Are you superstitious about the New Year?

Kissing at midnight:
We kiss those dearest to us at midnight not only to share a moment of celebration with our favorite people, but also to ensure those affections and ties will continue throughout the next twelve months. To fail to smooch our significant others at the stroke of twelve would be to set the stage for a year of coldness.

Stocking Up:
The new year must not be seen in with bare cupboards, lest that be the way of things for the year. Larders must be topped up and plenty of money must be placed in every wallet in the home to guarantee prosperity.

Paying Off Bills:
The new year should not be begun with the household in debt, so checks should be written and mailed off prior to January 1st. Likewise, personal debts should be settled before the New Year arrives.

First Footing:
The first person to enter your home after the stroke of midnight will influence the year you’re about to have. Ideally, he should be dark-haired, tall, and good-looking, and it would be even better if he came bearing certain small gifts such as a lump of coal, a silver coin, a bit of bread, a sprig of evergreen, and some salt. Blonde and redhead first footers bring bad luck, and female first footers should be shooed away before they bring disaster down on the household — don’t let them near your door before a man crosses the threshold.

Nothing Goes Out:
Nothing — absolutely nothing, not even garbage — is to leave the house on the first day of the year. If you’ve presents to deliver on New Year’s Day, leave them in the car overnight. Don’t so much as shake out a rug or take the empties to the recycle bin.

Food:
A tradition common to the southern states of the USA dictates that the eating of black-eyed peas on New Year’s Day will attract both general good luck and financial good fortune in particular to the one doing the dining. Some choose to add other Southern fare (such as ham hocks, collard greens, or cabbage) to this tradition, but the black-eyed peas are key.

Work:
Make sure to do — and be successful at — something related to your work on the first day of the year, even if you don’t go near your place of employment that day. Limit your activity to a token amount, though, because to engage in a serious work project on that day is very unlucky. Also, do not do the laundry on New Year’s Day, lest a member of the family be ‘washed away’ (die) in the upcoming months. The more cautious eschew even washing dishes.

New Clothes:
Wear something new on January 1 to increase the likelihood of your receiving more new garments during the year to follow.

Money:
Do not pay back loans or lend money or other precious items on New Year’s Day. To do so is to guarantee you’ll be paying out all year.

Breakage:
Avoid breaking things on that first day lest wreckage be part of your year. Also, avoid crying on the first day of the year lest that activity set the tone for the next twelve months.

Letting the Old Year Out:
At midnight, all the doors of a house must be opened to let the old year escape unimpeded. He must leave before the New Year can come in, says popular wisdom, so doors are flung open to assist him in finding his way out.

Loud Noise:
Make as much noise as possible at midnight. You’re not just celebrating; you’re scaring away evil spirits, so do a darned good job of it!

The Weather:
Examine the weather in the early hours of New Year’s Day. If the wind blows from the south, there will be fine weather and prosperous times in the year ahead. If it comes from the north, it will be a year of bad weather. The wind blowing from the east brings famine and calamities. Strangest of all, if the wind blows from the west, the year will witness plentiful supplies of milk and fish but will also see the death of a very important person. If there’s no wind at all, a joyful and prosperous year may be expected by all.

Born on January 1:
Babies born on this day will always have luck on their side.

Don’t cry:
Don’t cry on New Years day, this could bring unhappiness for the next year. So don’t cry even if your favorite team loses in a bowl game. Be upbeat and happy as well.

Say no to chicken:
It seems chicken should be left off the menu on New Year’s Day because if it is eaten then, like the birds in question, diners are fated to scratch in the dirt all year for their dinner – in other words, they'll be bringing poverty upon themselves.

A lemon and some noise:
It’s a noisy night for good reason: fireworks, bells, whistles and unabashedly loud clamour are said to ward off evil spirits and thoughts. And hanging lemons in doorways is another old-fashioned tradition designed to keep that good energy flowing.

Avoid crying cats:
If you hear cats mewing, run in the opposite direction to avoid that bad omen. And even if you’re not superstitious, running away is probably a natural response to that awful sound….

Anyone have any 'other' New Year superstitions?

Neoannophobia
The fear of New Year. New Year often ring in optimism to many folks, but some may fear for the failure and misery in the new year. People may fail their new year resolutions or they may have miserable year, which may lead to neoannophobia. The fear is especially common by elderly people as each new year would level closer to their end days. Another reason for neoannophobia is fear of advancing technologies and inventions as each new year bring new inventions and upgrade technologies, especially by older people who are all used to live in more classical days.

Neoannophobes would feel increasingly more anxious as the year winds down and feel extremely anxious on New Year's Eve. They would not celebrate New Year while not watching festivities on TV. Sufferers would often feel apprehended during the beginning of the year until they get used to it. They feel most relaxed during spring and summer months then anxiety starts kicking during the autumn then levelling up as it goes on.

Futurephobia
is the fear of the future.
It is mainly caused by worrying about future events, from difficulties and disasters to losing someone or something. Technological advancements may also contribute to this phobia, as some people feared that technology will make life more soulless and more inhuman.

Prosophobia
A fear of progress, came about due to some claim that even though it is a fundamental component of humanity and life, progress can ruin their people's lives through the effects of changes and new advances. Some may even believe that people making progress is one step closer to the end of the world. People who spends time with older relatives may lead younger people to believe that the world is not safe.

Chronophobia
Chronophobia is the fear of time. The fear is commonly suffered by prison inmates and elderlies, but it can manifest in any person who has an extreme amounts of stress and anxiety in their life.