A wis workin’ in the local boozer at the time. It wis a ten bedroom hotel and hud a massive public bar that attracted folk fae miles aroond. Pub and hotel workers dinnae get many public hoalidays, but New Year’s day wis yin we did get, and it wisnae tae be missed. Last orders wir 9.30pm oan Hogmanay and we wir finished and oot by 10pm. Nae hingin’ aboot. We lived fifteen minutes walk away, and a wis in the hoose by 10.20pm at the latest. It wis busy a’ready. A hae a big family, ma faither wis yin o’ thirteen and I am yin o’ ten. Ma faither wis the auldest brither and some o’ his faimily ay ended up at oor hoose yince the Furst Fittin’ wis underwye. Oor pals liked comin’ tae oor hoose tae, fir the pairty atmosphere. So, it wis a busy hoose and it wis only a typical council hoose wi’ a standard livin’ room and a wee scullery. Still, it’s amazin’ what ye can dae in a hoose that size. A brought a lassie thit worked in the boozer wi’ me, along wi’ hur son. Otherwise they wid ha’ been in thir ain hoose oan thir ain. Ye cannae hae that though, and that is what Hogmanay wis aw aboot!
So we wir aw sittin’ aboot bletherin’ and haein’ a wee drink. Ye hae tae caw cannie before midnight eh? A mean, start drinkin’ too soon and ye dinnae last much beyond the twelve o’cloke bells. Ye cannae wait aw year fir Hogmanay and drink too much tae enjoy it before it even stairts! So, we were bein’ gey cannie and eatin’ somethin’ tae. Ye need tae line yir belly wi’ a bowl o’ soup or somethin’ in preparation. Thir wid be soup and stovies later anywye bit its good tae stairt oaff oan the right fitt, so tae speak!
The telly wis oan as it ay wis, tae help keep an eye oan the time. Back then it wis Andy Stewart, Kenneth McLellar and Moira Anderson led the BBC and STV intae the New Year. The White Heather Club dancer’s anaw. A loved aw that stuff. A ken it’s a bit cliché and shoartbreid tin stuff, but a really liked it. A suppose a gote mair excited when the likes o' The Proclaimers and Runrig and Frankie Miller came along - aw man, Caledonia at Hogmanay! Tae me though, Hogmanay made me feel very special bein’ Scottish. It still dis and a feel awfy sad that the traditions roond aboot it huv died away sae much. A mean, a wid love tae go furst fittin’ at the nixt Hogmanay, which a plan tae dae if we urnae in loke-doon again. This last year and a bit hus jist been a joke when it comes tae seein’ yir faimily. Especially wi’ me bein’ sae far away fae Edinburgh here in Aberdeenshire. This year a will finish workin’, and tae celebrate I will be spending a few days back hame. Hogmanay as well as New Years Day and night, will be awfy special. A digress though as a tend tae dae, so back tae the Hogmanay in question!
As a said, we wir aw takin’ it easy, gaun canny as we used tae say. We wir aw ready though for twelve o’cloke, rarin’ tae go! Jist afore midnight, oor Ma said tae me, go ootside and be oor Furst Fitt so thit we git somebiddy tall dark and no bad lookin’. No bad lookin’- c’moan Ma! So a went oot and shut the door and waited. It wis freezin’ that year a mind and a jist hud a shirt oan. A didnae expect tae be ootside anymair thin a couple o’ minutes. Then a heard the noise o’ loud voices fae inside as the cloke struck twelve and a banged oan the door. Nae answer. A banged again, harder. Still nae answer. It wis even stairtin’ tae snaw by noo. A banged again and when thir wis still nae answer, a went along the side o’ the hoose and banged oan the windae and went back tae the door, jist as ma auld man opened it. Happy New Year son he roared and held oot his hand draggin’ me in sayin’, 'Come in, ye must be freezin’, sorry we forgote aw aboot ye!' Oor faither insisted thit he answered the door at Hogmanay, tae be the furst tae welcome Furst Fitters wi’ a “Happy New Year”.
So noo a wis back in and thir wis still folk gaun roond each other, shakin’ hands and peckin’ oan the cheek, so a jined in wi’ that. It isnae half emotional and exhilaratin’ that furst twenty minutes o’ the brand new year! Then the pairty stairted properly and the records went oan so wi’ could stairt the dancin’ and celebratin’ properly. Us younger yins hogged the radiogram, playin’ oor records o’ the time. Aw the chart busters and golden oldies alike. The livin’ room flair wis as busy as any dance hall. Then later oan, as things steadied doon a bit, the aulder yins wid stairt tae sing thir pairty piece songs. That wis a great bit o’ the pairty, ma faither singin’ 'Shanty Town' and oor Uncle Michael singin’ 'Blueberry Hill'. Other folk sang thare ain personal favourites tae. Naebiddy spoke when thir wis a singer oan, total respect tae the person oan the flair!
Then later when we gote hungrier, the soup and stovies wir dished up. A mind ma Uncle Michael kiddin’ on a French stick wis a rifle and leanin’ oan the scullery doorway takin’ pot shots at folk in the livin’ room, bitin’ chunks oot the breid in between shots! Oor Ma, rosie cheeked and beamin’ wi’ hur faimily roond aboot hur. Then oor faither at some point standin’ wi his airms raised shoutin’, 'SCOTLAND, SCOTLAND FORIVVER!'
That wis a proper Hogmanay celebration, and those wir the days!