Looking for a new place to ring in the New Year this December? Consider Clay's Corner, the "Opossum Capital of the World" in Brasstown, North Carolina.

Folks at Clay's--a most unusual gas station, store and ice cream counter--celebrate a traditional midnight "Possum Drop" that also features fireworks, the crowning of the Possum Queen, a gospel sing-along, free hot chocolate, coffee and sometimes bear stew. As for the possum, friendly owner Clay Logan told me he gently lowers its cage from the store's roof as the year ebbs, then releases the critter unharmed.

Brasstown is on Old Highway 64 in far western North Carolina, a few miles south of where U.S. Highway 64 meets State Highway 141 and roughly 10 miles north of the Georgia state line. To learn about Brasstown's John C. Campbell Folk School, visit Brasstown's John C. Campbell Folk School

Clay's Corner (11005 Old Hwy. 64 W; 1-828/ 837-3797) is open daily.