This is from Thanksgiving, which I spent with Kayla’s family this year (the holiday coincides with her brother’s birthday, so here he is opening one of his gifts). This Thanksgiving was the first proper holiday dinner I’ve had in a while now, as most holidays seem to have been banned from my household completely, and those that haven’t been eradicated tend to be underwhelming if not disastrous. This year, my mom ordered a turducken at the request of my brothers, and that seemed to be the only excitement of the evening for them, as my mom likes to avoid dealing with messes and food and people as much as possible. This means no eating in the dining room, no family, no guests, and certainly no pots or pans.
I feel much differently about holidays — it doesn’t count as a real Thanksgiving until folding chairs are brought out to fit everyone at the table, until at least 3 dishes break, or until at least one child throws a fit over being forced to eat vegetables. Kayla, knowing this, graciously offered to come fetch me on Thanksgiving day and bring me over to her house, where a real Thanksgiving dinner was being held. I ate far too much, engaged in a number of awkward conversations with a strange and non-related guest who apparently teaches photography, pretended to understand football, and became the newest crush of Kayla’s 5-year-old brother. So, all in all, it was the best holiday I’ve had in a long time.
Pretending to understand football and having awkward conversations with people you are not sure you should be speaking to are part of the joy of holidays. Fortunately your friend’s get-together didn’t include crazy Italians drunk on homemade wine and rehashing arguments that started fifteen years ago. So I’m glad you had a good time :]