the buzz log

Gung Hay Fat Choy. That's wishing you some prosperity for the new year in Cantonese. We've decided to chuck the whole Gregorian calendar and start afresh. Resolutions we made in a pre-dawn, pomegranate-martini haze didn't stick very well.

But now we're ready for another go in the year 4703. Celebrants are joining us in Search, with "happy chinese new year" spiking 1,687%. They're bidding Chinese New Year greetings via the post-mod Chinese New Year ecard, and creating the festive mood with Chinese New Year food and Chinese music. Confucius, aka pre-dynastic philosopher K'ung Ch'iu, even gets a 777% consult. And yes, yes, we know -- Vietnam and Korea, among others, observe the two-week festivities, but we ask you, who invented fireworks?

Cycling to the 11th animal in Chinese astrology is the faithful, discreet, but stubborn canine. Dog may be man's best friend, but "2006 year of the dog" gets its 1,535% Buzz props from the ladies.

We figure we've got until the Lantern Festival for some mad-dog partying and resolution-making. And if we blow our promises to eat more cruciferous veggies and stop throwing our dirty laundry on the floor, well, we still have Norooz in March and the Cambodian New Year in April.