New Years

I am not a fan of the hoopla that surrounds New Year's Eve, which is odd as I am a chronically social being . There was a time, when I attempted to find something fantastic to do, that necessitated being dolled up. That time has passed. Perhaps it is a casualty of living in New York, where New Year's Eve is an establishment of drunken behavior at sub-zero temperatures. Or perhaps it is the fact that I am perpetually single on New Year's Eve and don't feel the need to count myself among the ranks of women looking for "better luck," in the new year. (shudder)

Rather I find it to be a contemplative time, where I think about the past year, my accomplishments and my failures and what I would like the new year to look like. It sounds somewhat sad and pathetic, I know. But I look forward to it. It is a time of goal setting, and not the I will lose twenty pounds this year and suddenly look like Jessica Rabbit, type of goal, but the I will be happy with the person I have become at the end of two thousand and whatever. These goals are maybe less tangible than the typical New Year's resolutions, but in the end very satisfying. And after all what else is lent for if not weight loss; such thoughts should not be wasted on the New Year!

This year on New Year's Eve, I have every intention of cleaning my house to within an inch of it's life and cooking a big pot of sauerkraut and pork products otherwise known as Choucroute Garnie (french of course) which is considered good luck. I will let this year of trials and tribulations go quietly into that good night, and usher in a New Year of productivity and ease of mind. A new broom will be purchased for my cleaning endeavors, because a new broom brings a clean sweep. It is with that clean sweep that I will begin my year, happily by myself, with my thoughts and goals.

My Piano

I rent a piano. It's true, this is one of the many amazing things available in New York. I can also have someone pick up my dirty laundry and return it twenty four hours later, clean and folded. I can have groceries, dinner, or alcohol delivered to my doorstep as well. But, I digress. I began renting my piano about a year ago. A friend of mine who is beyond musically talented told me about his piano and I in a fit of covetousness decided I needed one too. I took piano lessons as a child reaching peak proficiency around the age of 15 from which point it was all down hill. I can now only play the simplest of tunes and a few memorized pieces from my halcyon days. One might ask then, why bother renting a piano?

My mother plays the piano beautifully. I can remember as a child falling asleep to the sound of her playing when my parents would have company. Sunday afternoon she would sometimes play when the aroma of a nearly ready sunday dinner had permeated the house. These memories and others like it bring me great joy and a sense of peace. Music in the house whether proficient or not, brings warmth. For this reason, I rent a piano for sixty bucks a month. A bargain by any standard.