Ball Drop In New York City Is Seen Around The World
Festivities Began More Than A Century Ago
No matter where you live, New Year’s Eve wouldn’t be the same without the ball drop in Times Square. Around the globe, New York City is synonymous with the start of the New Year. Thousands of people will converge on the city to mark the start of 2010.
The famous ball drop began at the end of 1907. Alfred Ochs, owner of The New York Times, introduced a massive, glowing ball on a pole to be lowered at the stroke of midnight. It made for vivid memories, such as this old photo. When transferring such vintage pictures, scanning them to digital format reflects how old and beloved some traditions are and how easy it is to preserve them with a service like ScanDigital.
Gathering in Times Square is a tradition that dates all the way back to 1904, when Ochs held a celebration to honor the paper’s new digs. (The city’s first subway line also debuted that year.) A reported 20,000 revelers joined the fun. Ochs started the ball drop because the city had banned his fireworks display. Artkraft Strauss operated the illuminated ball – which weighed hundreds of pounds – to make sure it dropped at the exact moment the year turned new.
The ball itself has varied over the years in weight and style. It has weighed 200 pounds and it has ballooned to nearly 12,000 pounds. It was first made of wood and iron, but last year featured more than 32,000 energy-efficient LED lights. In the years in between, it has dazzled with red lights, rhinestones and even strobes. At its largest, the ball’s diameter was 12 feet.
Millions of people cozy up in front of the television to witness the ball drop from home, but thousands still gather in person to watch it. For years, they have taken pictures; scanning those images to CD helps make the memories of past New Year’s celebrations worth reliving again.
It’s hard to believe the Tournament of Roses started 120 years ago, in 1890. The southern California parade continues to be a modern, fun part of our nation’s history, from families camping out along the route for worthwhile spots to tourists visiting from all around the world to experience this amazing feat of flowers.
Photo cards are a popular way to spread yuletide cheer, especially if you’ve got adorable little ones underfoot. But why should they be relegated to just year-end holidays and children’s birthdays? A smart way to continue the photo card tradition next month is by creating custom cards and calendars as a Thank You for all of the presents received.
Videotapes were developed as an alternative to movie film. They work by recording images and sound on to magnetic tape. Video tapes are consideder a linear method of storing information and because these days everything is becoming digital, video tapes have gradually lost their significance.
In 1971, the first consumer videocasette recorders were launched, but it wasn’t until JVC’s VHS that videotapes were introduced to the mass market. Videocassettes finally made it possible for consumers to buy or rent a complete film and watch it at home at any time they wished, instead of having to go to a movie theatre at a specific time, or having to wait until it was played on TV. It also created the possible for a VCR owner to record films and other television programs “off the air”.
You never know what you’ll find in the attic – it could be a picture like this, dusty and crinkled from age, but rich with history.
Today is the deadline for ScanDigital Gift Boxes- so if you’re still looking for that perfectly sentimental but very useful gift, place your order for your loved one today! Our Gift Boxes make giving the gift of memories easy- your loved one will simply package their favorite memories with the enclosed shipping material, ship them with the pre-paid shipping label inside and in about 1 week, will receive all of their originals back with a high quality DVD copy of their newly digitized memories.
Amidst all the holiday preparations and celebrations, December is a great month to take stock of where you’re at, look back at all you have achieved or would have liked to achieve in the present year and look ahead to where you would like to be in the coming year. 
Crowded mall. Long line. Tired parents. Cranky kids. Santa on a throne.
It is possible to survive the holiday season, with sanity intact, by planning ahead and developing a sense of humor. Unexpected visits by relatives and cranky cousins can add to your stress levels, but try to offset the tension with a little family history. Don’t put your charts and notes away for the holidays ~ take them out and show them off!
