Good morning, New Year!

Aah, the first day of the new year.
Like most years, this day starts with a bitchslap to reality.  Specially when  --your head still woozy from last night's reckless revelry-- you come face to face with the dreaded sink.

"There's a reason why this is called a sink" ...you thought as your heart sank.

Dirty plates, stinky beer bottles, candy wrappers, discarded plastic cases, empty cans, uninvited ant guests have totally buried the formica.  It is at that moment when you realize that once again, the fine line between kitchen sink and trash bin has been terribly blurred.

You know you must start cleaning now.  And I have a tip to get that disheartened feeling out of your system and get you started.

GO OUT.

Step out into the street where you had that glorious countdown a few hours before, over laughter and out-of-tune singing.  And see what had actually transpired --now made more visible under the glare of the bright sun.

Behold the aftermath!  Soot everywhere, dismembered firecrackers here and there, cigarette butts, soiled paper plates, more empty beer bottles,  discarded wrappers of anything and everything, dried-up vomit every 5 to 6 paces, an entire colony of ants and their friends making themselves comfortable at every turn.  If you're lucky --just as I had been-- you might even find a drunk neighbor right out on the pavement, sleeping like a baby.

You see this mess covering the entire stretch of your street.  Take it all in.

When you're good and ready, go back indoors and look at your sink.
Why, this pile pales in comparison to what you just witnessed outside, right?  With that in mind, isn't it a lot easier to sink your hands in that sink?  I mean, it worked for me.

Great!  Now get to work.  Good morning.  And Happy New Year!