First Footing
In Scotland, tradition has it that the first person to cross your threshold on Hogmanay (New Year’s Day) is a harbinger of good fortune for the rest to the year. He or she should be welcomed in, given a good nip of whiskey, some shortbread, and a lump of coal to represent a warm hearth for the remainder of the winter.
Dark-haired men are preferred as First Footers; blond men stir up memories of Viking invaders. As for women, blondes are all right, but beware of a white-haired old woman you don’t know. She might be the Cailleach, a witch goddess of endless winter and death. Don’t let strange crones in!