Is it New Year's already? Not quite. But if Rich Goodwin has his way,
you'll know when the next one gets here, down to the second.
Goodwin is promoting a major New Year's Eve bash at the Orange
County Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa, complete with a slowly descending,
big, shiny, orange ball that would rival the slowly descending, big,
shiny, crystal ball that drives all those New Yorkers in Times Square
wild every Dec. 31.
The Big Apple's ball is made of hundreds of crystal stars from
Waterford by the way -- not that you care, but it is my job to
provide you with useless information, and I take my job seriously.
"It's apple versus orange, literally, at this point," Goodwin
said. "West Coast versus East Coast. But obviously, we have a long
way to go before we make that claim. They do a good job in New York."
Yes, Rich, they do; as well they should, since they've been at it
since 1907, which is a while.
If Goodwin gets the green light to drop the orange ball this year,
Dec. 31 will mark the first big deal New Year's Eve party thing in
Orange County history.
The fair board is considering Goodwin's request but hasn't made
any commitments yet. Members want to be certain the neighbors have no
serious objections first, and they are not especially interested in
something that might be a one-time event.
Goodwin couldn't agree more.
"We want this event to be around for 100 years," Goodwin said,
definitely taking the make-no-small-plans adage seriously.
Exactly what will life in Orange County be like in 2105? I don't
have a clue. I was sure Betamax was going to win, and I thought
Angelina Jolie's lips were real until my wife explained it all to me.
But I do hope the fair board gives Goodwin's idea a try. Let's be
honest: The possibilities for New Year's Eve in the Big Orange are
wimpy. You can go to a party, or pay money to go to a hotel or a
restaurant and look silly in a cheesy party hat with people you don't
know in cheesy party hats, or just ignore the whole thing and go to
bed at 11 p.m. -- an increasingly popular choice.
According to Mesa del Mar Homeowners Assn. President Lisa Reedy,
the proposed party and concert would definitely be a change from your
basic, garden variety New Year's Eve in Mesa del Mar.
"New Year's Eve ... you go out and a bunch of people are banging
pots and pans together," Reedy said. "That's about it."
See? We can do better than that. I think it would be fun to go
somewhere and watch a big shiny orange thing slide down a pole while
