• http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/J2nYL.St.138.jpeg|415
    Brendon Thorne - Getty Images
    SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - DECEMBER 31: People watch fireworks under The Sydney Harbour Bridge during New Years Eve celebrations on Sydney Harbour on December 31, 2012 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/Getty Images)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/ExxfW.St.138.jpeg|425
    STEFAN SAUER - AFP/Getty Images
    Fireworks are seen on December 31, 2012 over the sailing ship "Gorch Fock" in the port of Stralsund, northern Germany. AFP PHOTO / STEFAN SAUER /GERMANY OUTSTEFAN SAUER/AFP/Getty Images
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/UJFCO.St.138.jpeg|390
    Rob Griffith - AP
    Fireworks explode in the sky above Sydney Harbour during the New Year celebrations in Sydney, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013.(AP Photo/Rob Griffith)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/1omQHk.St.138.jpeg|426
    Kin Cheung - AP
    Fireworks explode at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre over the Victoria Harbor to celebrate the 2013 New Year in Hong Kong Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013 (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
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    Rob Griffith - AP
    An unidentified man cleans his windows in preparation to the pre New Years Eve fireworks celebrations in Sydney, Australia, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012.(AP Photo/Rob Griffith)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/WTKiW.St.138.jpeg|414
    Owen Humphreys - AP
    Celebrations get under way as the Spark drumming band pass through Newcastle city centre, England, Monday December 31, 2012. (AP Photo/PA,Owen Humphreys)UNITED KINGDOM OUT NO ARCHIVE NO SALES
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/1h4zxI.St.138.jpeg|409
    Andy Wong - AP
    Chinese people wave national flags as they celebrate the New Year during a count-down event at the Summer Palace in Beijing Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/1tAOo.St.138.jpeg|431
    Andy Wong - AP
    A Chinese couple kiss each other as they celebrate the new year during a count-down event at the Summer Palace in Beijing Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/mQyjP.St.138.jpeg|417
    Kin Cheung - AP
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/FRCmN.St.138.jpeg|413
    Rafiq Maqbool - AP
    A man lights an Old Man effigy which symbolizes burning the past and getting ready to start a happy New Year without bad memories of the past in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013.(AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/13xWJX.St.138.jpeg|418
    Rafiq Maqbool - AP
    A woman with her daughter walks in a decorated street with lights to celebrate the New Year in Mumbai, India, Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013.(AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/1qThox.St.138.jpeg|427
    Dita Alangkara - AP
    Indonesians watch firework explode on New Year's eve in Jakarta, Indonesia, late Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/7K44k.St.138.jpeg|416
    Itsuo Inouye - AP
    A buddhist monk pray during a New Year ceremony at Zojoji temple in Tokyo, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012.(AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/S0CfD.St.138.jpeg|469
    Itsuo Inouye - AP
    A boy prays around a fire believed to invoke divine help during their first visit of the year to the Zojoji Buddhist temple in Tokyo, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012.(AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/Y8EWl.St.138.jpeg|434
    Itsuo Inouye - AP
    Worshipers strike a giant bell to celebrate the New Year at Zojoji Buddhist temple in Tokyo, Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013. (AP Photo/Itsuo Inouye)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/23/1e3eE9.St.138.jpeg|345
    Andy Newman - AP
    In this photo provided by the Florida Keys News Bureau, dachshunds and their owners parade in Key West, Fla., Monday, Dec. 31, 2012, during the Key West Dachshund Walk, an annual New Year's Eve tradition that this year attracted almost 200 of the short-legged, long-bodied canines, as well as about 30 "impostor" dogs. (AP Photo/Florida Keys News Bureau, Andy Newman)
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    Seth Wenig - AP
    Jackielyn Junio, center, from Silver Springs, Md., waits to be searched and claim a spot in Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. One million people are expected to cram into the area for the countdown. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/BtFrP.St.138.jpeg|449
    Seth Wenig - AP
    Benjamin Nadorf, 4, fools around with his new glasses while waiting for the New Year in Times Square in New York, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. One million people are expected to cram into the area for the countdown(AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/Vmwg9.St.138.jpeg|471
    AARON FAVILA - AP
    A Filipino vendor looks beside paper horns in downtown Manila, Philippines on Monday Dec. 31, 2012. Despite a ban by authorities on certain firecrackers due to injuries and death, many Filipinos still welcome the New Year with fireworks in the belief that it will drive away evil spirits and bring in good luck. (AP Photo/Aaron Favila)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/1lV0Q0.St.138.jpeg|408
    Wong Maye-E - AP
    People are silhouetted as fireworks explode over the Singapore financial district to mark the start of the new year on Tuesday Jan. 1, 2013 in Singapore. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/kVEdl.St.138.jpeg|423
    Wong Maye-E - AP
    Performers react as fireworks explode over the Singapore financial district to mark the start of the new year on Tuesday Jan. 1, 2013 in Singapore. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/1556gc.St.138.jpeg|415
    Wong Maye-E - AP
    Fireworks explode over the Singapore financial district to mark the start of the new year on Tuesday Jan. 1, 2013 in Singapore. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/1c7XMV.St.138.jpeg|416
    Eranga Jayawardena - AP
    Sri Lankan inmates of the Welikada prison pray during a religious ceremony on the eve of the new year on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Inmates of the Welikada prison one of the largest prisons in Sri Lanka, housing over four thousand prisoners, invoked blessings and ushered in the new year by engaging in Buddhist rituals. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/Otege.St.138.jpeg|405
    Eranga Jayawardena - AP
    A Sri Lankan inmate of the Welikada prison holds a statue of Lord Buddha as he takes part in a religious ceremony on the eve of the new year on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Inmates of the Welikada prison, one of the largest prisons in Sri Lanka housing over four thousand prisoners, invoked blessings and ushered in the new year by engaging in Buddhist rituals. (AP Photo/Eranga Jayawardena)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/taxwH.St.138.jpeg|427
    Bai Xue - MCT
    People watch the New Year's Eve fireworks as part of New Year's Eve celebrations at the riverside of Yarra River in Melbourne, Australia, Monday, December 31, 2012. (Bai Xue/Xinhua/Zuma Press/MCT)
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    Lv Wenzheng - MCT
    The lighting scenery is pictured at the People Square in Dalian, northeast China's Liaoning Province. The lights were lit to celebrate the coming of New Year. (Lv Wenzheng/Xinhua/Zuma Press/MCT)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/1bqbYu.St.138.jpeg|459
    Seth Wenig - AP
    A trader wearing "Happy New Year" glasses works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. The stock market struggled for direction Monday morning after five days of losses, with the "fiscal cliff" just hours away and lawmakers yet to reach a solution. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/hYMb1.St.138.jpeg|414
    Jay Mallin - Bloomberg
    Dawn breaks at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. U.S. lawmakers hurtled toward a midnight deadline to avert hundreds of billions of dollars in tax increases and spending cuts, struggling to extract the country from a fiscal trap they created. Photographer: Jay Mallin/Bloomberg
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/y5EX9.St.138.jpeg|416
    Andrew Harrer - Bloomberg
    Senator Harry Reid, a Democrat from Nevada, left, walks into the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. U.S. lawmakers hurtled toward a midnight deadline to avert hundreds of billions of dollars in tax increases and spending cuts, struggling to extract the country from a fiscal trap they created. Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg *** Local Caption *** Harry Reid
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/aLIDe.St.138.jpeg|416
    Adel Hana - AP
    Palestinians hold torches and posters of late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and late Hamas founder and spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin, during a rally marking the 48th anniversary of the Fatah movement in Gaza City, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Arabic on poster reads:" Rest in peace in heaven our late leaders". (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/J9ruR.St.138.jpeg|422
    Hatem Moussa - AP
    Palestinian workers rebuild a house in Gaza City, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Israel has started allowing long-banned building materials into the Gaza Strip, its first key concession to the territory's Hamas rulers under a cease-fire that ended eight days of intense fighting last month, the military said Monday. A Hamas official described the quantity sent so far as "cosmetic" and Gaza economists said it would take years of round-the-clock shipments to even make a dent in the gap left by the five years of blockade. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/JXbYk.St.138.jpeg|416
    Majdi Mohammed - AP
    A Palestinian music band member marches during celebrations of the 48th anniversary of the Fatah movement in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Monday, Dec 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
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    STEFAN PUCHNER - AFP/Getty Images
    A equestrian passes a chapel with a horse during the traditional New Year's ride in Westhausen, Germany, on December 31, 2012. Over a hundred equestrians took part in the event which is traditionally organized since the 17th century in the name of St Silvester. AFP PHOTO / STEFAN PUCHNER GERMANY OUTSTEFAN PUCHNER/AFP/Getty Images
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    FRANK RUMPENHORST - AFP/Getty Images
    The sun is seen on December 31, 2012 in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany. AFP PHOTO / FRANK RUMPENHORST /GERMANY OUTFRANK RUMPENHORST/AFP/Getty Images
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/ioWXd.St.138.jpeg|416
    Rahmat Gul - AP
    Lal Mohammad, 16, rides a donkey on the outskirts of Jalalabad east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
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    Geoff Mulvihill - AP
    Sister Helen Cole lights a candle during a vigil for homicide victims at Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Camden, N.J., on Dec. 31, 2012. The city of 77,000 had a record 67 homicides in 2012. (AP Photo/Geoff Mulvihill)
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    Ben Curtis - AP
    A soldier from the Republic of Congo, operating under a multinational central-african regional mandate, stands to attention after arriving by airplane to boost existing forces, at an airport in Bangui, Central African Republic Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Rebels in the Central African Republic on Monday rejected appeals for them to halt their advances and to negotiate to form a coalition government. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
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    Ben Curtis - AP
    Soldiers from the Republic of Congo, operating under a multinational central-african regional mandate, arrive by airplane to boost existing forces, at an airport in Bangui, Central African Republic Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Rebels in the Central African Republic on Monday rejected appeals for them to halt their advances and to negotiate to form a coalition government. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/bGyRx.St.138.jpeg|393
    clyde mueller - AP
    Arnoldo Campos shovels snow from the sidewalk in front of the Gerald Peters Gallery at 1011 Paseo de Peralta, Santa Fe, New Mexico Monday morning, December 31, 2012. Campos is employed by Peters. Clyde Mueller/The New Mexican (AP Photo/The Santa Fe New Mexican, )
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    AP - AP
    An Indian policewoman, right in plain clothes, pulls a woman outside the governor's office, during a protest against the gang rape of a student, in Kolkata, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. The gang-rape and killing of a New Delhi student has set off an impassioned debate about what India needs to do to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. The country remained in mourning Monday, two days after the 23-year-old physiotherapy student died from her internal wounds in a Singapore hospital. (AP Photo)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/22/uaUqh.St.138.jpeg|418
    Ajit Solanki - AP
    Indian schoolgirls form numbers representing the year 2013 during a prayer ceremony in Ahmadabad, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. The gang-rape and killing of a New Delhi student has set off an impassioned debate about what India needs to do to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. The country remained in mourning Monday, two days after the 23-year-old physiotherapy student died from her internal wounds in a Singapore hospital. Floral writing at the center reads "Condolence to Damini," a symbolic name given to the victim. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/eJWdJ.St.138.jpeg|416
    Ajit Solanki - AP
    Indian schoolchildren hold candles and placards during a prayer ceremony in Ahmadabad, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. The gang-rape and killing of a New Delhi student has set off an impassioned debate about what India needs to do to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. The country remained in mourning Monday, two days after the 23-year-old physiotherapy student died from her internal wounds in a Singapore hospital. (AP Photo/Ajit Solanki)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/LAv2m.St.138.jpeg|525
    Manish Swarup - AP
    Indian members of All India Students' Association (AISA) shout slogans as they participate in a protest march in New Delhi, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. The gang-rape and killing of a New Delhi student has set off an impassioned debate about what India needs to do to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. The country remained in mourning Monday, two days after the 23-year-old physiotherapy student died from her internal wounds in a Singapore hospital. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/CiU8n.St.138.jpeg|459
    Mahesh Kumar A - AP
    Indian students participate in a protest rally, in Hyderabad, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. The gang-rape and killing of a New Delhi student has set off an impassioned debate about what India needs to do to prevent such a tragedy from happening again. The country remained in mourning Monday, two days after the 23-year-old physiotherapy student died from her internal wounds in a Singapore hospital. (AP Photo/Mahesh Kumar A.)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/vd2LA.St.138.jpeg|414
    Mukhtar Khan - AP
    A Kashmiri vegetable seller smokes as he waits for customer during a general strike in Srinagar, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Shops and businesses are shut in Indian-controlled Kashmir in response to a strike called by separatist groups to protest firing by government forces that wounded seven civilians in the disputed region. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/Czkwk.St.138.jpeg|421
    Mukhtar Khan - AP
    A Kashmiri tea stall vender makes tea during a strike in Srinagar, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Shops and businesses are shut in Indian-controlled Kashmir in response to a strike called by separatist groups to protest firing by government forces that wounded seven civilians in the disputed region. (AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/OBTrq.St.138.jpeg|368
    Rafiq Maqbool - AP
    India couple stands as they watch the last sunset of 2012 over the shores of the Arabian sea in Mumbai, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012.(AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/1mYxz4.St.138.jpeg|416
    Amr Nabil - AP
    Egyptian protesters decorate a Christmas tree near the presidential palace in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Protesters will celebrate New Year's eve in front of the presidential palace. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/pv5uY.St.138.jpeg|416
    Amr Nabil - AP
    A Mousque silhouetted against sunset in Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Amr Nabil)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/1qfBYR.St.138.jpeg|439
    Ariana Cubillos - AP
    A barber shaves around the ears of a client at a makeshift barber shop in Caracas, Venezuela, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez is confronting "new complications" due to a respiratory infection nearly three weeks after undergoing cancer surgery, his Vice President Nicolas Maduro said Sunday evening in Cuba as he visited the ailing leader for the first time since his operation. The poster in the background featuring Chavez reads in Spanish, "Here no one surrenders, here no one gets tired." (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/1lfiW5.St.138.jpeg|416
    Majdi Mohammed - AP
    Palestinians celebrate the 48th anniversary of the Fatah movement in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Monday, Dec 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Majdi Mohammed)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/4R61d.St.138.jpeg|453
    Nasser Shiyoukhi - AP
    Palestinian wave Fatah and Palestinian flags during a celebration marking the 48th anniversary of the Fatah movement in Manger Square, in the West Bank city of Bethlehem, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012.(AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/Bh6IE.St.138.jpeg|525
    Adel Hana - AP
    Palestinians hold torches and posters of late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and late Hamas founder and spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin, during a rally marking the 48th anniversary of the Fatah movement in Gaza City, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Arabic on poster reads:" Rest in peace in heaven our late leaders". (AP Photo/Adel Hana)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/1cIrbL.St.138.jpeg|416
    JEFF MOREHEAD - AP
    Jeff Kilgren, right, and his son, George, run through the snow and cold in Matter Park in Marion, Ind., on New Year's Eve day, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Chronicle-Tribune, Jeff Morehead)
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    B.K. Bangash - AP
    People enjoy boats ride in the Rawal Lake in Islamabad, Pakistan, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/NdJm7.St.138.jpeg|408
    Muhammed Muheisen - AP
    Afghan refugee girls play in a field next to a slum area, on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Muhammed Muheisen)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/12FfKo.St.138.jpeg|362
    B.K. Bangash - AP
    People queue at a gas station to get fuel in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. After severe shortage of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) used in cars, now consumers are also facing shortage of gasoline. (AP Photo/B.K. Bangash)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/IGFgK.St.138.jpeg|337
    John Badman - AP
    A flock of American white pelicans fly in formation Monday, Dec. 31, 2012, above Alton, Ill. The pelicans frequest the waters of the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary in nearby West Alton, Mo. (AP Photo/The Telegraph,John Badman) THE NEWS-DEMOCRAT AND THE POST-DISPATCH OUT
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    Ivan Sekretarev - AP
    Figure 31 is seen on a tablet screen as protesters gather during an unsanctioned rally in downtown Moscow, Russia, on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Russian opposition protests on the 31st of each month are a nod to the 31st article of the Russian constitution, which guarantees the right of assembly. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/d3gt0.St.138.jpeg|389
    Ivan Sekretarev - AP
    A Russian Interior Ministry soldier peers through his snow-covered helmet as he and others block Triumphalnaya square during an unsanctioned rally in downtown Moscow, Russia, on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Russian opposition protests on the 31st of each month are a nod to the 31st article of the Russian constitution, which guarantees the right of assembly. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/21/1tjmWQ.St.138.jpeg|416
    Ivan Sekretarev - AP
    Russian police officers push protesters off Triumphalnaya square during an unsanctioned rally in downtown Moscow, Russia, on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. Russian opposition protests on the 31st of each month are a nod to the 31st article of the Russian constitution, which guarantees the right of assembly. (AP Photo/Ivan Sekretarev)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/20/ShWfw.St.138.jpeg|426
    John Rucosky - AP
    A.J.Stumpo, uses a tractor-mounted snowblower to open up the rear entrance to his employer's lot at Frank Duca Funeral home in johnstown,PA., Mon., Dec.31, 2012. (AP Photo/Tribune-Democrat, John Rucosky) THE MORNING CALL OUT; DAILY AMERICAN OUT; WJAC-TV OUT
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/20/1k4UcJ.St.138.jpeg|405
    Toby Talbot - AP
    A snowmobile travels a newly-groomed trail on Monday, Dec. 31, 2012 in East Montpelier, Vt. The big snow is giving a big boost to snowmobilers across Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Parts of the region have received two feet of snow and more over the last several days, giving a boost to the sport that was hampered last season by a near-snowless winter. (AP Photo/Toby Talbot)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/20/m7MkX.St.138.jpeg|406
    Paul White - AP
    People play with a soccer ball on the beach in front of industrial cranes in Valencia, Spain on new year's eve, Monday Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/Paul White)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/20/HG40F.St.138.jpeg|361
    Peter Callaghan - AP
    The shadow of Mount Rainier is cast by the rising sun as seen from North Tacoma Monday, Dec. 31, 2012. (AP Photo/The News Tribune, Peter Callaghan)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/20/jNWbj.St.138.jpeg|388
    Tom Dorsey - AP
    Rick Beets is reflected in windows as he cleans snow from the sidewalk in front of his store Monday morning, Dec. 31, 2012, in Salina, Kan. The area is expected to receive from 1 to 3 inches of snow. (AP Photo/The Salina Journal, Tom Dorsey)
  • http://media.charlotteobserver.com/smedia/2012/12/31/20/20/1mUz5M.St.138.jpeg|347
    Mukhtar Khan - AP
    A Kashmiri boatman rows during the last sunset of the year 2012 at the Dal Lake in Srinagar, India, Monday, Dec. 31, 2012.(AP Photo/Mukhtar Khan)
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