2020 condemned to flames

The owner of a Tucumcari motel torched an effigy of a much-maligned 2020 and mementos of people's misfortunes that year in a bonfire broadcast live over the internet on New Year's Eve.

David Brenner, owner of the Roadrunner Lodge Motel, burned about a dozen submitted items Thursday night as the year 2020 - marred by deaths and economic destruction from the COVID-19 pandemic and a tumultuous presidential election - drew to a close.

In addition to a handful of people who watched in the motel's parking lot, dozens of others worldwide viewed "2020 Must Die" on Facebook Live as a plywood mockup of 2020 quickly was consumed by the flames. The broadcast drew more than 200 comments online from as far away as the Netherlands and Bavaria.

"This is was a cathartic moment, enjoying this with people from around the world who watched us do this and put those memories in the past and looking forward with hope," Brenner said after he ended the broadcast. "There's going to be challenges; it's not over. But we're hoping to see something good coming in 2021."

Items burned in the "2020 Must Die" conflagration ranged from the lighthearted to the poignant. Among them:

• A medical bill from an emergency room visit;

• A copy of one of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham's health orders;

• Airline tickets to Vietnam canceled by the pandemic;

• A roll of toilet paper soaked with hand sanitizer;

• A 2020 wall hanging that graced the now-closed Spin Digity fitness center in Tucumcari;

• A wooden effigy to "Cancer" after Brenner's mother died of the disease earlier in the year;

• A medical walking boot;

• An assortment of masks;

• Documents and a $5,000 earnest check from a failed real-estate deal;

• And the coup de grace, a coronavirus-shaped squeeze ball.

Brenner announced each item before tossing it into the fire to whoops, hollers and shouts of "Screw you, 2020" and "2020 must die" from the small crowd watching, plus similar messages from those watching online.

Brenner said he got the idea for his "2020 Must Die" event while digging a new fire pit on his property.

"The cement's not going to be available until mid to late January, so I figured, 'Let's have fun with this pit,'" he said.

"This year's had its ups and downs, but there's been plenty of downs for enough people that there's plenty of support for this from a diverse community," he added.

Among those watching in the parking lot were Greg and Missy Struve of St. Paul, Minnesota, who happened to have booked at room at the motel that night on their way to Phoenix.

"It's a great way to spend New Year's Eve, be around a fire and think about 2020," Missy said, smiling. "It was a great idea. It's really fun."