Your post made me smile...such vivid writing, I could envision your experiences.

I really had to think long and hard about my many New Years Eve's over the years. Growing up, we were never a big to-do sort of family. We would watch the ball drop on T.V. and then it was off to bed.

I do remember one though that stands out in my mind. I was 18 or 19 years old and my best friend and I had hitchhiked from Florida to Columbus, Ohio. I don't remember exactly what possessed us but we ended up arriving in Ohio about two weeks before Christmas. We rented a double room in a motel that rented by the week and we both set out to find jobs. The job hunt went rather poorly and all I could land was a waitressing job 3 nights a week in a local diner.
By the time Christmas arrived she was tired of trying and decided to go home to her parents. I don't really blame her, it was pretty rough subsisting on cold Pop Tarts and Cup O Noodles. After she left, I was determined to stay and make it work. When New Year's Eve rolled around I was pretty down on my luck. I had just enough money left for one more week of the room and some snacks to get me through that week.

That night I decided to walk down to the River District, the last thing I wanted was to be alone on New Years Eve. Even being surrounded by strangers was better than being alone. I walked into one of the Irish bars by skirting in behind a large group so as not to get carded by the bouncer and sat down in the back hoping not to be noticed since I was underage. It was incredibly crowded of course and loud with revelers and music. I sat quietly for what seemed like eternity just watching the people smiling and laughing and thinking of the mess I had gotten myself into. I was so deep in thought that I hadn't noticed the handsome man that had sat down at my small table and was looking at me waiting for my reaction. When I finally realized he was there and jumped with shocked he flashed a smile and asked me to dance. I should have said no but ended up dancing with him for a few songs which was great fun. I decided that it was time for me to head back to my room before all the partiers headed out into the streets to watch the fireworks. I snuck out of the bar when my dance partners back was turned and started making my way down the already crowded street. I had made it to the street corner, winding my way through the crowd, where I stood waiting for the light. I suddenly felt a hand on my elbow and when I turned I realized it was my dance partner I had left in the lurch. I'm sure I turned about 10 shades of red. I apologized and explained that I just wanted to get out of the chaos. He invited me to a late night breakfast place where we sat and watched the fireworks and ate pancakes. He was a great guy and those were the best pancakes I had ever eaten. I couldn't get over how lucky I was to have accidentally met this person, on this night, when the thing I needed the most was the company of someone kind and genuine. After we ate, we walked through the snow and he asked me for a second date. I took his number and kissed him on the cheek and walked back to my room. I never had the nerve to call him...I guess he just seemed to good to be true.
That was my favorite New Years Eve because it was unexpected and could have turned out to be a very sad and lonely ordeal but instead was quite lovely. That night gave me the resolve to continue on and I ended up eventually getting an apartment, a really nice job, and living in Columbus for about 3 years.