Ahhh, ringing in the new year. Guess it happens once every…year.
This was the true story of 13 (and a half) friends, choosing to stay in a house in Paso Robles for 3 days/2 nights, to find out what happens when we’re all very polite (after you) and start getting real (parents getting toasted around their kids).
This time, we celebrated with some friends we hadn’t seen much during 2009, driving all the way up to Paso Robles and renting a house in Equestrian Estates. Ohh la la it was, with an insane suken jacuzzi tub, large open kitchen, backyard playground, hot tub and 4 bedrooms. The decor was rather questionable (rodeo kids room? painted flowers and white wicker room? wallpaper?) but it was large, and we all played nice, even with an almost one year old screaming bloody murder ’round 4am. (Kieran slept right through it. Such a trooper.)
There were wine tastings, pilgrimages to downtown, merrimaking along with a heavily chlorinated hot tub and a demonic alarm system going off around 1am (just to make sure we were all AWAKE IN THE NEW YEAR). Rice was the hero of the (early) morning, disarming the alarm while we realized it was not linked with some 24 security outfit, just there to hopefully drive the would-be robbers insane enough to say “eff this, that retro/non flatscreen tv is totally not worth this.”
I miss it already.
The gang, sans Charlie. He had to leave for some game at the Rose Bowl. Oregon maybe? 
