The new year is coming up quickly, and with it the promise of novel experiences, adventures, and possibilities. Here are 7 specific things to look forward to in 2017.

1. The first solar eclipse in a century

August 21, 2017 will see a total solar eclipse visible from the entire continental U.S. While there was a total solar eclipse on the U.S. mainland in February of 1979, eclipse expert Jay Pasachoff says the one in 2017 will be the first time in 99 years that viewing it will be “readily available to people from coast to coast.” He added, “It's a tremendous opportunity … it's a chance to see the universe change around you."

Here’s a list of the best places from which to view it.

2. A plethora of cool and interesting gadgets

As technology advances, so do the gadgets that can make our everyday lives easier -- or just more fun. Prinker, for example, is a temporary tattoo printer that lets you transfer images from an Android phone to your skin. Anyone who loves tattoos or wants to try one out before making it permanent will enjoy the ease with which you can download or create a drawing on your smartphone, then apply it to your skin immediately.

3. Virtual reality becoming more accessible and utilized

VR has a lot of potential in areas like education, therapy, sports, and more, and headsets are becoming extremely reasonably priced (as low as $35).

By the end of 2017, certain colleges will begin experimentally offering classes entirely in virtual reality, and the experience will be, in many ways, better than “real life.” As such expansions continue, virtual reality will become a resource sure to both delight and entertain as well as train and provide meaningful experiences to people who otherwise wouldn’t have access to them.

4. High-quality home-delivery food services

Too busy to cook, or sick of cooking all the time? Have no fear -- 2017 will see a big jump in the home-cooked-meals-not-actually-cooked-at-home industry.

Services that deliver ready-portioned ingredients for cooking or healthful, fully cooked meals will be even more widespread, making your life even smoother and easier. These include services like Blue Apron, Plated, Sun Basket Organic Meals, and Gobble, which boasts healthful meals ready in ten minutes or less. “Meal-kit delivery services are reinventing the dinner ritual in a very good way,” says Katie Kelly Bell.

5. The reopening of Disneyland’s Rivers of America

Summer 2017 will see the Mark Twain Riverboat, Sailing Ship Columbia, Davy Crockett Explorer Canoes, Pirate’s Lair, Tom Sawyer’s Island, and Disneyland Railroad all up and running again. If you haven’t been to Disneyland in a while, 2017 could be a good year to make it happen.

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May your new year be full of adventures, excitement, and joy!