Everybody Is Ready For 2013 To End

When the clock strikes midnight tonight, many Americans won't be sad to see 2013 go. Was it the economy? World events? Too much of Miley Cyrus' tongue? Whatever the reasons, only 32 percent of Americans say 2013 was a better year for them personally than 2012. And only 20 percent think this past year was better for the world at large, according to an AP-Times Square poll.

The poll — which included 1,367 American adults — found surprising optimism about the year ahead, however. Nearly 50 percent of people expect their own fortunes to improve in 2014, while only 14 percent expect things to get worse. About one-third say they don't expect much change.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves — before 2014's here, we need to get through New Year's Eve. The AP-Times Square poll looked at how Americans will be spending the holiday and found that gosh, y'all, we're a bunch of homebodies. More than 50 percent said they’ll spend New Year's Eve at home, while 20 percent will go to a friend’s or family member’s house and only 8 percent will go to a bar, restaurant, or organized event. Among those under 30, 39 percent say they'll spend the evening at home, 33 percent at someone else's home, and 13 percent out on the town.

Most of us want to be with loved ones: 40 percent said they want to spend the stroke of midnight with a spouse, and 13 percent want to be with a significant other or crush.

When it comes to less-conventional New Year's Eve companions, God beats out pets and pets beat out co-workers — 3 percent said they'd spend the evening with God, Jesus, or their church congregation; 2 percent with their pets; and less than 1 percent with their colleagues. But all three come out losers compared to spending the evening with no one, which is what 9 percent of Americans plan to do.

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