Starting the New Year with a Bang or a Whimper?

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You’ve heard of that old saying, Starting off the New Year with a bang or a whimper…I guess I’m going on the record as an official fan of the whimper side of things. That’s not the same as being a wimp. I mean, they don’t mean the same things and aren’t even spelled the same way (notice how “whimper” has an “h” in it”).

I like to think of the “whimper side” as referring to being mellow, the sort of person who likes to ease into the room vs. someone who prefers a grand entrance (like Kramer on Seinfeld, for instance).

Thankfully, I married someone who also prefers to ring in the New Year with a whimper. In our 36 years of marriage we occasionally attended New Year’s Eve parties, but only when forced to. We’re much happier to watch the celebration take place on TV, rather than to make all that fuss in a crowd. I guess it’s fair to say, we’d rather watch those who ring in the New Year with a bang than make a bang ourselves.

As I reflected on this, at first I thought perhaps I had just become this way as I’ve grown older, you know, sort of mellowing with age. But then I realized, that wasn’t true. Even in my youth, I tolerated loud rock ‘n roll music and concerts to fit in with my friends, but on my own, I’d much prefer to listen to James Taylor than Mick Jagger any day of the week.

Even this year, as the New Year clock ticked down to that final hour, we were flipping through the channels deciding whose show to watch. One channel had this popular rocker/rapper named Pitbull jumping up and down on stage, his hands and arms flailing about, screaming something about keeping the party going (a phrase he repeated over and over again to a pulsating crowd, who seemed to need no help remembering this theme).

To us, it was dreadful. BANG BANG BANG BANG.

We turned the channel to hear orchestra music playing and Sarah Brightman singing the melodic tune, Time to Say Goodbye. Ahhh…instant relief. I guess it’s no mystery which channel we stayed with to ring in the New Year.

Whimperers 1, Bangers 0.

So here’s to all you fellow Whimperers…hold your heads up high and march proudly (or tiptoe lightly, if you prefer) into this New Year. We are not just a few. We might even be the majority.

How about you? Are you a Banger or a Whimperer?