Saturday, November 30, 2024

Thanksgiving 2024...


...is officially in the books. 

I mentioned we sub-contracted meal prep to our good friend Bob Evans - a family feast designed to feed 6.


That was the number of mouths we expected to feed, but by Tuesday Karen decided to make 1 or 2 additional side dishes, just in case.

Turns out momentum is a real thing: once she got cookin' and built up a head of steam...


...we ended up with 2 more pumpkin pies, an apple pie, a green bean casserole, a sweet potato casserole, cole slaw, fruit salad, extra rolls, mac and cheese, some more stuffing made with roasted turkey, and...well you get the idea.

Personally I thought it was way overkill - how much food can 6 people eat? - but I helped where I could and stayed out from underfoot as much as possible while the magic happened.

And then Thursday rolled around...

had no idea Tigger even knew where we lived







...and those are a few of the folks who ended up sharing Thanksgiving with us.

Total head count when all the shouting was done:  17.

I'm so happy Karen doesn't listen to me; thanks to her everyone enjoyed a hearty meal with a side of smiles, laughter and love.

Plus, the Lions made it interesting but eventually won…


...and how cool is that?



Today is Black Friday...


...masquerading as White Friday...supposed to get up to 7 inches of the white stuff by Saturday morning.

How happy am I about this?

I may look happy, but...



nope, still not changing it

Since Thanksgiving was as late in November as it can be, the hop skip and a jump to Christmas is even shorter than usual...


...so I quick-a-minute got my MCM aluminum window Christmas tree up and (almost) completely decorated.


I bought some MCM ornaments from <The Retro Christmas Card Company> for it this year:


They came with strings, but I need hooks to hang them on the branches, so they'll go on the tree in another day or two.

The rest of the decorations are in place...the original color wheel, a Marx Commodore Vanderbilt train, Santa Box, Gift tower and the Grinch all present and accounted for, sitting on the Christmas tree skirt.

The question now is, how much more will we actually decorate in light of the short season?

Will Santa be up on the rooftop click click click...


...or grounded in the front yard?

And will the Christmas Decorating Tornado...


...unleash its full holiday fury on the Castle Frankenstein this year,   -or-

"I never thought it was such a bad little tree..."
- Linus Van Pelt

- will cooler heads prevail?

Let the games begin.

ok, now I'm changing it


The rude appearance of winter has put the kibosh on me happily swinging my hickories.

Next best thing?

Reading / studying about swinging my hickories.

A great place to do that is at <Project Gutenberg> which has thousands of books that are no longer copyrighted available for free perusal online.

One of the books I'm enjoying is Harry Vardon's "The Complete Golfer", originally published in 1905.

It's a truly lovely tome, written in the flowery jargon of the Victorian era, and filled to overflowing with useful information about the art and science of hickory golf.

It also has pictures...lots and lots of illustrative photographs of the greatest golfer of that era, Harry Vardon:

the master addressing the ball from the tee


the top of the backswing - if you overlayed a compass on the picture, his club has traveled clockwise from the 180 mark to about 92 degrees and the clubhead is now pointing earthward, all while his head has remained still, eyes on the back of the ball where he'll make contact.  note his left arm: no idea when "straight left arm" became law in the golf universe, but the only man to ever win 6 British Opens - 3 in the gutty era, 3 in the "live ball" era - did not subscribe to that dogma


top of the backswing from behind...


...and the finish, facing the target

The miracle of modern technology, transporting me back to 1905.

Hooda thunkit.


Time to do the Santa Claus Run...
 
 
...through 23 Skidoo:

I miss the fall decor, but if you can't beat 'em...


if there was justice in this world, they'd all be in prison


one of my grandsons is a bow hunter and always talks about how challenging it is, so I decided to try it...not that hard, really


that doe outside Larry's blind knew something wasn't right, but couldn't quite tell what


the nerve of those people


just because I like it



The earliest Thanksgiving can be is November 22nd, and when it is you have 33 days after that until Christmas.

This year was the latest Thanksgiving can be, November 28th, so you have the shortest possible time until Christmas - only 27 days.

People are panicking at the shortened season this year, and you might wonder why.

I mean really, it's only 6 days difference.

What' the big deal?


I guess when you think about it that way, a lot can happen in 6 days.

later, mcm fans...

* Crass Commercialism Corner *

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Saturday, November 23, 2024

Well, It Happened...

 
...the first snow of winter...and I'm not very happy about it.

At least it had the decency to stay off my greens...


...nothing worse than putting through snow.

Well, ok...


...I admit that is, in fact, worse.

I don't like snow, but at least it won't eat me.

no, I'm not changing to winter yet

Are you ready for Thanksgiving?


Karen usually prepares a big meal for us, but we're ordering out this year...


...same as we did back in 2017 when we were still settling in after our move here.

It was great food then and I'm sure it will be the same this year, but our reasons are different.

That year we didn't have a functioning kitchen yet; it was still under construction.

This year Karen just doesn't feel up to it: her beloved pet, Smokey...


...was attacked and mauled to death by 2 huskies running loose in our neighborhood.

Karen very bravely tried to fight them off, and when I heard her screaming I ran to the backyard and kicked the dogs repeatedly until they finally ran away.

But the damage was done, and poor Smokey met his gruesome end.

As you can well imagine, Karen is both traumatized and grief stricken, so I suggested we de-stress the holiday and let Bob Evans handle the meal prep, and she agreed.

And yes, we've contacted Animal Control and they're dealing with the owners and their dogs.

More to come, I'm sure.



If you're of a certain age, <you remember this>:


"Everybody's doin' a brand new dance now...c'mon baby, do the Loco-Motion..."

Well move over Little Eva, there's a new kid in town:


The Trump Dance!

Based on The Donald not exactly shaking his booty -


- more like standing in place while he pumps his arms a little - it's fair to say The Trump Dance is now a <global phenomenon>...at least in those part of the world that haven't outlawed men in favor of soy boys yet.

Football, soccer, UFC, wrestling...athletes are celebrating victories with The Trump Dance.

And of course the liberal media is in full on pearl clutching mode...


...suddenly so very concerned about the message being sent by sports icons to their impressionable fans.

The message?

We won big;  you got crushed.  Get over it.

Like every fad, this one will die out over time.

But for now, it's Trump's world and the rest of us are just livin' in it.



O how I wish I could assault your senses with another HGU, but sadly I have nothing to report.

That's never stopped me in the past, however...


...so <enjoy this video> about the upcoming 2025 US Hickory Open to be held in Hot Springs, Arkansas.

Don't say I never did nuthin' for ya.



Time to grit your teeth and prove your mettle by enduring another 23 Skidoo:

a doe outside Larry's blind; apparently she's not woke enough to identify as a buck, so she lives to see another day


as the saying goes, friends welcome anytime, relatives by appointment only


for no particular reason other than I like it...my dear Aunt Velma and her beloved hound Belvedere


that fall motif covering was gracing our ottoman just seconds before this "caught in the act" picture of Loki was taken


Karen finds whiskey particularly effective


a thorough house cleaning is just around the corner



Less than a week from now we'll be enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday, hopefully with loved ones and those we hold dear.

Whether your life is sunshine and roses right now or you're slogging through challenging times, remember this truth from God's Word:


later, mcm fans...

* Crass Commercialism Corner *

In the "so convenient you can't stand it" department, you can purchase my books on Amazon.com.

Get your paperback books here:



Get your ebooks here: