<span>New Year's Eve is around the corner, but my friends know better than to invite me to any of their shin</span><span>digs. I am a relatively sanguine presence at a normal get together, but put me in a social situation that I feel is contrived, and my eyes glaze over.</span> <span>No event is more make-believe than a New Year’s Eve celebration. Everything about it makes my eye twitch: there is the fake anticipation, the planning of which eye-wateringly expensive parties to attend, the transport logistics and, of course, all those New Year GIFs that invade my mobile phone once midnight strikes.</span> <span>It all makes me rather exhausted, which is why</span><span>, unless I am working on NYE, I normally call it a night by 10.30pm. </span> <span>My apathy for such a celebration probably stems back to growing up in Abu Dhabi in the 1980s. I don’t recall us acknowledging the passing of the year, instead the celebrations revolved around Eid and National Day.</span> <span>Yes, New Year’s Day was a public holiday, but it wasn’t as big a “thing” as it is now. For one thing, there wasn’t the smorgasbord of night spots and fancy restaurants there are now, and the concept of a du Arena-style December 31 concert was near inconceivable.</span> <span>At best, hotels like the InterContinental and Sheraton would host a few regional pop stars in their ballrooms, while some families gathered together for barbecues at the Corniche – like they would every weekend or public holiday – and that was that. The clock would strike midnight unknowingly while we played football on the grass, and we would go home with our stomachs full and eyes droopy.</span> <span>There was no extravagant firework display and discussions of resolutions. It was simple and memorably unmemorable.</span> <span>While I am excited about how Abu Dhabi has evolved over the decades, I do miss those times. The simple pleasures of enjoying the company of family and friends, without reason or context, is something we have lost a little over the years. This could be put down to our increasingly fast-paced lifestyles and the lack of a work-life balance. </span> <span>Another reason is the wide-spread use of social media, and its associated “over-sharing” culture, leading to an increasing need to attribute meaning to our life each and every day.</span> <strong>______________</strong> <strong>Read more from Saeed:</strong> <strong><a href="https://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/travel/why-we-should-all-staycation-in-the-uae-more-and-now-is-the-perfect-time-for-it-1.804731">Why we should all staycation in the UAE more: and now is the perfect time for it</a></strong> <strong><a href="https://www.thenational.ae/lifestyle/comment/reem-central-park-continues-abu-dhabi-s-tradition-of-creating-great-green-spaces-for-all-to-enjoy-1.800040">Reem Central Park continues Abu Dhabi’s tradition of creating great green spaces for all to enjoy</a></strong> <strong>______________</strong> <span>This is probably why New Year's resolutions, despite being a faulty premise, continue to endure. Hanging out and chilling with loved ones is no longer enough. We need to give the night a layer of resonance, so we announce to our friends and family (real and on</span><span> social media) some new life-changing and Herculean task that we plan to accomplish by the end of the year.</span> <span>And, of course, it doesn’t work – those gym cards are dusty and we still sneak out for cigarettes. That’s because big life changes are often frustratingly slow, rarely progress in a straightforward manner and are certainly not going to be solidified in one night. </span> <span>It's the same thing when it comes with relationships. They grow deeper with time, not by moments. It is that reason that I won't join my group of friends to party on Monday night and, instead, plan to be at home with a book or movie. I will</span><span> catch up with them for our regular Tuesday dinner – because seeing them every week is more important to me.</span> <span>That said, I wish you all a safe and happy New Year celebration.</span>