In Argentina, it is customary to see shreds of paper raining down on the streets of Buenos Aires on the last day of the year. This is because office workers have a tradition of throwing out all old documents, calendars, and notepad paper in shredded format, to welcome the new year with a clean desk and less clutter. The act of shredding paper and letting it fly is also believed to symbolize the letting go of all negativity and allowing positivity to enter one’s life. The sheer volume of the paper pieces that land in the city streets litters it for at least two days.
However, while the old paper ‘confetti’ might make the streets of Buenos Aires look a bit strange for a couple of days, it is far less hazardous than the tradition in some other countries of throwing pots, pans, furniture, and large appliances out of high-rise building windows.
