Celebrating At Home for New Year's Eve

Tonight’s the night! Even though it feels like 2021 was just 2020: The Remix, we're crossing our fingers that 2022 will be the year the world regains its sanity. Chances are, you’ve joined the legion of Omicron victims (or want to avoid joining!) and plan to stay in tonight to count down to the new year. If you’re looking for ways to celebrate that don’t involve large crowds and rapid at-home tests, here are some suggestions:

(Image credit: The Guardian)

1. Watch firework celebrations around the world
   The Telegraph has a YouTube livestream running all throughout December 31st, 2021 of celebrations throughout the day/night, allowing you to celebrate as many countdowns as you want until our own big moment arrives at midnight!
   Want to see the very first New Year countdown of 2022? Here’s the footage of New Zealand’s celebration!
   If you missed celebrations in other countries and still want to check them out, simply type “New Year’s 2022 [Country]” in the YouTube search bar, and you should have a number of options to choose from.

(Image credit: https://ia.acs.org.au)

2. Cozy up for a New Year-themed movie! Throw together a charcuterie board and curl up on the couch with a classic New Year’s Eve movie - we recommend An American in Paris, When Harry Met Sally, or Ocean’s Eleven.

(Image credit: Barcelo.com)

3. Adopt a new, interesting tradition!
   There are so many cool New Year traditions from around the world - why not try some new ones, and maybe they’ll find their way into your annual celebrations from here on out. Here are some suggestions, courtesy of Scholastic:
   - In Spain, each person has a bowl with 12 grapes, and eats one grape at every chime of the clock at midnight. They’re called “las doce uvas de la suerte” (the 12 grapes of luck) and are said to help bring luck and fortune while warding off evil spirits. Pro tip: if you’re going to do this with little kids, halve the grapes lengthwise first, because the fast chewing can lead to choking.
   - In Russia, each person writes their wish for the new year on a slip of paper at midnight, and burns the paper. They then sprinkle the ashes into their drink, and bottoms up! Hurry, though - you have to do it all before 12:01am!
   - In the Philippines, everyone wears polka dots, as circles are thought to be symbols of prosperity.
   - In Germany, friends exchange "Glücksschwein" ("Lucky Pig") - little pigs made of marzipan. Eating them is supposed to bring good luck in the new year.

- In Denmark, revelers climb onto a chair (or couch) moments before midnight, then jump off at the stroke of 12 to symbolize “jumping” into the new year. It’s thought to be good luck if you do it (but bad luck if you don’t, so get those chairs ready!)

(Image credit: Netflix)

4. Got little kids but don’t really want to deal with the drama that comes with keeping them up til midnight? Netflix has you covered! Kid profiles on the app provide videos starring different beloved characters counting down to “the big moment” - throw one on around 7pm, pop open a bottle of Martinelli’s, and have them in bed by 8 without them knowing what they’re missing.

(image credit: Girts Ragelis/Shutterstock.com)

5. Missing family and friends because Omicron has everyone isolating? Set up a camera in your living room and have a Zoom party with everyone, then toast at midnight! Sure, it’s not the same on a screen, but it beats scrambling for tests in 5 days when you start sniffling!