by Jen McNeely
Since I’m not a cook, I’m not going to tell you what to make for your NYE dinner party but what I will suggest is how to set the scene 2008 styles with music, games and décor.


There are three types of New Years Eve’s that one may experience:
In a crowded bar singing Auld Lang Syne as some drunk brute tries to snog you while dripping cheap champagne down your back. One of your girlfriends will likely be crying in the washroom while another leans against the front glass vomiting. An ex will appear out of nowhere and you will feel your heart strings pulled. At the end of the night you will walk out into a blizzard and messily try to hail a cab in your heels. You will dance like crazy, push at the bar like crazy and spend your Christmas money all in one shot. The next day you will meet for brunch and hash out the deets of the night over sloppy eggs benedict and cold coffee.
You will sit at home alone because 2008 was shit. Watch Law & Order while flicking back to Times Square. Cursing the recession you will down a bottle of wine on your own and pass out on a couch. Or if you aren’t a boozey Suzy, then you’ll make a hot bath, drink some tea and fall asleep before midnight.
You will gather a group of your best friends for a lovely dinner party, play games – get a little tipsy and feel excited for all the good things you are going to do in 2009.

The Music:
MGMT – Time To Pretend
The Ting Tings – That’s Not My Name
Will.I.Am – Yes We Can
Black Kids – I’m Not Going to Teach You How To Dance
Lil Wayne – Lollipop
Flo Rida – Low
Kardinal Offishall – Dangerous
Lights and Music – Cut Copy
Estelle – American Boy
MIA – Paper Planes
Duffy – Mercy
Crystal Castles – Crimewave
Katy Perry – I Kissed A Girl
Kanye West – Flashing Lights

The Games

Who Am I?
Each dinner guest will get a piece of paper posted to their back and must go around the room asking yes or no questions to figure out who they are

Suggested People / Objects to Be:
Sarah Palin
Heath Ledger
iPhone
Conrad Black
Barack Obama
Tina Fey
Paris Hilton
Fafi
Miley Cyrus
Joel and Ethan Coen
Steve Jobs
Karl Lagerfeld
Estelle
Converse Shoe (100th Anniversary)
Marilyn Monroe (50th Anniversary of Death)
Princess Diana (10th Anniversary of Death)
Rob Blagojevich
Michael Ignatieff
Tyra Banks (just cause she’s fun…not really 2008)
Polar Bear
Stride Chewing Gum
Sam Ronson
Gladiator Shoe
Bernie Madoff
Porter Airlines

Top Ten Most Memorable Moments
Have everyone write down their most memorable 2008 moments and then unveil them all at once. Sounds boring but good conversation will spawn.

The Placemats:

Resolutions
When you are nice and sauced, go around the table and ask everyone for their New Years Resolutions. That said, be mindful that people may want their privacy.

Drunken Debates
Yes We Can!!…but can we?
Recession or Depression
Hollogram News – like? Or freaky?
Hipsters – dead? Or alive? Or shut the fuck up!
Reality show…if you had to: Paris Hiltons BFF or Tila Tequila?
Made in Canada? Made in China?
Bailing out the Big Three…good idea?
Polaroid Camera versus Facebook Albums
Facebook versus Twitter
Which campaign did we like, hate: Koodo Mobile? Damn Right Your Dad Drank It?
What is the drink of 2009?

Good luck in 2009!