But when I did that last year, I didn't love the position I got—too crowded, too many trees in the way, too tired to stand the whole time. And given the fact that I didn't love my view the year before that (with seats facing the back of the floats), last February I decided to finally spring for official Rose Parade grandstand seats.
I spent a long time researching the different areas, looking for one without tall buildings casting shadows or trees, light poles, or street signs to obstruct the view. I got front row grandstand, far enough down the parade route so I wouldn't have to get there super early, and where I would more likely be able to find free parking at the last minute.
I was going to start 2026 off right!
Another winter storm hit—a follow-up to our first one, over the Christmas holiday—and I woke up to the sound of pouring rain at my window. This would've been a great year to skip the Rose Parade and go back to sleep.
But I was determined not to waste the money, or the effort, in getting a grandstand seat—so I hit the road at 8 a.m. (the time the parade starts at the "TV corner" of Colorado and Orange Grove in Pasadena) and drove 45 minutes to get as close as I could do grandstand Area 4, near 1500 E. Colorado Boulevard.
I hadn't anticipated that the parking would be restricted over there, since it's part of the Pasadena City College campus. (I didn't check the parking signs on Google Street View.) So I squeezed into a spot about 0.4 miles away and trudged for 10 minutes in the rain to arrive just as the procession was making its first appearance at Colorado and Hill.
With no umbrellas allowed on the parade route, I was ponchoed and prepared for waterlogging. It was not lost on me that the lions of the Lions Clubs International float "In Harmony We Serve" were paddling together on a canoe, afloat a flowery waterway.
This year's Rose Parade theme was "The Magic in Teamwork"—and the San Diego Zoo Safari Park's float "Giant Strides Together" featured a herd of elephants making their way through the rain down Colorado Boulevard, occasionally trumpeting to great effect.
"Jungle Jumpstart," the float built by Cal Poly Universities, won the top award for most beautiful float overall—a rare honor for a non-professionally fabricated float. Really impressive that the technology (including the robot's blinking eyes) managed to survive the wet conditions.
And the float was so well-constructed and -decorated, even the more precarious details didn't fall apart in the harsh weather.
Kaiser Permanente celebrated its 20th anniversary of participating in the Rose Parade with "A Better Idea for Health Care," perhaps the first float ever to feature an MRI machine...
...and an anthropomorphized ambulance with swinging arms.
When half of us catch our death of pneumonia from sitting and standing out there in the rain, we're going to need Kaiser's integrated, team-based healthcare. ::sad trombone:: 
The regret I felt when I first woke up to the pitter-patter on my windowsill soon gave way to gratitude and excitement, thanks to can't-miss performances by the likes of the Delfines Marching Band from Mexico...
...and showstopping floats like "A Great Place to Live, Work and Play!" from the City of Santa Fe Springs, which featured Heritage Park treasures like the historic pump house...
...and the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe steam locomotive No. 870, acquired by the city in 1989.
The elevated grandstand seating gave a good view of the parade's Grand Marshal, NBA Legend (and former Laker) Magic Johnson, whose convertible was festooned with flowers and glittery (or maybe just wet) basketballs.
The float by The Boys & Girls Clubs of West San Gabriel Valley & Eastside, "Building Kinder Communities," won the Animation Award...
...while Visit Mississippi's "Where Creativity Blooms" marked the tourism organization's second entry into the parade...
...this time with a little help from a giant frog named Kermit (who was "born" in Leland).
The City of South Pasadena won the Past Presidents Award for its self-built float "The Great Picnic Heist!", which features a colony of ants working together to sneak off with a bear's picnic.
The Mino Jiyu Gakuen Golden Bears Green Band from Osaka, Japan brought some cheer to an otherwise pretty gloomy morning.
Their walking pyramid formations were really impressive.
The UPS Store not only won the Director Award for its float "Sharing Skills for Success" (for "most outstanding artistic design and use of floral and non-floral materials")...
...but it also set a Guinness World Record for largest animatronic fish with its 34-foot-tall seahorse, which helped make the float about twice as tall as typical floats.
The drippy day marked the first time it had rained on the Rose Parade in 20 years, and only the 11th time in 137 years that rain has soaked the parade.
The Rose Parade has never been canceled for rain...
...but it can make the floats break down, like it did in 2006 to the Trader Joe's float (which fared better this time around, above).
There were moments that the rain would let up, and it would seem like the worst was over—and then the heavens would open up again, and rain hell down upon us.
I felt sorry for the kids in the marching bands, wearing ponchos over their uniforms and wrapping their instruments in plastic. But the float riders of the Indiana Hoosiers didn't seem to mind so much.
But the Alabama Crimson Tide? They rode their float for the TV cameras and then skedaddled before getting to Grandstand Area 4—maybe because of the rain, or maybe because the Rose Bowl game kickoff was an hour earlier than usual this year.
The aquatic theme continued with Louisiana's float "Gulf to Gumbo," which showcased the state's signature seafood cuisine...
...all stirred together in a pot by a jumbo pelican.
With its "Pancake Breakfast"-themed self-built float, the City of Sierra Madre paid tribute to its local firefighters...
...who helped save the foothill community from further destruction in the Eaton Fire, nearly one year ago.
Another self-built float, "Goin' Nutz" by the La Cañada Flintridge Tournament of Roses, pays tribute to neighborly support and post-fire community resilience by depicting a sophisticated acorn distribution system operated by a variety of "forest friends."
Those include a bunny (to be donated to The Bunny Museum, which lost its collection and its Altadena home in the Eaton Fire) and a chick perched upon a satellite float leading the way.
Meanwhile, AIDS Healthcare Foundation promoted its "Food for Health" program, which helped feed evacuees and first responders of the 2025 wildfires...
...with a "Jack and the Beanstalk"-themed float.
And The California Community Foundation and the Black Freedom Fund invited wildfire survivors to ride its "Rising Together" float beneath the outstretched wings of a phoenix.
The Isabella Coleman Award for "Most outstanding presentation of color and color harmony through floral design" went to the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks' "Elks Care Elks Share" float... 
Photo Essay: The Rose Parade Started 2024 Off On a High Note
...while the Americana Award for "Most outstanding depiction of national treasures and traditions" honored the Travel South Dakota parade entry...
...whose Mount Rushmore suffered some major erosion in the downpour.
But the rain couldn't even slow down the Morgan State University Marching Machine, whose musical selections included a rousing rendition of Rihanna's "Don't Stop the Music."
The nautical motif continued with "All Paws on Deck," a critter-crewed pirate ship built by the Burbank Tournament of Roses volunteers that promoted adoption events with the Burbank Animal Shelter.
Winner of the Theme Award for "Most outstanding presentation of the Rose Parade Theme," it set sail down Colorado Boulevard buoyed by floral waves and piloted by a derpy dog with a spy glass.
A Great Dane with a spiked collar (in tribute to the fallen K-9 officer named Spike) operated an exploding cannon, while a curious turtle looked on...
...and a peg-legged rabbit brought up the rear, all in hopes of finding their fur-ever homes.
The 2026 Rose Parade also saw the welcome return of a bowling-themed float, with its spinning balls and scattering pins...
...but the theme of teamwork was better delivered by the Donate Life float "Treasure Every Moment Together"...
...and the critters tending a community garden on Odd Fellows & Rebekahs' "Together We Grow" float, embodying the organization's commitment to service and harmony.
Appearing towards the end of the lineup was "Soaring Onward Together for 250 Years," the float from America250 commemorating the official Semiquincentennial (a.k.a. 250th anniversary) of the United States...
...featuring a flock of three bald eagles, which are not only our national bird but also popular residents of the nearby mountain community of Big Bear.
In the end, I'm glad I didn't have the chance to skip the Rose Parade this year. It rained on and off the whole time I was out there, with no umbrella to shield me—and the sun didn't finally break through until I was well on my way home and ready for a nap.
Three days later as I write this, it's still raining—and I'm thinking it's going to take a lot to wash away the distress of 2025.
Not just from me and my life, but from all of us.
I know for many, the new year symbolizes a fresh start, or maybe even a second chance. For others, however, January 1 is just the day after December 31—just another day, just 24 hours later.
But even if the new year is only a new day, that's still another chance to make things right, to do better, to feel better, to make things better for others.
And so for that, I continue to say "Happy New Year!"
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