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It started with the whales.

It was January 1. We met with friends for dinner, and to join in their New Year’s traditions.

The first tradition is from Germany. Called Bleigiessen, it involves melting a small lump of lead over a flame, and then pouring the liquid metal into a bowl of water, where it solidifies upon contact and forms a shape that can be interpreted as a symbol of what the new year will bring.

My Bleigiessen lump, like all of them, was basically indistinct, although there was a protrusion that looked like nothing so much as a whale. I kept this opinion to myself until I could find out what whale might indicate in the Bleigiessen tradition… if whale meant something bad, like “your savings account will develop a blow-hole,” I’d be inclined to quietly change my initial interpretation.

Shortly afterwards we shuffled a deck of Native American Medicine cards, and each drew a card which (as with the Bleigiessen) would be a symbol of what we could expect for the coming year. My card showed a whale.

Had we done Tarot or tea-leaves or shadow puppets on the wall, I’d have seen whale, whale, whale. The message was clear. But what did it mean?

I read several pages about the whale card in the Medicine Cards guidebook. One recurring theme was whalesong. I took it this way: 2004 will be a year of music.

Over this past weekend my wife and I completed Tony Robbins’ new-year exercise. It was a lot of work — about eight hours’ worth. But at the end we had four goals apiece… goals to achieve this year at any cost. Goals we’ll look back on a year from now and be ecstatic to have achieved. Goals to help us “design a compelling life.” Goals to prevent that year-end “boy am I ready for next year” syndrome.

Two of my goals are about music. I’ll tell you one: I’m going to get my drums back onstage this year. I will find a band and start gigging again. It’s been too long. Just ask your neighborhood whale.

For my wife’s part, she’ll be jumping out of an airplane.

No, she didn’t decide to jump out of an airplane after I said I’d start playing my drums again.