I had been working pretty hard since early October. Business travel coupled with some new opportunities (Equip Expo) and some magazine deadline really ransacked my day-to-day life. In fact, over the last few weeks, I took two business trips that were 5 days and 6 days long. That’s a rarity for me. I travel a lot for work, again now that we’re coming out of Covid (I think) but I’ve always tried to limit my travel to three days away, four at the max. And that usually works.
Not for Equip Expo (5 days) or the back-to-back Summits (six days.) It wore me out, and I came home from the back-to-back Summits gripping the steering wheel a little too tight.
So I took off Wednesday afternoon before Thanksgiving, even though I was on deadline (a magazine was due the following Tuesday afternoon, while I was double-booked with travel) and I needed the time off. Work schedule be damned.
I should mention that at this time, Adrianne was on the downhill with her first experience with Covid. So I hadn’t really seen her up close for over a week. She got sick while I was in Orlando, and when I got home, even though I hadn’t seen her for six days, we had to keep our distance. This was tough.
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On Wednesday afternoon I took the kids to my sister’s house and we met Jess, Jett and Marina and Cousin Melissa for a pre-Thanksgiving Mexican feast. It was great! Jess made queso, pasole and enchiladas, I made refried beans. We all enjoyed the meal. Then Boyd suggested a game of Monopoly (Ghostbusters edition… OK, we brought it along). The game went a lot longer than normal (the risk of playing with folks who don’t play much) but Evey emerged victorious eventually. Boyd was on a three-day winning streak. We had been playing every evening at the house while Mom was in quarantine, a different Monopoly version each time (we own several.) Evey suggested that maybe this is a new Thanksgiving tradition? Maybe. But I did come in last place three of the four games (and second against Evey at Jess’ house.)
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Thursday was Thanksgiving and I was pretty excited that a lot of the cooking fell to me this year. With Adro sick, and her cousins making plans months ago to spread out all over the earth during the holiday we have been hosting (I won’t take it personally… I think) that meant we had a small crew. Grandma Judy usually cooks the turkey and ham while I make a few sides, and my sister makes a few sides.
With Adro sick, that meant Grandma Judy couldn’t come over. So call up Seth Jones and his kitchen sidekick, Evey Jones, culinary student extraordinaire.
I watched a YouTube video the night before (in the guest bedroom, my new bedroom while Adro is sick) and came upstairs early with a game plan. Evey joined me around 10 a.m. and we first cleaned up the whole kitchen. I recorded the KU/Wisconsin game (KU won on a last-half-second tip in by Bobby Pettiford Jr., a game I watched about three hours after it concluded) and Evey and I put on some tunes and got to work.
I made everyone breakfast burritos early to hold everyone off to 3 pm that afternoon. I got the turkey in the oven by 10:45 a.m., just a little later than I wanted. Evey got busy making the stuffing and green bean casserole. Bub came up and we all cleaned the house a little. With Adro down for the count, the Halloween decorations were still up, something we’d just have to deal with.
Jess and Melissa arrived right on time, much to my surprise. We were still in cleaning mode, but it was great to just stop and hang out. Melissa brought Polly Princess, here little toy dog, so we all watched as her dog and Mittens tried to kill each other through a window.
The weather was mild so we relocated to the HOJ. Irony, the kids and I cleaned the house but I didn’t bother cleaning up the HOJ… and it became the headquarters for Thanksgiving! We all made plates and headed outside and Adrianne joined us. We ate, listened to music and watched the sun go down. A super-memorable Thanksgiving.
And I NAILED the turkey. Super juicy. There was a moment of nervousness because the little thermometer red button thingy hadn’t popped out when I pulled the bird out… but the YouTube video I watched advised I get the turkey to around 165, 167 and then pull it out and let it rest for 20 minutes… it’ll keep cooking internally and make it to 170. (I did get a 170 reading actually so I felt OK pulling it out.)
My sister is always good about posting photos of the family on Facebook. She wanted a photo of me with the turkey, before I was about to carve it. I was still moving pretty fast, trying to make sure everything was ready.
When Sis snapped the photo, I’m smiling, looking into the camera. I’m holding a soup ladle in one hand. In the other, a knife, upside down.
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Friday was pretty chill. Black Friday!
I told myself I’d clock in, work a little (deadline, remember?) Instead I slept in, woke up and made (almost) everyone their own breakfast (ham, egg and cheese on an English muffin; egg over easy with a tortilla and bacon; Evey makes her own smoothie, I don’t make hipster breakfasts).
Poured myself a beer by about noon and put on sports. Then I went next door and started CLEANING.
By 2 p.m. or so the girls (Jess and Melissa) returned and we watched the US Men’s National Team play a weak sauce 1-1 game against England (a game they could have won.) That afternoon was a little long and made me grumpy. The weather was nice, though.
I probably knew, deep down, I should have gone to work that morning.
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Saturday was another fun day. The highlight was the entire family, including Grandma Judy, loading up and heading to AMC Studio 28 for a midday showing of Glass Onion.
The movie was fun. Silly in spots. A good ensemble cast.
Afterwards we went to Wahlburgers, which I will state for the record, sucks. But Adrianne was finally Covid-free (as of Thanksgiving afternoon) so to celebrate I knew she wanted some mediocre cheeseburgers in a cold warehouse setting, along with overpriced milkshakes and slow service.
C’mon, c’mon! Feel the vibration.
That night I went and met Neuty out for beers at Rick’s and we watched the KU/KSU football game. It might have literally been before Covid since we did that (drinking together at Rick’s, that is. Because I never stopped drinking at Rick's by myself.)
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Sunday came and I told Adrianne: best weekend ever.
Had a lot of fun, saw family, ate a bunch of great food, nice mild weather, played a ton of Monopoly, watched a bunch of sports. I told her, “I’m almost ready to go back to work!”
Sunday afternoon was Chiefs / Rams. The weather got colder, but I turned on the propane torch and we watched the game outdoors. The neighbors came over. Hot dogs off the Oscar Meyar roller. Chips and queso inside.
Eventually I packed a small bag for a quick business trip to Houston. Reluctantly went to bed.
Exhausted, but finally rested.
