It was the day before Thanksgiving ...

And I haven't been to the liquor store yet!

The turkey is still in the bath tub thawing and I need a haircut.  How many times have you heard that?  And you haven't even started to clean!

Holidays are nerve racking - there is never enough time to get everything done and it's got to be perfect. 

I think my sister goes to the Indian casino with her family now days.  They seem to enjoy all the Hmong families.  Asians love to gamble you know.  It's true.  There is nothing like the holidays at the casino. 

Since my parents died, the holidays have never been the same.  You never knew if you had been invited or not, but sometimes you'd take your chances and just show up.  I sometimes did that until my mother  came up with the very chichi idea of 'going out' for Thanksgiving.  There was an 'upscale' motor-inn type of place they liked to stay at which boasted a 1 or 2 star bar and restaurant.  Out of the blue I'd get a phone call saying, "Your father and I are going to a hotel for Thanksgiving, so don't bother coming over."  Before you could respond, she hung up.  What that meant was they weren't going to pay for dinner if you showed up.

I suppose my sister has the better idea, Thanksgiving at the casino is a good way to avoid conflicts, fights, and other drama - old people can't hear a thing with all that background noise.  Which is why I prefer an old fashioned Thanksgiving at home.  Later in the evening, if you're lonely, you can always call some one you haven't talked to in years and tell them off. 

I miss the fights.

If only the liquor stores were open on Thanksgiving.  At least Walmart and Target are open.  Call me sentimental, but I suppose there really is a lot to be thankful for.