at midnight and several more to kiss after midnight. Plus, the strippers were hotter than heck! I danced, I drank and I had a good ol' time. I was disappointed that the only celeb I saw was Ian Zeiring of 90210 fame. He was going into the drug store when I was buying booze. I have the feeling this New Years will probably be pretty low key. As I've mentioned before, Portland is not a party town. But, you never know how it will all play out. A lot of times when you don't have very high expectations, it turns out to be the best times. We shall see.