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Watch New Yorkers Destroy Their Worst Memories from 2016

By Maya Rajamani | December 28, 2016 4:54pm

TIMES SQUARE — People flocked to Times Square’s annual “Good Riddance Day” Wednesday afternoon to destroy bad memories from 2016 — which they called a year filled with “stress and anger,” “negativity” and “toxic relationships,” among other woes.

Many of the event’s participants wrote their unwanted recollections on sheets of paper before lining up to deposit them in a trash bin.

A giant “mobile shredding truck” then destroyed the discarded items after their owners tossed them.

“I’m shredding grad school,” said a New York City resident named Jackie, before tossing a notebook into the bin.

Some bid farewell to unhealthy entanglements.

“I’m shredding fake relationships, lies, negativity, bad energy, gossip and bad eating,” announced a Bronx resident named Emma.

Others focused on the “animosity of the election,” as well as the many celebrities who passed away in 2016 — including Carrie Fisher, David Bowie, Prince and George Michael.

A woman from Queens said she “wrote a long list” of negative things she hoped to leave in the past.

“All the sudden deaths, the election results,” she said, reading a few of the items. “I’m looking forward to hopefully a better year in 2017.”

A few attendees, meanwhile, declined to share their worst memories, instead taking the opportunity to discard bags of recyclables from the past year.

One man tossed stack after stack of bank statements into the bin.

“I have a bad relationship with the banks… I’m shredding all the bank statements I have, and I’m just happy to be out of debt,” he said. “It feels great — no more Bank of America, no more Chase. I’m done.”