How to Throw a Last-Minute New Year’s Eve Party

Posted on December 31, 2010 by Sonja

Robbie and I never get invited to New Year’s Eve parties, despite Robbie’s sparkling personality and my impeccable personal hygiene. So we usually plan on sitting around on our bums by ourselves watching whatever crap movie we can find on Netflix Watch It Now and eating leftover Christmas junk food. But it just so happened that this year, we had reason to put together a last-minute shindig for some family and friends. This was decided… oh, about 48 hours before the event.

I, not being one to panic… Ok, that’s a lie. I usually panic. And I sort of did. I’ve never hosted a NYE party before, as far as I can recall. But I decided that I would make it as easy as possible on myself, especially since I’m planning to be gone most of the day before the party actually starts. So, here’s the plan.

Decorations

I originally had visions of little white twinkle lights and crepe paper streamers and party hats and confetti. You know what all that requires? Work and shopping, neither of which I had time for. So plan B was inspired by the movie Elf, wherein Buddy the Elf decorates wherever he goes with paper snowflakes hanging from the ceiling or the bedpost or whatever he can find to hang them on. Sonja the Elf managed something similar.

Snowflakes hanging from different spots around the house. Hey, it's better than nothing.

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Tears and Presents

Posted on December 30, 2010 by Sonja

You already know that my brother makes me cry. This week, though, my sister made me cry.

Oh, she’s done it before. When we were in college, she went away to Finland for a semester of study abroad. And I cried. It was partly because I was going to miss her, yes. It was also partly because I was jealous that she was having an experience that I wouldn’t get to have, I admit. But the biggest part was that she was going somewhere and doing something alone, and when you’re a twin, that doesn’t happen much. One of the most comforting parts of having a twin sister, for me, was always knowing at least one person in the room. (First day of high school in a brand new school across the country from where we used to live? Scary, but less scary walking in next to your sister.) So when she went to Finland without me, I felt scared for her– scared that she wouldn’t know anyone in the room, and that she would truly be alone, and I projected my fear of that onto her, and she got some sad, sympathetic tears from me that she never asked for– heh. Turns out she had a great time in Finland, duh. (And she brought me a present, pictured left: my awesome Finland Christmas sweater.)