Instead of having a big Thanksgiving meal at home, Chris, Tisha and Evan suggested we eat out instead. That seemed a good idea to me.
When I was a child, Thanksgiving was a true harvest day for those of us on a farm. With the exception of the cranberry sauce, we grew everything on the table. It was a fun day with lots of cousins and friends around.
The last few years, I've come to think it is just too much trouble, so eating out was exactly what I wanted. The food was perfect from the turkey to the cherry pie a la mode. The conversation was good and afterwards there were no greasy dishes, and no turkey carcass to deal with. (I usually make soup.) There was no televised football. This was so much easier.
After we ate, Chris and Tisha introduced me to a new Thanksgiving tradition. We drove around Appleton to see the big chain stores and observe people lining up for the Black Friday sales which in some cases start tonight. At Best Buy there were even three tents with people that had already been waiting for two days to rush in for bargains.
It was a warm day, so it probably wasn't all that bad, but Tisha told me she's seen it much worse. People line up in blizzards to save a few dollars on a toy. She and Chris always spend Black Friday morning watching the crazy people.
I'm writing a short story about Black Friday so I was mentally taking notes.
When I got home I spent the afternoon decorating the house. I finally got the lights working on the six little Christmas trees that go on the front deck. At an end of the summer sale, we found some glass lanterns marked down 90 percent. Gary bought two, I bought two. At a rummage sale, I bought six big red ribbons for fifty cents. Now the lanterns are decorated and are burning tea lights in the front yard.
With Gary in Illinois, I thought, why bother? For the last few years he has done most of the decorating. But once I began putting out lights, I remembered how much fun it is. Even if I will be alone in this house for most of the season, I love the smells, lights and music. Why not enjoy myself?
After sunset, I took a two mile walk around town looking at other houses. With warm weather, many people started early this year. Down at the Seymour museum, the memory trees were lit up. Each Christmas tree was decorated as a memorial for someone. There are probably two dozen trees down there.
I love these late night walks.
So Christmas comes. I intend to enjoy every bit of it.
When I was a child, Thanksgiving was a true harvest day for those of us on a farm. With the exception of the cranberry sauce, we grew everything on the table. It was a fun day with lots of cousins and friends around.
The last few years, I've come to think it is just too much trouble, so eating out was exactly what I wanted. The food was perfect from the turkey to the cherry pie a la mode. The conversation was good and afterwards there were no greasy dishes, and no turkey carcass to deal with. (I usually make soup.) There was no televised football. This was so much easier.
After we ate, Chris and Tisha introduced me to a new Thanksgiving tradition. We drove around Appleton to see the big chain stores and observe people lining up for the Black Friday sales which in some cases start tonight. At Best Buy there were even three tents with people that had already been waiting for two days to rush in for bargains.
It was a warm day, so it probably wasn't all that bad, but Tisha told me she's seen it much worse. People line up in blizzards to save a few dollars on a toy. She and Chris always spend Black Friday morning watching the crazy people.
I'm writing a short story about Black Friday so I was mentally taking notes.
When I got home I spent the afternoon decorating the house. I finally got the lights working on the six little Christmas trees that go on the front deck. At an end of the summer sale, we found some glass lanterns marked down 90 percent. Gary bought two, I bought two. At a rummage sale, I bought six big red ribbons for fifty cents. Now the lanterns are decorated and are burning tea lights in the front yard.
With Gary in Illinois, I thought, why bother? For the last few years he has done most of the decorating. But once I began putting out lights, I remembered how much fun it is. Even if I will be alone in this house for most of the season, I love the smells, lights and music. Why not enjoy myself?
After sunset, I took a two mile walk around town looking at other houses. With warm weather, many people started early this year. Down at the Seymour museum, the memory trees were lit up. Each Christmas tree was decorated as a memorial for someone. There are probably two dozen trees down there.
I love these late night walks.
So Christmas comes. I intend to enjoy every bit of it.
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