Ithaca New Years, 2012

Ithacans love music and parties with legal beverages, so New Year's Eve bashes are perennially popular here.

In 2012 - 2013 there are three main events. The first is Sim Redmond and Jen Middaugh in an acoustic set at Felicia's for an early happy hour. The show is scheduled for 6:30 - 8:30.

One actual calendar-flipper will be at the Haunt, with Jimkata. The show is produced by Dan Smalls Presents. Advance tickets are $15. Doors will open at 9 p.m. for the 10 o'clock show.

The biggest bash, probably, will be the Horseflies at Agava restaurant up on East Hill. The band has never done a NYE show before. Old dog, new tricks seems appropriate. Tickets are $15 and the show goes from 10:30 - 1 a.m.

Mysterious Baby Name Endings

When you write a blog, you keep an eye out for mysterious trends, and we noticed one this week. The most popular names for new babies was published, and the top five for girls all end in "a", and for boys in either "m" or "n".

For girls: Emma, Olivia, Sophia, Ava, and Isabella. (Names # 6 and 7 follow the trend: Mia and Ella.)For boys: Aiden, Ethan, Mason, Jackson, and Liam.

We didn't say the trends have to be meaningful. Just ponderous.

The soft "a" sound final syllable is now champ of the feminine. We bet marketers and branders notice. Is it bad news for car sales to men of the Kia and the Acura?

The "m" or "n" ending for boys' names strikes us as a little soft. (Even though we sport one.)Unfashionable now are the hard ending sounds of Robert, Christopher, Joseph, James, Edward, Charles.

Maybe softer is a good social trend. For instance, "Adolph" is a hard sound. What if he had been Aiden Hitler? Or Donny? It might have made a difference.

It's Restaurant Week In Ithaca

If you're the kind of person who doesn't worry about your waistline this time of year, you might be interested in Restaurant Week specials around town this week.

The best and most appealing deals, to us, are at Boatyard Grill, Northstar, and Maxie's.

All three joints are great anytime, with high standards for service and cuisine. This week, Boatyard and Northstar sweeten the deal with $20 three-course dinners (appetizer, entree, dessert). Maxie's weighs in with half-price raw oysters and clams from 9 - closing. Normally they do this only from 4 - 6 p.m., which personally is too early for us. Adding 9 til close is pretty genteel. We'll be there tomorrow.