HAVING MADE it to midnight, I was hoping to start 2013 by sleeping in. Alas, I woke up at about 6 this morning and tossed for an hour before arising and trudging downstairs to see how destructive our New Year’s Eve party had been.

Mrs. D. had put away the leftover food while I got the girls prepped for and into bed, but given the late hour, she hadn’t done much else. So what awaited me were a dishwasher to empty, a bar to disassemble, a gaggle of wine glasses to wash, piles of dishes to scrape and clean, and a couple of tubs of leftover beer and Prosecco to bring inside and cram into the refrigerator.

I made coffee, turned on my iPod, and went to work.

And had an absolute blast. For a blissful hour, I drank coffee, scrubbed dishes, and straightened like a madman, with my favorite songs filling my ears and the memories of a terrific night with friends warming my soul.

As arbitrary as it is — Who starts anything new on a Tuesday? — the new year lay before me, pristine and unmarred and bursting with possibility. I was almost irrationally happy.

That euphoria has rather faded since this morning, but I still feel the comfy hug of optimism wrapped around me. I have some nifty ideas for what I want to do this year and how to do it, and I am so excited at the prospect of getting started. | DL