maleficent

Kissing at midnight: We kiss those dearest to us at midnight not only to share a moment of celebration with our favorite people, but also to ensure those affections and ties will continue throughout the next twelve months. To fail to smooch our significant others at the stroke of twelve would be to set the stage for a year of coldness.

Stocking Up: The new year must not be seen in with bare cupboards, lest that be the way of things for the year. Larders must be topped up and plenty of money must be placed in every wallet in the home to guarantee prosperity.

Paying Off Bills: The new year should not be begun with the household in debt, so checks should be written and mailed off prior to January 1st. Likewise, personal debts should be settled before the New Year arrives.

First Footing: The first person to enter your home after the stroke of midnight will influence the year you're about to have. Ideally, he should be dark-haired, tall, and good-looking, and it would be even better if he came bearing certain small gifts such as a lump of coal, a silver coin, a bit of bread, a sprig of evergreen, and some salt. Blonde and redhead first footers bring bad luck, and female first footers should be shooed away before they bring disaster down on the household. Aim a gun at them if you have to, but don't let them near your door before a man crosses the threshold.

The first footer (sometimes called the "Lucky Bird") should knock and be let in rather than unceremoniously use a key, even if he is one of the householders. After greeting those in the house and dropping off whatever small tokens of luck he has brought with him, he should make his way through the house and leave by a different door than the one through which he entered. No one should leave the premises before the first footer arrives — the first traffic across the threshold must be headed in rather than striking out.

First footers must not be cross-eyed or have flat feet or eyebrows that meet in the middle.

Nothing prevents the cagey householder from stationing a dark-haired man outside the home just before midnight to ensure the speedy arrival of a suitable first footer as soon as the chimes sound. If one of the partygoers is recruited for this purpose, impress upon him the need to slip out quietly just prior to the witching hour.

Nothing Goes Out: Nothing — absolutely nothing, not even garbage — is to leave the house on the first day of the year. If you've presents to deliver on New Year's Day, leave them in the car overnight. Don't so much as shake out a rug or take the empties to the recycle bin.

Some people soften this rule by saying it's okay to remove things from the home on New Year's Day provided something else has been brought in first. This is similar to the caution regarding first footers; the year must begin with something's being added to the home before anything subtracts from it.

One who lives alone might place a lucky item or two in a basket that has a string tied to it, then place the basket just outside the front door before midnight. After midnight, the lone celebrant hauls in his catch, being careful to bring the item across the door jamb by pulling the string rather than by reaching out to retrieve it and thus breaking the plane of the threshold.

Black-Eyed Peas: A tradition common to the southern states of the USA dictates that the eating of black-eyed peas on New Year's Day will attract both general good luck and money in particular to the one doing the dining. Some choose to add other Southern fare to this tradition, but the black-eyed peas are key.

Work: Make sure to do — and be successful at — something related to your work on the first day of the year, even if you don't go near your place of employment that day. Limit your activity to a token amount, though, because to engage in a serious work project on that day is very unlucky.

Also, do not do the laundry on New Year's Day, lest a member of the family be 'washed away' (die) in the upcoming months. The more cautious eschew even washing dishes.

New Clothes: Wear something new on January 1 to increase the likelihood of your receiving more new garments during the year to follow.

Money: Do not pay back loans or lend money or other precious items on New Year's Day. To do so is to guarantee you'll be paying out all year.

Breakage: Avoid breaking things on that first day lest wreckage be part of your year. Also, avoid crying on the first day of the year lest that activity set the tone for the next twelve months.
Other superstitions attaching to the beginning of the new year are:
Letting the Old Year Out: At midnight, all the doors of a house must be opened to let the old year escape unimpeded. He must leave before the New Year can come in, says popular wisdom, so doors are flung open to assist him in finding his way out.

Loud Noise: Make as much noise as possible at midnight. You're not just celebrating; you're scaring away evil spirits, so do a darned good job of it!

According to widespread superstition, evil spirits and the Devil himself hate loud noise. We celebrate by making as much of a din as possible not just as an expression of joy at having a new year at our disposal, but also to make sure Old Scratch and his minions don't stick around. (Church bells are rung on a couple's wedding day for the same reason.)

The Weather: Examine the weather in the early hours of New Year's Day. If the wind blows 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. Strangest of all, if the wind blows from the west, the year will witness plentiful supplies of milk and fish but will also see the death of a very important person. If there's no wind at all, a joyful and prosperous year may be expected by all.

Born on January 1: Babies born on this day will always have luck on their side.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A pal sent me this today...

So basically with not being able to kiss someone at midnight, I'm subjecting myself to yet another year of coldness... and the first footer thing, unless i dye my hair green between now and new years I'm serious screwed again with the luck thing....

I wish I liked black eyed peas...


What are you superstitions for new years..

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Eweser

The only tradition we follow is the black eyed peas one. I have as long as I can remember, but I'm not sure if it has helped because there's always those years that are down and those years that are up.....I've already bought my peas for New Year's Day. I guess I'm scared to see how bad it could really be if I didn't eat them.

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barenakedladies

did you just instruct me to point a gun at the first woman who knocks on my door?

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Harshaw

I don't have many superstitions, but this one always stands out in the back of my mind. I NEVER get to be with my girlfriend on New Years, and I would love to have that New Years kiss just once. I don't put much stock into it because we've been together for a couple of years now, and we feel quite strongly for each other. But I would still like to have that kiss.

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pig

black eyed peas and collard greens. i've always moved for a pizza with green peppers and mushrooms substitution, but it never seems to carry. the rest of that list...too much for me.

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Siege

Come by Toronto, i'll give you a kiss

As for me, no real traditions. Last year, I kissed one of my friends. I don't know why we did it, we were just standing beside each other, we looked at each other and we kissed. Maybe it was the alcohol in our systems.

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This part just makes my posts easier to find

ziadel

yeppers, she did.


it's really not all that hard, I assure you


anyone know what throwing the champagne out the front door is all about?

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Ustwo

Never heard of any of these, but at least now I can have a reason for pointing my gun at people near my door.

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Meditrina

My mother in law told me about a tradition in her family, and we have carried it into our family. Before midnight you place dimes on the window sill so Father Time can bless them at the stroke of midnight. After midnight, you wrap the dimes in aluminum foil and keep them in a safe place, so as not to spend it. You carry it with you all year for good luck.

And she also told me something about burning a red candle and then a white one at midnight. I think. I'd have to ask her about this one.

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snowy

Sounds like too much work for me! But I'll definitely be doing the kissing thing.

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Cynthetiq

I used to pay off all outstanding debts before the new year, stopped doing that when I started buying large ticket items.

Family tradition coming from Spanish tradition is to eat 12 grapes, 1 for each month of the year. I stopped doing it when I moved out of the house, my sister on the other hand still does it no matter where she is and makes sure she packs bags of 12 grapes for those who are with her.

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StanT

Kissing at midnight: We're generally asleep before then.

First Footing: So I should tell my red headed daughter to just stay out all night?

Nothing Goes Out: Don't take out the garbage? I can live with this one.

Breakage: Ya right, I'm a clod, going a full day without breaking something isn't going to happen.

New Clothes: Wouldn't be the first time I went a year without new clothes.

Loud Noise: Does snoring count?


Looks like 2006 is going to suck, what a surprise.

Pip

Work: Make sure to do — and be successful at — something related to your work on the first day of the year, even if you don't go near your place of employment that day. Limit your activity to a token amount, though, because to engage in a serious work project on that day is very unlucky.

Ooookay. We're doing an inventory of the entire store on Jan 1. Should I worry?

New Clothes: Wear something new on January 1 to increase the likelihood of your receiving more new garments during the year to follow.

Will do! (Have to buy some new socks or something tomorrow.)

Breakage: Avoid breaking things on that first day lest wreckage be part of your year. Also, avoid crying on the first day of the year lest that activity set the tone for the next twelve months.

Again, with the inventory... stuff breaks. I'll have to be careful!


I have no superstitions like that, but a few TV traditions. The year can't start properly until I've watched the new Year's Day concert from Vienna (Strauss!) and the skijumping from Garmish-Partenkirchen.

World's King

Where's the gettin' loaded part come in?

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Manuel Hong

These superstitions seem reasonable in a feng shui sort of way. Thanks. I like it. I gotta line up a tall, dark and handsome man to enter the house. Maybe I can get my bf to do it. I've been gathering up lots of items to take to Goodwill tomorrow. I guess that was the thing to do according to the list.

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laconic1

Well, I'm tall, most of my hair is still dark, and I like to think of myself as handsome. Maybe I can coax someone into letting me be the first into their home for the new year. Now I just gotta pay my bills, take out the trash, buy some new clothes, go grocery shopping, and find a girl to kiss at midnight tomorrow and I'll be all set.

MSD

If I wasn't planning to drive home from whatever club we're at around 2:00AM, I'd start a new tradition of doing a shot for each second of the ball-drop countdown with champagne as the last one.

It's funny to invent/play drinking games where I'm one of two or three people still standing ten minutes later.

shesus

I've always kissed and made a lot of noise at midnight. I will not believe in the first footer one because if they have to leave through a different door, they will be jumping off the balcony...not a good way to start off the year However, the wearing new clothes one I mentioned to jj and he just rolled his eyes. Oh well, it doesn't hurt to try to get a new outfit.

Anyway, in our family we always had ham and cabbage on New Year's Day. My mom would boil coins and put them in the cabbage. Whatever coins we had in the cabbage we put on our plate we got to keep. I think the only reason she did this though is so that I would eat the cabbage so there probably isn't anything superstitious behind this.

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SecretMethod70

You know, I've never really gotten into New Years. When I was a kid, my family would always make noise outside the door and stuff, but since sometime around high school I never really got into that either. Seems sort of...silly to me. In fact, I don't think ono and I have ever even kissed at midnight on New Years I know, I know, I'm boring As for the rest, I've never heard of them.

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shesus

I am going to make sure that smeth kisses ono this new year's eve. If not, I will kiss ono right after I kiss jj

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alpha phi

OK...I've got my black-eyed peas cookin
I put some chipped ham, garlic, basil, red & black pepper in too.
Smells really good!....to bad the beans take so long to cook.
I wish I had some collard greens to go with it
But Atropos wouldn't eat them anyway
For my work...I think i'll clean the kitchen
(Yes.....house husband is a "REAL" job)
But I won't take the trash out
Happy New Year!!!

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Zeraph

Same here, usually someone has to tell me what day it is for me to notice, unless I plan on going to a new years party...which I usually don't.

Stiltzkin

I would readily usher in any (attractive) woman that knocked on my door at the stroke of midnight--such great fortune does not often befall me!

rlynnm

I had a few rituals before new years..mostly filipino traditions, but we haven't followed them for a while.

You must wear polka dots, or something that has circles--represents money, you must have change in your pocket, again, money.. You must have round fruit on display at your table, along with a bowl of cotton balls, again money, or I guess prosperity. Wow, everything is so money centered..haha.

You have to jump at midnight, supposedly to make you taller, but after all the years I've tried that, I haven't grown an inch.

Yeah I know these don't really work, but they're things we've done for a long time. I guess it's kind of like santa, the easter bunny or even the tooth fairy, none of these entities actually exist but it serves a point of hope...something to believe in.....

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rat

My superstition is this: if I'm surrounded by people on New Year's, my following year becomes cold and lonely; if I'm surrounded by a token few, but very important to me, people my following year becomes warm and full of companionship. Guess it's not so much superstition as it is the trend of the last 10 years of my life. Everytime I've gone to a party where there are acquaintances and random guests, the following year is heartbreaking--unless it's me wandering into my local pub because all my good friends are scattered to the winds, as I've done the last two years.

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onodrim

I think it must be mentioned that shesus succeeded on both these points. I think I have found a New Year's tradition I truly enjoy.

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StormBerlin

The only one I follow is the money one. except it goes into my bank account I've been doing that since I moved out on my own and so far, so good.

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macmanmike6100

where'd these come from? they sound entirely fictional (if not alien) to me...

Bill O'Rights

Personally, I would consider a redheaded woman that came knocking on my door to be most fortuitous. Hey, Mal! Come'n give me some luck.
On the other hand, we, at the O'Rights household, hold to tradition that it is good luck to eat a hearty meal of pork roast and sauerkraut. (O'Rights being a fine and respected family name in Bavaria) Fortunately...I happen to like pork and sauerkraut.

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"Hedonism with rules isn't hedonism at all, it's the Republican party." - JumpinJesus

It is indisputable that true beauty lies within...but a nice rack sure doesn't hurt.

maleficent

http://www.snopes.com/holidays/newyears/newyears.asp

If it's on Snopes -- it must be true

They are superstitions... not really based in fact...

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streak_56

The first kiss is something that Lead and I share. I think my one other one is to "try" to follow my resolution for atleast a week.... after that... it's fair game.