Fielder's Choice

It used to be a really big deal as a child to try to stay up until midnight on New Year’s Eve.

I remember times when I was successful and times I fell asleep on the couch.

Now I usually stay up until 11 p.m. Or so on any given night, so it’s no big deal to stretch it out an hour or so on December 31 each year.

Somewhere around my teenage years, I recall listening to the countdown of the Top 100 songs of the year. That was on one of those battery-operated radios.

I usually had a notebook and a pencil, and I kept up with the countdown all the way through.

I’m not a singer, but I always had an appreciation for good music.

Back in the early 1970s, disco music was becoming the big thing.

In August 1976, the top hit was “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart” by Elton John and Kiki Dee. I was about to turn 15.

In September that year it was “You Should Be Dancing” by the Bee Gees. And then October, there was “Play That Funky Music” by Wild Cherry.

Do you remember “Disco Duck?” by Rick Dees? Another of my favorites that year was “The Rubberband Man” by the Spinners.

I also had some of those songs, and lots more of my favorites, on an eight-track tape or later advancing to cassettes. Having a car with a cassette player was a really big deal.

Music isn’t what it used to be, on New Year’s Eve or anytime.

If I’m in my truck, I’m always listening to 70s music, or possibly the 80s. Thank goodness for XM Satellite Radio.

Most New Year’s Eves the past 35 years or so, I’ve seen the ball drop in New York’s Times Square via television at midnight. That’s a tradition.

Of course, the music on the New Year’s Eve shows was much better 35 years ago, too.

One of the biggest things for the Burlesons on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day since 2002 has been celebrating Erin’s birthday.

She surprised us on New Year’s Day that year, arriving three months early. She weighed 2 lbs, 6 oz.

Erin will turn 20 on New Year’s Day 2022. She’s a sophomore at the University of Southern Mississippi, majoring in speech therapy. And she still keeps us on our toes.

We may have to celebrate her birthday a day or two earlier this year. She has New Year’s Eve plans with friends in Hattiesburg.

My first thought was, “How can you not celebrate with your parents this year?” Then I recalled when I was celebrating New Year’s Eve at her age.

My response was kind of like what my mother always told me — “OK. I hope you have fun, and please, be smart and be safe.”

There’s plenty of football on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. That will occupy a lot of my time.

And of course, I have to try to eat some black-eyed peas. And maybe I will throw in some collard greens, too.

According to legendary Southern food researcher John Egerton, black-eyed peas are associated with a “mystical and mythical power to bring good luck.” As for collard greens, they’re green like money and will ensure a financially prosperous new year.

Happy New Year!