New Year's 2008

On New Year's Eve 2007 it was the first time Richmond did anything for New Year's. Of course there was that masquerade ball at the Convention Center but it was for rich people. All the wine toasts and house parties could not compare to what happened in 2007. Carytown New Year's Eve was the talk of the city. The shopping disctrict of Carytown on Cary Street was closed and the street was crammed with thousands ofpeople. Bands played, fireworks went off, and a ball dropped.

This year, 2008, its second year, I would not be missing it. I decided to go with my boyfriend Ben. My brother would be going with his friends. The policewere expecting 12,000 people.

It started at 7 but Ben and I couldnt get together until 10 on New Year's Eve. We drove downtown and decided to park about 11 blocks away to avoid the traffic. It was already 11. We held hands and walked through the Fan. As suspected, all possible parking spots were taken, but its like that every day anyway. We ran into excited people near Carytown, people screaming "Happy New Year" at us out their car windows. Turning onto Cary from Robinson we saw it. We were behind the stage. The street was crammed. Rows of portable toilets lined either side of the road. People had video cameras and air horns, screaming with excitement. Music was blaring. It was 11:30.

We made our way into the crowd. Everyone there was young. Most everyone was in their twenties. On the roofs of the buildings people sat, drinking and observing the crowd. The crowd was packed in like sardines, andBen and Iheld hands tightly as we squeezed through to the front of the stage. Black Cash And The Bad Trips were playing. They are a much loved Johnny Cash tribute band from the local area. I wasnt familiar with Johnny Cash but they were very good, and had the crowd dancing and screaming crazily at the end of every song. Someone sprayed champagne over us. A guy was on the roof of New York Deli, wearing an orange sequin vest and a coat with tails. He was the emcee of the night, yelling at us between songs, "This is not New York. This is not Los Angeles. This is Richmond, Virginia!", "Are you proud to be from Richmond, Virginia?" The crowd loved him and responded enthusiastically. Some people near us had glitter in their hair and noisemakers.

As the New Year approached, Ben was thinking about his resolutions and my excitement was building. A ball was going to rise, not drop, from the roof of the Byrd Theater. The emcee led the countdown. The crowd went nuts at midnight. We couldnt see the ball, but we saw the fireworks. I grabbed Ben and kissed him, and then screamed some more. Ben grabbed me again, dipped me, and kissed me. I was the first time I'd ever been kissed on New Year's. Then a lady came on stage and sang Auld Lang Syne.

It ended very abruptly. The crowd began todissipate, and in their wake the street was trashed. Police on horses were trying to control the crowds, and I petted a horse. People lingered, wishing us happy New Year. Ben and I went to Subway and had some food. Then we went home.