So This is the New Year

We rang in the new year with my sister and a couple of her friends at a seafood restaurant with vintage decor. A grown up New Year’s Eve,  as my sister said, with three-tiered seafood towers, never-ending cocktails, a champagne toast at midnight,  and a round of shots (or was it two? or three…) to keep us honest.

(Apologies in advance for all the grainy, fuzzy, blurry photos taken – as all good New Year’s Eve photos are – while possibly inebriated.)

seafood tower of glory

someone had way too much fun with instagram

accidental cab photo — I must have discovered at least a million photos just like this on my phone the next day

obligatory back-of-Uber selfie taken after a night out

Traditional Korean rice cake soup — tteokguk — eaten to bring luck for the new year. Also: perfect hangover soup.

pretty much sums it up

Our grown-up New Year’s soon regressed into a 21-year old’s first night on the town as my body decided to say f*** you.  Somehow I stumbled into the Uber (and oddly enough was coherent enough to take multiple uber selfies) and made it through the entire ride from DC to Alexandria with a few focused breathing exercises. Never mind that we nearly ran over a stumbling girl crossing the street, that wasn’t my fault.

Once home, I ran upstairs, quickly changed into pjs, and spent the next hour or so once more acting out my old familiar routine of clinging to the toilet followed by a long hot shower. Happy frickin’ New Year. Some things never change. And also, am I too old to be doing this?  Please don’t answer that.

Meanwhile, the hubs and sister continued drinking in the kitchen like rock stars. When Sly eventually dropped dead asleep, the sister continued on to an after party at her friend’s house!

The next morning Sly made tteokguk, a traditional Korean soup made with rice cakes that is said to bring luck for the new year. It also happens to be the most wonderful hangover elixir. We then proceeded to waste a beautiful day holed up indoors,  watching Real World marathons (how is this show still on, and why are we still watching it?) in pjs and ordering three large pizzas from We The Pizza.

Only a few days in and already there have been the minor dramas of life: the heady excitement of prospective projects followed by the disheartening let-down when said projects inexplicably and suddenly fell through. I’m hoping this brief, parabolic ride won’t be indicative of the year to come,  especially so early in the year,  but my painfully realistic and over-active mind (especially at 3am in the morning when I’m trying to fall asleep and instead have to watch Inkmaster on Hulu, which is so fascinating that it keeps me awake until 5am) knows better.  In fact,  I’m sure it won’t let me forget. But then, every year, regardless of how it begins or ends, is always like riding on a seesaw. Sometimes it goes up, sometimes it goes down, and sometimes it teeters ever-so-delicately in a fine balance.

A couple of days later, I received a text from my nephew, who had departed back to Texas with my mom and brother on New Year’s Eve. As a newly-turned teenager, he’s not the best at texting or emailing, so it was all the more special when he messaged, “I miss you guys. Love you.”

Heart eyes emoji. Bursting heart. Seesaw back in balance.