Welcoming In The New Year: Are You The Superstitious Kind?

Over the years I have subscribed to many an "old wives tale". Most of them don't appear to have any history behind them, but  if not followed, the alleged outcome is supposed to be something unfavorable and who needs more bad luck, right?

Well, just for kicks, I figured I might track down some of the more well-known wives tales regarding both welcoming in and saying goodbye to the New Year.

So, get your pin and pad, you may need to write some of this down.

1. Eat your black-eyed peas and greens: The black-eyed peas are supposed to represent good fortune, and good health, while the greens ensure you will have money throughout the year.

As a southern girl, I have had my fair share of greens and peas on New Years Day and, I gotta tell ya, I haven't seen much difference. However, it never hurts to try!

2. Do no laundry on New Years Day: The washing of garments is a representation of the death of someone close to you. Stay away from the washing machine and, just for good measure, don't wash dishes or cars either—better safe than sorry.

3. Kiss your significant other: Be sure to kiss the man/woman in your life at the stroke of midnight if you hope to continue a healthy relationship into the new year. No kiss is a harbinger of a cold and difficult year together.

4. Invite a friend...just make sure it's a dark-haired man: Make the first guest that enters your home in the New Year be a male one. Males bring good luck—females, not-so-much. Don't ask me why.

5. Have a clean house: Make sure your humble abode is spotless before the New Year comes in, or else be a victim of having a messy house all year long.

6. Open the doors: Let the New Year in, and the old year out, by opening the doors at midnight. Welcome in the good possibilities of 2011 and allow its predecessor to be on its merry way.

Happy New Year!

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Breaking Free of Your Holiday Hangover

The blues don't come with a warning and sometimes it can take you a moment to realize that you are '"sad". The end of the holiday season can bring about such a feeling—believe it or not.

For a great many of us, Christmas is about more than the shopping and the gifts—it's about the comfort we get from being around those we love. Despite the stress and drama that can come with the presence of family/friends, you still appreciate the opportunity to have loved ones with which to spend that time.

You conversate, eat, and exchange memories with these people and those actions envelop you with feelings of great warmth and security. You forget—temporarily—about the issues of being an adult so that you can enjoy the beauty of the season with those around you—becoming like a kid again. 

So when the festivities end, and we all begin to make our way back to the chore of living our real life, it can be a major letdown because few of us are interested in dealing with the stress of the everyday —bills, job, mortgage/rent, etc.

We prefer the fantasy.

So, how do we combat the feelings of sadness? Well, for one, we have to pinpoint the reasons we think we are sad. If it's the realization that everything must return to normal, then it's time to start figuring out what it is about that "normalcy" that makes you feel so bad?

What are you running away from and when did that become the definition of who you are?

If it's about the lights and the consumeristic quality of it all, then you may need to dig deeper to discover why it is that you need to see the bells and whistles to feel complete. What is your spirit lacking?

There is nothing wrong with feeling a little under-the-weather about the demise of the holiday season. Don't feel bad about it if you do. Instead, take that time to focus on the good memories made and the ones still to come in the years ahead.

Related articles

• Nancy Twigg: Avoiding holiday debt hangover (knoxnews.com)