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New Year’s Eve is one of the most celebrated days of the year. People from all over the world gather around bars, TV sets and city streets to honor the end of one twelve-month chapter, and embrace the prospect of a new one. Resolutions are made, drinks are spilled and loved ones are nearby as “Happy New Year!” is chimed across countless time zones, and in even more languages.

When it comes to NYE celebrations, many party-goers define their upcoming year in accordance to their celebrations, but I can’t help but wonder: does a big blowout really equate to a bigger and better year?

For the fortunate millionaires equipped with a fortune, New Year’s Eve is the night to ring in yet another year of prosperity. Take L.A.’s “The Bazaar,” for example. A NYE event hosted at this premium nightclub offers entry at a minimum of $250.00. For the Big Kahuna treatment at this year’s “Spanish Masquerade” NYE theme, amenities including private dining, a lavish buffet, one pound of caviar and endless cocktails are available for a whopping $15,000 for one evening. While the extravagance is hard to ignore, I’m skeptical to believe that 16oz. of caviar consumption is ever really necessary in any setting.

Then you have average income folks like myself. For the mid-twenties’ Joe Schmoe, New Year’s Eve is celebrated with a nominal pub fee and cheap shots taken at the stroke of midnight. Some opt for venues that are easy on the wallet and effective by the tipple, while others settle at home with cheap-and-cheerful boxed wine and noisemakers.

To conserve my post-Christmas bank depletion, I’ve planned a NYE Netflix date with my Pomeranian and two bottles of Pinot Noir.  While I’d never turn down an opportunity to celebrate NYE in the French Riviera, I’m quite content with this year’s low-key simplicity. I tip my hats to the billionaires and their boat parties, but I have a humbling evening of Twilight Zone episodes to enjoy; an inexpensive evening far more satisfying than any thousand scoops of caviar.