LOS ANGELES (AP) - Jerry Nash rolled his eyes at the mention of anything millennium-related.
Hours after the clock ran down, the party hats were trashed and the champagne dried up, many said millennium, shmillennium. They were just glad to see it go.
''I just think the whole thing was blown out of proportion,'' said Nash, 65, of Glendale.
In fact, people were so sick and tired of the millennium, the term ended up on the annual New Year's list of misused, overused and generally useless words and phrases compiled by Lake Superior State University in Detroit.
At the Glendale Galleria mall just 10 miles north of Los Angeles, many rolled their eyes and shook their heads at the mere mention of that dreaded M word. Some walked on, refusing to even discuss it.
''It was just another hype to rip people off,'' said Charlie Clark, 50, who was visiting from Washington. ''I got so sick of hearing about it, I tried to ignore it.''
Even before the clock struck midnight, some were ready to throw in the millennium towel.
At the waterfront in San Francisco, where an estimated 10,000 people found businesses closed, no place to get food, no live band, and nowhere to sit as they waited for a midnight fireworks show, some people were fed up with the millennium frenzy.
''Basically, the whole millennium thing is fake,'' said Alex Takahashi. ''I'm not really excited, but we've been waiting for three hours.''
At Saturday's annual Tournament of Roses parade in Pasadena, John Little of San Diego was much more interested in the flower-covered floats than any discussion of the new century.
''I think it's like beating a dead horse. People got all hyped up about it,'' he said. ''I think it was crazy.''
Even those at a nudist retreat in Palm Springs who had more to look forward to than most were glad to see the millennium hoopla over.
''I don't think one person said 'Happy Millennium''' said Ray Lavato, co-owner of the Desert Shadows Inn Resort & Villas, who hosted the New Year's buff party.
In fact, the only person who said he was sad to see the millennium hoopla end was 20-year-old Josh Wheeler of San Diego.
He had hoped millennium computer glitches would wipe out his credit woes.
''Too bad the power didn't go out. Now, I'll have to file for bankruptcy,'' he said.