2009 begins

When I was a kid, New Years Eve was one of my favorite holidays. It was the only night that I was allowed to stay up all night long, while I ate serious amounts of junk food and hung with my friends (who were the kids of my parent's friends). We would all bang pots and pans together with wooden spoons when the clock struck twelve and we would watch the fireworks between a few trees that were being set off in Philly. Every year I would try my best to stay up as late as possible, but I usually crashed between three and four, either on the floor or at the end of a couch between a few of my parent's friends. One year, the only place I could find was the floor right in front of the TV (because sleeping in your own bed on New Years is blasphemy when you're seven) so I laid on the hard wood with a blanket and watched Phish give a celebratory concert. The next morning, everyone who was left would stumble to breakfast, and the new year would begin.
Now, I usually go out with friends on New Years. For some reason I ended up going to three different get togethers this year. First I went to Wyoming's house where she was celebrating with her neighbors and boyfriend. We watched I Love Lucy and AFV for a few hours and talked. Afterwards I shivered home in the ridiculous cold to feed my hamster (a christmas gift, I'll post photos when I get some decent ones) and pick up some baked goods before I called Jereality to see where she was. Jereality was at Topher's house with the rest of the guys, and since he lives around the corner from me I met up with her there to hang for a half hour. Typical of the guys they played video games and ate junk food while sprawled on some couches in the Den while Jer and I watched (and occasionally participated).
About an hour before midnight we drove to JK's house. Its tradition to officially bring the New Year in at her house with sparkling cider in pretty glasses and frenzies of photographs. We counted down with Anderson Cooper before venturing out into the cold, cold street to watch her neighbors light off fireworks and listen to other parties of people scream. We warmed up inside for a few hours before Jer and I took to her car again to return to Topher's. When we walked in we noticed that the guys had just gone on a replenishing junk food run. It was nearly 3 a.m. at this point and we talked for a few hours before returning to the den under blankets and sleeping bags to play Soul Caliber in increasingly ridiculous states of mind. Jer and I stayed until 7.
Anyone who has stayed up all night understands the feeling you get when you realize you've worn yesterday's clothes for almost 24 hours and your teeth haven't been brushed in at least 12. They also understand the intense sleep-deprivation that drives you to a state not unlike laziness. I stumbled home to shower and change, but first spent twenty minutes curled up on my bedroom floor pretending to dream but really just listening to my hamster (Haruka) squeak on her wheel in her cage. It wasn't until I got a text from Alex that I got moving, got myself ready, and then stumbled out the door for the last time today to get breakfast with everyone from Topher and JK's house.
Breakfast was an incredibly quiet ordeal with the ten of us crowded around a few tables. We ate, joked sparingly, but mostly we mumbled about being tired or continued last night's inside jokes before we paid the check and drove home. By the time Jer pulled up to my house I had resolved to go straight to bed, and I barely got my shoes off and changed into proper pajamas before I was asleep on my pillow, completely unbothered by the glaring sunlight.