Thanksgiving: A Family Holiday of Dysfunctionpalooza
Tomorrow is Thanksgiving. A chance to have a nice day with your family. It also brings up a shitstorm of emotions. Good or bad, it's here again and let's take a look at Thanksgiving through the decades.
It's 1963. President John F. Kennedy has been killed in Dallas. The country has gone through four days of shock from his assassination through his funeral. Three days later it's Thanksgiving. Somber and not exactly a day to give thanks.
It's 1971. I'm in college at the University of Oklahoma. OU is playing Nebraska. Both teams are undefeated and playing for the National Championship. My brother is visiting from Chicago and we're at the game. This is Johnny Rodgers returning a punt for a Nebraska touchdown. Nebraska wins 35-31 on a last minute score...damn.
After the game we have dinner at a local burger place. Yummy...turkey burgers.
Later that night, I'm studying...no really I am. It's botany...yeah plants. My friend, Bill Peters comes over to talk about the game. He's crying. Seriously there are tears coming out of his eyes talking about a game. The next year the teams play again on Thanksgiving day. Oklahoma wins this time. The meal is the traditional Swanson's turkey tv dinner. Good times.
It's 1989. This is Waikiki Beach in Hawaii. I spent Thanksgiving here because turkey-day the year before was a disaster.
In 1988, I'm living in Southern California and Thanksgiving is usually spent at my mother's in the desert. What could go wrong?
I'm with my brother and my mom has a friend over...some guy we've never met. Sounds like fun, right. About halfway through dinner, my mother goes on this rant about how bad her kids are and tells him all our faults. I keep looking at my bro, wondering when this is going to end. About half an hour later, she wore herself out and eventually the dinner from Hell ended.
After the weekend, I'm back home and have already decided that I'm not spending Thanksgiving 89 in Palm Desert. I go visit my friend Mary Lou, who is a travel agent...remember travel agents? I tell her I want to go to Hawaii. She asks when. I tell her whenever Thanksgiving is the next year. She laughs...rolls her eyes...and books me a flight and a hotel.
It's 1989.....Thanksgiving in Honolulu. Dinner that night was two slices of pizza. One of the best Thanksgivings ever!!
We can skip the 90's because the only thing I remember is my wife being pissed off because I didn't sit with her at a family dinner one time. Sigh.
It's 2004. This is my family. I'm the guy who has the Harry Reems stache. Tomorrow we'll all be ten years older. Those kids are now adults. Some of them have their own kids. We're all still around and most of us will be together again. We will miss the ones who won't be there. We'll tell stories good and bad....happy and sad....cuz that's what families do...especially on Thanksgiving.