What Are You Doing for New Year's Eve?

[Front-Ranger]

Interesting pictures! Thank you! The Swedes really know how to live!! 

[southendmd]

Nice to hear everyone's plans, from minimalist to elaborate.

Beautiful cold, crisp day in Provincetown, which is covered in ice and snow.

We're keeping low key this new year, as I'm still getting over a nasty cold. Did plenty of dancing at a wedding on Saturday night, which probably didn't help.

So, eating in tonight.  Two kinds of caviar:  American spoonbill and French trout roe (which I've never had; pink eggs much smaller than salmon roe).  Followed by Beef Wellington--a new tradition, alongiside white asparagus with bechamel, and crispy kale.  Dessert will be Joey's "world's-only-edible fruitcake" by the fire.  No TV, no dropping stuff, probably just pandora.  

Happy New Year, everyone!

[Penthesilea]

Greeting from the future!
It's already 2013 here!

Tina was pretty anxious. For the worst of it, from a few minutes to midnight until 0:30am I put her into her box, where she simply laid down, was quiet and waited it out. But after she was out of her box again, some people set off firecrackers directly in front of our windows, which had her almost in panic. She even jumped on the couch, and I let her. Wrong moment for discipline.

probably just pandora.  

pandora? I know only her box.

Enjoy your food, it sounds delicious, apart from the caviar.

[Jeff Wrangler]

The concert last night was simply amazing. Our seats were on the left above and alongside the stage, so instead of staring at the conductor's back all evening, we could see him from the front. I think that made for a much more interesting experience. I wish I'd had my binoculars, as I would have loved to see the conductor's facial expressions as he was conducting. Yannick is a very enthusiastic and energetic and animated conductor, and the Philadelphia Orchestra is s-o-o-o lucky to have landed him as music director. After the program they did three encores: Stars and Stripes Forever (kind of a clever choice, I think, for a French Canadian on his first New Year's Eve conducting in Philadelphia), Auld Lang Syne, for New Year's Eve, and the Radetzky March, traditionally the closing number at the Vienna Philharmonic's New Year's concert.

[southendmd]

Celeste posted this on facebook.  I thought it was terrific. 

[youtube=425,350]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcVJBLV2Ryw[/youtube]

[Jeff Wrangler]

Lovely way to end the New Year's holiday: The Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra's New Year's concert, on Great Performances on PBS. Julie Andrews was the hostess. The orchestra performs in the beautiful Golden Hall of the Musikverein in Vienna. The conductor is Franz Welser-Moest, who looks every inch a conductor: tall, slim (probably a 30-inch waist), handsome, a mane of graying hair.

Tonight I heard two waltzes that were unfamiliar to me, Hesperus's Path, by Josef Strauss (younger brother of Johann Strauss II), and Styrian Dances, by Josef Lanner (rival of Johann Strauss I).

The waltzes of Josef Strauss are more lyrical than those of his big brother. Hesperus's Path is very pretty. 

[Sason]

 The cake is Cherry Cake Basque, so we had to have it.  

Wow!  Two brokieisms in one cake!!!!     Of course you had to have it!

Very pretty earrings, Meryl!

[Sason]

How nice to read about everyone's new years!

Me, I spent a quiet family-like evening with my friend and her kids. Another friend turned up for dessert, too.

We played board games, and before 12 we went outside so the kids could set off their fireworks.

I spent the night, and the next day we took a long and lovely walk along the coast where she lives.
The weather was mild, and no wind which is very unusual there.

[Aloysius J. Gleek]

[Sophia]

Became fascinated by the new google logo...so cute...did you notice, they all dance in different ways, with their legs. Made me a bit philosophic, wondered, how will the last number dance?