Before welcoming in the New Year, how about saying farewell to the old one? 
That's the spirit of an annual tradition held in Times Square called Good Riddance Day. Three days ahead of the iconic Ball Drop, New Yorkers get a chance to put the past behind them — or perhaps stuff it into a burning trash can. 
On Wednesday, the Times Square Alliance welcomed attendees to say goodbye to the things that most frustrated them from the past year. 
Apparently, Good Riddance Day is inspired by a Latin American tradition in which dolls are stuffed with objects symbolizing bad memories and set on fire.
"Join us in destroying symbols of any unpleasant, unhappy, and downright unwanted memories from the past year," read a description on the event's webpage. 
For those with a more forward-looking bent of mind, the Wishing Wall at Times Square is open until December 29. Until then, people can write their hopes for the coming year on strips of confetti, which will then be released above the crowds at midnight on New Year's Eve. 
The Times Square Alliance is also asking those who can't swing by the plaza in person to share their wish on Instagram or Twitter by using the #ConfettiWish hashtag. 
One man from Washington Heights, Jose Alejandro Rodriguez, wished for better luck in 2023, after losing his sight and his job in 2022. "They throw me out of the company, no benefits, no nothing," he told AP reporters. 
The understandably frustrated New Yorker also laid into the so-called "Bash bag," designed to let people let out their frustrations on the outgoing year.
Jose Alejandro Rodriguez, from the Washington Heights neighborhood of New York, punch a "bash" bag on an obstacle course during the 16th annual Good Riddance Day event— where participants bid one final goodbye to any unpleasant memories from 2022, Wednesday Dec. 28, 2022, in New York's Times Square Rodriguez said he lost his job of 10 years after an accident lead to his blindness. "They throw me out of the company, no benefits, no nothing," said Rodriguez, who wants who wants to put disappointment behind with better luck in 2023 and beyond. (AP Photo/Bebeto Matthews)