The new year, nay decade, was fast approaching, along with the annual realisation that nothing was planned. No picturesque cottage booked, no swanky club tickets bought, no best restaurant table secured, no house party arranged - nada. For the past few years, my best friend and I have spent most NY Eve's together, with our families and friends, having a blast. But every year was the same - nothing planned until the very last minute.
Why break the habit of a lifetime? We are both perpetually late and fairly spontaneous in our private lives, a rebellion from our years of being super-efficient, mega-productive and highly organised in our finance careers.
Anyway, we rustle together half a plan to stumble down to their local for buffet, bubbly and cheesy disco. 13 of us meet up for cocktails at her house, and I am wearing one of my investment pieces from the Summer - the lovely Matthew Williamson swirl print kaftan-of-many-colours. We are heading out of the door when she hands me the ticket and I notice that it reads "New Years Eve - Black and White Party" - Merde! After about 30 seconds of self-flagellation and a few shrieks of "Why didn't you tell me??!!", I resign myself to having a good time regardless. This is a black country pub, not P Diddy's White party.
Of course we had a fabulous time, and the owner said he loved my top, which I would have taken as mock derision had he not been a gay man with impeccable taste.
From the moment the clock struck 12 until now, my mantra has been the same (perhaps somewhat annoyingly), to both friends and family - 2010 is gonna be a good year. How do I know this? I don't, but I just have this feeling. I'm also a bit of a pollyanna at times, as you'll know from previous posts. My husband disagrees with me (go figure) and thinks it will be another dour, recession-dampened plod. Well, we can't both be right, but I know that regardless of the crap life throws at the fan this year - like my best friends grandmother having a stroke on Christmas day, or my school-friend's fiance coming back from Afghanistan in a wheelchair last Summer - we can all still make something good of the next 365 days. Life isn't black and white, it's what you make it.
