What Are You Doing For the Rest of the Year?

My mother used to say, "Whatever you do on New Year's Day is what you will be doing for the rest of the year." 

I am not sure if this was her way of preventing me from throwing temper tantrums at least one day of the year or if it was another weird holiday rule about bad luck from her side of the family. 

 

According to my mother and her family in southern Illinois, leaving your Christmas decorations up past New Year's Day meant bad luck. So did not eating black-eyed peas on January 1st. My mother believed this last one so wholeheartedly that she sent me a can of black-eyed peas through the mail every year.

 

Hence, the unknown origins of, "Whatever you do on New Year's Day is what you will be doing for the rest of the year."

I can say for a fact that I was not doing any insane apocalyptic stuff last New Year's Day though, so I will not take responsibility for the way 2020 turned out.

But if any part of my mother's maxim is true, here are some of the things my husband, Dan, and I might be doing for the rest of 2021.

On New Year's Day, we went running, and I almost died a few times on the ice. 

 

We should have jogged on a dirt trail, but we weren't that forward thinking. Instead, we ran on slick pavement. At one point, we found a dirt trail by the river that led to a janky, tree house-type bridge. I slipped on the ice before crossing, landing on my tailbone. I took that as a sign to not cross it. However, Dan did, and he had a tough time getting back over to me and almost landed in the water.

 

The 2021 Crystal Ball: It looks like clumsiness is in our future.

 

After our brush-with-death run, we went through the Starbucks drive-through and ordered overpriced lattes. As we drove out of the parking lot, we were greeted by a no left turn sign, which was the exact direction we needed to turn onto the main road. 

 

"Ugh. There's no one coming," Dan said. "We're in a parking lot. It's just a suggestion." 

 

And with that, he turned left. 

 

"I guess you'll be breaking the law for the rest of 2021," I muttered.

 

The 2021 Crystal Ball: We might be drinking coffee and turning illegally out of parking lots for the rest of the year.

 

 

After our outlaw escape from the Starbucks parking lot, we drove home. We parked in the garage, stayed in the car for a while, drank our lattes, and listened to a classic punk playlist on Spotify.

 

The 2021 Crystal Ball: We live a really wild life.

We did a few more things on New Year's Day. 

We ate pasta.

 

  

Dan finished his LEGO set, a Christmas present from me.

We also finished his Baby Yoda puzzle, a Christmas present from my sister-in-law and brother.

 

 

 

 

The 2021 Crystal Ball: Eating pasta and doing puzzles for the rest of the year? That sounds about right. In fact, we already bought a new puzzle. I have a feeling our dining room table has forever become The Puzzle Table. We will just eat on TV trays for the rest of our lives.

 

We cross-country skied on New Year's Eve, but I don't think NYE is covered in my mother's aphorism.

 

ONE MORE EXCITING EVENT COMING UP IN 2021

 

Our state moved teachers up on the timeline for the COVID vaccine. We have been cleared to receive it about a month ahead of the original schedule.

 

By the time you read this post, I will have already gotten my first dose.

 

I have never looked this forward to a shot in my life!

 

  

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