The "Have You Heard Of These New Year Traditions?" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Opening my end-of-the-year emails and came across one that I was about to discard when I hit the wrong key and it opened on my desktop.  Found it was a few rather interesting customs, legends, superstitions, etc. relating to the first day of the New Year.  Some were interesting, some were crazy and some I should have hit the correct button and deleted them.  Will share with you some of each category and let you decide for yourself in which category they should belong.  So here goes....

1. Paying off bills:  The New Year should not begin with the household in debt, so checks should be written and mailed off prior to January 1st.  I know...it's a bit late to be telling you this today!

2. Kissing at midnight:  At midnight you should kiss the one most dearest to you at the moment the New Year begins.  It is to insure that those affections and ties will continue throughout the next twelve months.  If you fail to give your sweetheart a kiss at midnight, you will be in for a year of coldness!  Once again...I'm sorry I didn't tell you this yesterday.  And, don't try to make up for it by spending the next hour or so kissing your sweetheart for she or he may have already kissed someone else.

3. As far as the meal you will eat today...if you are having pork, legend has it that it's because a pig roots forward, which is good luck for the new year.  Probably also practical if you are a farmer, since you want to eat the fresh meat first that you butchered before it spoils and save smoked meats for later meals.  

4. The first person to enter your home after the stroke of midnight will influence the year you are about to have.  Hopefully he or she will be good looking and bearing special gifts such as a silver coin, bit of bread, spring of evergreen or some salt.  Why, I'm not sure!  For me a good looking redhead, blond or brunette would be helpful.  Oh yeah...probably best if you are married to them, as in my case!

5. The "First Footer" or "Lucky Bird" (first person in your home in the New Year) should knock on the door rather then enter with a key, even if they live in the home.  After greeting those in the house and dropping off whatever small token of luck they might have brought, they should exit the home through another door.  And, no one should leave the house before the first footer crosses the threshold of the home.

6.  First Footers should not be cross-eyed or have flat feet or eyebrows that meet in the middle.  Wow...that's just about everyone I know!

7. Nothing Goes Out, not even garbage, of the house on the first day of the year.  If you have plans to give gifts to someone on New Years Day, put then outside the day before so they won't have to be taken out on New Years Day.  Also, don't shake out a rug or take the trash out.  UNLESS...you bring in something first to replace what you plan to take out.  What sense this makes I'm not sure.

8. Make sure to do something related to your job on the first day of the year, even if you don't go near your place of employment that day.  But, don't get too involved with your job for it is unlucky to engage in serious work on the first day of the year.

9. Do not do laundry on the first day of the year lest a member of the family be 'washed away' (die) in the upcoming months.  For some, that even means doing dishes.  

10. Don't pay back loans or lend money on New Years Day.  To do so means you will be paying out all year.

11. Wear something new on January 1 to increase the likelihood of your receiving more new garments during the year.

12. Avoid breaking anything on the first day of the year or it will continue all year.  Also, avoid crying lest that activity will set the tone for the next twelve months.

14. Avoid using the unlucky number 13 if at all possible.

15. At midnight, all the doors of the house must be opened to let the old year escape unimpeded.  

16. Make as much noise as possible at midnight!  You're not just celebrating but scaring away evil spirits; so do a damn good job of yelling!  I personally know that the Devil hates loud noises.  That's also why Wedding Bells are rung on a couple's wedding day.

17. If the weather directly after the New Year enters has wind blowing from the south, there will be fine weather and prosperous times in the year ahead.  If it comes from the north it will be a year of bad weather.  The wind blowing from the east brings famine and calamities while the wind blowing from the west will give plentiful supplies of milk and fish, but will also bring death of an important person.  If the air is still, a joyful and prosperous year can be expected.

18. If you are lucky enough to be born on New Year's Day you will have luck with you for the rest of your life!

Happy New Year from our house to yours and open your door, eat pork, make some noise, but don't break anything today!  And, just in case...throw me a kiss.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Remember Where You Were On December 31, 1999" Story

It was an ordinary day.  December 31, 1999 and the world is about to come to an end...at least according to a neighbor of mine.  Grocery and department stores reported bottled water, flashlight batteries and canned goods were in short supply.  Some of my neighbors reported buying oil lamps and kerosene heaters.  

A few Y2K (Year 2000) checklists recom- mended taking a few extra hundred bucks out of the bank in case computers and money machines stopped working.  But, the final day of the year was reported to be very calm in banks, hardware stores and pharmacies where the lines were endless earlier in the week.  Managers of many stores in Lancaster reported cautious concern, but not true panic.  The Y2K craze and panic didn't seem to bother most residents of traditionally laid-back Lancaster County.  Actually, there was more important news in the evening paper in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.  One of the members of my wife's favorite Rock n' Roll band, The Beatles, was stabbed as reported by the Lancaster New Era.  

Front page of the New Era on December 31, 1999.

The headline was bigger for this event than the fact that we were about to enter a new millennium.  I can still remember from my 9th grade class in Latin that the word millennium is derived from the Latin mille, thousand, and annus, year.  And that is about all I remember from that class that I took in the late 1950s.  Y2K caused many fears about the possibility that the switch from '99 to '00 might cause cliches in computer systems that weren't updated to account for the change.  Was the world going to end?  Would the power grid go down?  Would banks somehow delete your life savings?  Would planes drop from the sky?  The city of Seattle canceled its entire New Years Eve celebration because of fears of a terrorist attack linked to the new millennium.  As far as my neighbor is concerned, he felt it was necessary to have a neighborhood meeting to talk about what might happen when the clock strikes midnight on December 31, 1999.  He put in a very large propane gas tank for heating and cooking, took most of his cash and turned it in for gold bullion and purchased a heavy safe in which to store the gold.  Also asked all who attended the meeting if they had a gun and if they would use it if necessary.  He suspected that many of those living in the city of Lancaster might come into the suburbs to try and loot.  I believe a few may have agreed with him, but very few were as alarmed as he was.  We all now know that nothing at all happened when the clock struck 12:01.  I must admit that I did stay up just to see what may have happened.  Was I disappointed?  Nah!  Now, I don't think I want to be around in 2099 when it happens again.  That could be a real disaster!  Banks might lose my account and planes might fall on the roof of my house.  And, my Latin teacher will come back to life once again and haunt me!  Still seems pretty silly...right!  And, it was back in 1999, also!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Are You Ready For The New Year?" Story

Eat pork and sauerkraut for good luck!

It was an ordinary day.  Getting ready for guests at the dinner table with the traditional pork and sauerkraut.  In Lancaster County, Pennsylvania you must eat the traditional pork and sauerkraut if you expect to have good luck the entire year.  My daughter, who now lives in neighboring Maryland with her family, makes sure she, her husband and two children eat a bite of both to ensure good luck for the year.  Boy, was she raised right!  The reason for the pork is that pigs root forward for their food which symbolizes moving ahead in the new year instead of eating chicken or turkey which scratch backwards for their food.  As far as the kraut...you got me on that one.  It was a German tradition and since many people from Germany settled in Pennsylvania, I guess the sauerkraut followed along with them in tradition.  So what other traditions do you follow for the New Year?  

Oliebollen

In Spain the custom is to eat 12 grapes at the stroke of midnight while in Mexico the tamale is eaten on New Year's Day.  You can be thankful that you don't live in the Netherlands since they consume fried oil balls, known as oliebollen, on New Year's Eve.  I can just imagine what they think of eating pork and kraut.  Seems Germany has given up sauerkraut, but in turn drink, along with revelers from neighboring Austria, a red wine punch with cinnamon and spices on New Year's Eve.  They also eat suckling pig for dinner and decorate the table with little pigs made of marzipan.  

Soba noodles

Japanese families eat buckwheat soba noodles at midnight to bid farewell to the year gone by and welcome in the year to come.  The tradition of a New Year's cake is in many cultures.  The Greeks have the Vasilopita, the French have the gateau while the Bulgarians enjoy the banitsa.  Italians celebrate with a cotechino con lenticchie which is a sausage and lentil stew that is said to bring good luck.  

Herring...I might like this, but would rather have a donut!

In Poland and Scandinavia partake of the silver colored herring.  Some like it in a cream sauce while others have it with onions.  Rice is said to bring good luck if consumed on New Year's day in India and Pakistan while in Switzerland dollops of whipped cream symbolize richness for the year to come.  Now, they don't eat it but drop it on the floor where it remains for the year.  Nah, I'd rather eat a herring and get it over with than have to walk on whipped cream for a year.  Now, if I was smart, I would live in Ireland where they eat pastries called bannocks.  But, I believe my favorite New Year's Eve custom that I could find was eating any ring-shaped treat, such as a donut, since it symbolizes "coming full circle" and leads to good fortune.  You know, I think we all should begin our new year with a donut or two...dunked in milk!  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "Did You Know About Spooking Horses?" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Just got off the phone with my friend Jerry who lives in State College, Pennsylvania.  You know ... the same place where Penn State University is located.  I bring this up because today is the day that the Nittany Lions will be playing in

The first Tournament of Roses event in California. Click to enlarge.

the Rose Bowl against the University of Southern California Trojans.  The 5th ranked and 9th ranked college teams in the nation will go head to head in the Rose Bowl football game.  We talked about watching the game and the fact that the game wasn't played January 1st as it always is.  I told Jerry that I thought it might have something to do with the fact that the National Football League was playing their final games on the 1st and didn't want to conflict with the pro games.  

Chariot races in 1911 were part of the original events.

Then Jerry said, "Sue said it has something to do with the Rose Bowl Parade and the fact that the game and parade are never played on Sunday, since the parade sponsors wanted to avoid spooking the horses that would be hitched outside churches along the parade route."  Wow, I never heard that before!  Didn't argue with Jerry since I had no idea that was the reason.  Actually thought Sue may have made that up to kid Jerry.  Anyway, I had to pull it up on my MacBook and find out about the history of the parade and game and see what was the real reason for no parade or game on Sunday when that happens to be January 1.  

The front of the Rose Bowl which was built in 1923.

Well, the events both began in 1890 when those living on the West Coast decided they wanted to promote the "Mediterranean of the West" so they invited their East Coast neighbors to spend New Year's Day with them to watch games in a warmer climate such as chariot races, jousting, foot races, polo and tug-of-war in Pasadena, California.  Since there happened to be an abundance of blooms in the area, they proposed a parade to precede the events planned.  During the next few years marching bands were added to the mix as well as floats.  The town's lot where the event was held was eventually named in 1900 as Tournament Park.  

Floats as they appear in the parade today.

That year ostrich races, bronco busting  and a race between a camel and an elephant were added.  Reviewing stands were built along the parade route and the rest is history as they say.  The first Rose Bowl Game was played in 1902 and not even played on New Year's Day until 1916.  It was played to help offset the cost of putting on the parade.  The Rose Bowl Game was the first post-season football game in the nation and after the 1902 game was replaced with chariot races until 1916 when football returned.  

Aerial view of the Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California.

The current Rose Bowl Stadium was built for the 1923 game.  This year's parade will feature 44 different floats, more than 400 horses and 22 marching bands.  All floats in the parade are required to have all exterior surfaces covered in organic materials such as flowers, fruits, bark, etc.  And, the game between USC and Penn State will still be held in the Rose Bowl Stadium as in the past 93 years.  Sue was most certainly right when she said the parade and game are never held on January 1 when it falls on a Sunday due to the fact that way back years ago, when it started, they didn't want to spook the horses of those in nearby churches when the parade passed by.  Learn something new every day.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.

The "The Tradition Continues" Story

It was an ordinary day.  Making sure the table is set for six for New Year's day dinner.  Our two sons, daughter-in-law and grandson will be joining Carol and me for sauerkraut and pork, our New Year's traditional meal.  Don't think I could survive the entire year if I didn't have sauerkraut and pork on New Year's Day.  There are usually half-a-dozen churches and maybe the same amount of fire companies or clubs that serve the meal on New Year's Day in and around Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.  Our daughter lives in Urbana, Maryland and still makes sure her family eats some sauerkraut and pork on January 1.  After all, it brings you luck and heavens knows Carol and I need some good luck after the atrocious year we just lived through (another story about that to come soon).  

Sauerkraut on mashed potatoes with roast pork are a
necessity on the table on New Year's Day.  Only thing
missing here is the side of applesauce and a hot dog or two.

The combination of sauerkraut, pork, mashed potatoes and applesauce have become customary in LDub's family home  since it was first started in 1967.  I must admit that Carol adds a few pork hot dogs since they taste fantastic when roasted in the oven with the sauerkraut and pork.  So why do Lancasterians eat pork and sauerkraut on New Year's Day?  Well, first of all the old adage says that "pigs root forward into the future" which symbolizes future progress and sauerkraut is a German and Pennsylvania Dutch tradition and since Lancaster is heavily populated with Amish and German Mennonites who settled in Lancaster County in the 18th and 19th centuries, it is only common sense that we eat pork and sauerkraut on New Year's Day.  Other parts of the country have traditions just the same as Lancaster County does.  In Spain and some Latin American countries it is considered lucky to eat one grape for each strike of the clock on New Year's Eve.  Great way to push the sale of grapes in the country.  In Denmark the scales on fish are said to represent coins so to gain wealth means to eat fish on New Year's Day.  In Greece the Greek Orthodox tradition is to have a New Year's Day cake with a coin baked into it.  The person who gets the coin will be prosperous during the year.  The Dutch have a tradition of making molded sweet cookies that feature the shape of an eagle or famous person in the mold.  On New Year's Eve in Japan, eating Soba noodles, made with buckwheat flour, will bring you long life.  And, in many of the Southern states in the USA it is the tradition to eat Hoppin' John on New Year's Day to bring prosperity to the family.  Hoppin' John is a dish brought to the south by West African slaves and is made with rice, black-eyed peas and a meat such as ham, pork or bacon.  I could go on and on, but I suspect I may miss you traditional New Year's Eve or Day traditional meal so I will stop at this point.  Just hope you eat something that will make you healthy, wealthy and wise.  That's my objective for the year.  So, HAPPY NEW YEAR to all of you.  It was another extraordinary day in the life of an ordinary guy.