Watching the Ball Drop

Did you know that the tradition of watching the ball lower every New Year's Eve in Times Square began almost 100 years ago? I remember even as a kid being mesmerized by how dazzling it looked and being fascinated with the idea that almost everyone in this country was staring at this beautiful ball... all at the same time. It gave us a sense of unity for one minute every year.

http://www.timessquarebid.org/new_year/

One year we switched to the wrong channel to watch the ball drop and to our surprise we saw a giant HAMBURGER lowering instead of the ball! I have asked others if they've seen this and nobody remembers it but my family. I think it was a way of promoting Big Boy's Restaurant or Shoney's. Maybe it was a local thing (we lived in Florida at the time).

When I got a little older we moved from the Eastern time zone to the Central time zone. When New Year's Eve came that first year in the central time zone, I was HORRIFIED that we had to watch the ball drop at 11 pm - not at midnight. All those people on the east coast got to ring in the New Year at the appropriate time and those of us in Texas got to watch them, then wait another hour for our own fizzled out celebration of banging pots and pans in the street. Many people had already gone to bed, but we were determined to do our own celebration at OUR midnight anyway... even if it felt pathetic to us compared to what New York's celebration looked like.

When I figured out that people on the west coast had to celebrate the ball dropping HOURS after the real celebration in Manhattan was over, I realized that really only the people on the east coast get to watch the ball drop LIVE and at MIDNIGHT. Oh well.

In Atlanta they watch an 800 pound PEACH drop. http://www.peachdrop.com/

In Raleigh they watch a big acorn get lowered.

In Seattle the SPACE NEEDLE lights up. http://www.spaceneedle.com/webcam/

There are all sorts of midnight events all over the world. You don't have to look at the ball in Manhattan. However, New Year's wouldn't be the same for me without it - no matter where I am.

We'd love to hear about the midnight New Year's eve celebration where you live - whether it's a giant hamburger that drops or a little spider monkey who does backflips. Feel free to share your traditions with us below!