Favorite NY Memories #1: New Year's Eve in Times Square

At long last, my friends, we have reached the top of this list, the #1 item, my MOST FAVORITE New York Memory. And that honor goes to: New Year's Eve (2008-09) in Times Square, watching that famous ball drop live and in the flesh. As if there was ever any doubt!

The ball was new that year, and before placing it in its famous spot atop Times Square, it was on display at Macy's.

Here I am in November 2008, saying a quick hello to the ball we would stare at for hours just a couple months later.

This memory is one I will be telling people about for the rest of my life. It is one that I will relive every single year as I watch that ball drop on TV. The feelings associated with it will always stick with me. And I will never, ever do it again.

New Year's Eve 2008 was our very first in New York City. As I mentioned in my post about our #3 Favorite Memory, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, Eric and I arrived in New York ready and gung-ho to do every single New York-y thing possible. Our plan was to do them all in our first year if possible, thinking that after we had lived here for a while the novelty would wear off and we'd become jaded, unimpressed (read: wise) New Yorkers who would never do something so ridiculous as, for example, standing outside in frigid temperatures for hours just to watch a big lighted ball slowly lower for about 10 seconds. I don't know that I would say the novelty did really wear off, because obviously I'm still quite obsessed with All Things New York City, but this turned out to be a good plan. It was great to have these big, exhausting events crossed off by the end of our first year so we could spend the rest of our years here doing whatever we liked with no regrets.

Of course, spending New Year's Eve in Times Square was one of those big events we had to cross off our list. So, in 2008, we went for it. We had friends come up from Washington, D.C. for the big affair, and we were excited to have people in this thing with us, because misery loves company and all that. At 4:00 that afternoon, we started the Putting On Of The Clothes. We wore so, so many clothes. It had snowed that day and the temperatures were not exactly toasty. We were so bundled.

We made our way out to Times Square, trying to enter where we could. We finally made it in around 49th Street, made it through security, and settled into our "pen" by about 5:20 p.m. We ended up halfway between 48th and 49th Streets, so about six blocks back from the ball. That was the closest we could get six and a half hours early.

I should explain how this whole "pen" thing works for those who might not be familiar. NYPD uses barricades to create these pens all throughout Times Square. When you arrive, you are corralled into the closest open pen. When the pen is filled with people, NYPD closes it off. And then that's it. Nobody else is allowed in the pen, including you, if you leave. So once you're in, you're in. There are no bathrooms. There is no food. There is no drink. There is nowhere to sit. There is no warmth. And if you leave, you will only be allowed to enter into the next closest open pen, which (depending on the timing of your exit) could be blocks further back from where you started. So you don't leave.

So, as of 5:20, we were committed. Our pen didn't get too crowded for a while, so we spent some time snapping pictures, enjoying the space and staking out our spot along the barricades.

Ready for a fun New Year's Eve in Times Square!

We spent the next six and a half hours standing in that pen, watching it fill up around us. There were people around us from numerous different countries, which I found very cool. Every so often they would come by and had out some SWAG: hats, scarves, balloons, candy. Also, every hour they would countdown to the hour, and the screen below the ball would say "X hours to go!", so we came to look forward to that.

What we really must discuss, however, is the temperature. When we arrived at 5:20 p.m., the temperature was 17 degrees. Seventeen degrees was the warmest weather we stood in all night. According to Ryan Seacrest, by midnight, with windchill the temperature was two degrees. One, two. Two degrees. I'm no meteorologist but I would say generally, people prefer more degrees than that. I know I do, at least. It was COLD, by far the coldest I have ever been. You might think that you would stay warm huddled in with all those people at least, but I am here to tell you that is false. That does not help. It is still cold. It was the kind of cold that made any inch of skin exposed to the air sting (painfully). I spent a solid half hour wondering how exactly you tell the difference between just being really, really cold and in actual danger of frostbite. It was so cold, our friends left by 7:30 p.m. Eric and I were the only crazies left standing.

I have so many pairs of gloves on that I can't even pull my pinky finger in to give my thumbs up.

I think Eric is under there somewhere.

We may be crazy for sticking it out, but stick it out we did. Eric and I took turns wavering in our commitment to the cause, but we managed to pull each other through and remained in our pen until midnight. At long last, the approximately two minutes we had all been waiting for were upon us.

Right before midnight, they played "Imagine" through Times Square. For those couple of minutes, all the craziness died down and everyone sang along. Everyone. All those people from all over the world just stood there in this one place, singing this beautiful song, ready to bid farewell to the year gone by and celebrate the arrival of a fresh start. It was one of the single most overwhelming moments of my time here, if not my life in general. It was beautiful.

Not only was I overcome by the feeling of togetherness in that moment, but I was also so in awe of where I stood and what I was doing. Like most of America, I have watched the New Year's Eve countdown from Times Square on TV for as long as I can remember. I have always wondered what it would be like to be there, but never in a million years would have guessed that I would someday actually do just that. It was just such an incredible feeling, to be a part of this tradition that is cherished by millions, to be standing in a place that the whole world was watching. What an incredibly cool place this city is.

And then, the countdown began! As 2008 became 2009, fireworks exploded over Times Square, confetti fell (although we were too far back to be under it), people cheered and hugged and kissed.

VIDEO: The final seconds of 2008!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Midnight kiss with frozen lips!

After the ball dropped, they played "Auld Lang Syne" (of course), "New York," "It's a Wonderful World" and other great music as the crowds started to disperse. The funny thing is that so many people wait so long in their spots for just these few seconds of celebration, and then when it's all over they book it out of there. I understand this, of course, but Eric and I chose to linger for just a few minutes to take it all in. To this day, the song "New York" makes me think of that moment, and I can't help but feel a little misty-eyed and nostalgic. It was such an incredible feeling.

Amidst the craziness after the ball dropped

When we had our fill of the moment, we walked home (and finally got feeling back in our poor, frozen toes!), where our friends were waiting for us in our nice, toasty apartment. They were kind enough to go out and get us a pizza, which we happily enjoyed with some champagne as we recounted the tale of our evening.

We did it!

That night was just unlike any other that I have ever (or will ever) have. Would I do it again? Never ever, not in a million years. It was awful. Although I will say that each year since has been significantly (like 40-degrees-or-more kind of significantly) warmer than the year we did this. So maybe trying again wouldn't be that bad. But, no. No, no, no. Our official stance on New Year's Eve in Times Square quickly became this: Yes, we did it, and it was awesome. But also awful. If you want to come visit us for New Year's Eve and go to Times Square, we will happily lend you every warm article of clothing in our home and point you in the right direction. And we'll be waiting with pizza when you get back.

The next year, we did just that - we watched the ball drop from the comfort of our home, where we could see Times Square from our living room. The crazy did almost take over on New Year's Eve 2010, when we made a quick stop by Times Square just to snap some pictures, and the warm temperatures nearly convinced us to stay. Luckily, sanity kicked back in and we returned to our apartment, where we once again watched the ball drop live from our living room window with a glass of champagne in hand. MUCH BETTER. Sanity for the win!

Our view from our bedroom on New Year's Eve 2009-10

Briefly back in Times Square on New Year's Eve 2010-11

Fireworks over Times Square at midnight on New Year's Eve 2010-11, as seen from our living room, because we do still have some of our wits about us.

Despite the craziness of it all, New Year's Eve 2008 will always be one of my most cherished memories. There is just no way to understand the energy of that experience until you have been there yourself, and I am so thankful to be able to say that we have done that. It may have been cold and crowded and generally miserable, but all that only adds to the story. At the end of the day, it was an extraordinary experience that I will not soon forget.

And there you have it, folks. My top ten favorite memories brought to me by this city that I love so dearly. Tomorrow, it is time to officially say good-bye.

To read the full recount of our New Year's Eve in Times Square adventure, click here.