Year in Review: Same Old, Same Old

Well, how was your New Year's? Out with the old, in with the new? If it was anything like mine, it was out with the new and in with the old. Same old. Same old. That's how I like it. Let me say a little more about that.

Fun on the Eve
Every New Year's eve, what we call fun is doing our Year in Review List. This is where we list births, deaths, marriages, divorces, and significant events of our own and of those dearest to us. Those dearest to us count two other people, so the list is never too long. (Okay, I'm exaggerating, but not much.)

Triple C treat
Oh, and by the way, we make a ritual of having caviar, crackers and champagne while making the List quietly at home. This year, we discovered that the Russians killed the sturgeon, so caviar is now being produced by paddle fish on farms. The company is still called Petrovich, but now fittingly hails out of Culver City, Socialist Republic of California.

H₂O martini
This year brought finality for me from the bubbly. Consuming any alcohol at all would make me meet my Maker before the year ran out, so the champagne was out too. Out came a stemmed martini glass with both the olive and the martini on the side. We filled it with our favorite fake vodka: water.

We continued the pretense with crackers from the cupboard. As for them, they were stale from hanging around while we dieted. I added a candle to add romantic aura to the scene. It didn't help.

Short list
The List was short and sweet. We struggled to think up stuff to put on it. Deaths were few and, thankfully, none of them ours. No births, marriages, or divorces made the List. Significant events never rose above mah jongg games, routine doctor appointments, and getting the car washed.

Big events
Oh, the car. "Big Red" came to us this year, extracting a pound of flesh in family tension because nobody had an advanced enough degree to know how to operate that highly technical automobile. And, oh, the diet. Losing 42 pounds together is not insignificant. It was the very best thing on our List.

Happy New Year and good night, dear
Done with the paddle fish roe, unbubbly Arrowhead Spring Fresh Water, and crusty crackers, we breathed a sigh of relief at reviewing our Year in Review List. Nothing of any great significance was on it this year...a bit of a ho hummer, but still above water, healthy, highly content, still in love, and seeking another year of same old, same old.