The ideal first day of the year(Jan 1) was pretty much the reality for me this year. It was peaceful, calm, and serene.
Typically, by the start of the first of the year, I'll be in church. Most churches in Nigeria hold crossover services that start late in the night on the 31st of December of the year and finishes very early in the morning of the following day, which will be the 1st of January of the following year.
The purpose of this service is usually to thank God for the achievements and trials of the year that is about to end and pray to God concerning the year that is to come. I am not a very religious person, but somehow I view this as important and I have never missed a crossover service. My deal first day of the month would start in the church, meditating on my plans for the new year.
After the service ends, I would then go home to sleep for the rest of the night. Ideally, I wouldn't leave my house for the rest of the day. I'd just spend the rest of the day indoors, planning my month, and by extension, my year. I'll cook and eat a lot, drink a lot(non-alcoholic drinks), probably watch a movie, think some more, and sleep some more.
There really isn't much to say on this topic. I'm a simple man with simple needs.