Barbequed turkey. Baked ham. Creamed corn. Baked beans. Butterbeans. Macaroni and cheese. Potato salad. I always want to eat some of all of it, but after a serving of three or four items, I’m about to burst. And then there’s the dessert table.

Brownies. Chocolate chip cookies. Lemon pie. Chocolate pie. Oreo cheesecake. Butter pumpkin pie. A healthy person could go into a diabetic coma — and it’d be worth it. I always want to eat some of all of it, but after a serving of three or four items, I’m thinking, “Oh God, what have I done to myself?”

On Thanksgiving day, and on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, I always end up eating more at one meal than I’d normally eat in three meals any other day of the year. You’d think I could live for at least a couple of days without needing to eat again, but somehow, I end up hungry again come breakfast.

Bullgrit

It should be a given that I’m thankful for my family and friends and health and all that stuff. So I want to extend my thanks to all of you who regularly visit this site. Thank you for coming by, and thank you for passing the word around about this place.

When this place was new, (a year and a half ago), it sort of felt like I was just talking to myself. But as word started spreading — thanks to you who started reading at or near the beginning — I actually started having a gathering. And now that the word is apparently spreading much faster — thanks to all of you who have been reading over the past weeks and months — the gathering is turning into an audience.

I appreciate you not only stopping by and reading each day, but I really appreciate you spreading the word. And thank you to you folks who are leaving comments — it’s great to see other people’s opinions and experiences.

I also appreciate those of you who are ordering BULLGRIT shirts and stickers. Let me know if there’s a style or item you’d like that isn’t in my store — I can arrange new stuff.

And Cowgrit and the Calves appreciate the emails to them (sent through my address). I probably should set up special addresses just for them. I think I’ll do that this weekend.

Thank you.

Happy Thanksgiving.

Bullgrit

We Grits all sat together on the sofa last night and watched A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving on network television. It’s been many years since I saw this show, and Calfgrit7 had never seen it before. Calfgrit4 saw it at preschool a few days ago. (We all saw A Charlie Brown Christmas last year, so they were familiar with Chuck and friends.)

The things that stand out to me, now, about this show: 1- the art is so very basic, even amateurish-looking; 2- the voice acting is very out of character for 8-year old kids. Now, for the record, these two notes aren’t complaints, they’re merely observations. Although I would complain about the voice acting if it wasn’t a classic of American culture.

The thing about the voice acting that just gets on my nerves is that the kids speak so formally, and no one uses contractions. They do not use contractions. This just grates on my nerves. But . . .

Calfgrit7 loved the show. Loved it! He was laughing out loud through the whole thing. He fell off the sofa a couple times laughing so hard. Calfgrit4 didn’t laugh out loud, but he had a smile on his face the entire time. I could tell he was enjoying the show, but he just wasn’t being boisterous like his big brother.

Cowgrit and I kept looking at each other and smiling at CG7’s giggling. I remember enjoying the Charlie Brown shows as a kid. But I don’t find them funny or particularly entertaining as an adult. I wonder how old I was the last time I laughed out loud at Charlie Brown? At what age does this thing stop being funny?

Bullgrit

We were on a family outing for the evening, and Calfgrit7 was sitting beside me showing off his latest Pokémon cards. Cowgrit had bought him a new pack of cards since the last time we played the game, so most of these were new to me. I was trying to read them, but I didn’t have my new glasses with me.

I could read the hit points and attack damages, barely. But for the attack descriptions, I had to hold the card about two feet from my face, and shift it just right to get good lighting on it. God, getting old sucks.

Then CG7 pointed to a part of the card I was holding and asked, “How does this power work?”

I pulled the card closer to my eyes, I held it away from my eyes, I shifted it this way and that to get lighting, and then tried reading, “Lustrous Orb. If . . . an . . . Active . . . Pokemon . . . has . . . Weakness . . . to . . . water . . . type, . . . Palkia’s . . . attacks . . .”

“You want me to read it for you?” my second-grader asked me.

How freakin’ pathetic am I? “Thanks, but no,” I said. “I can read it. Just give me a minute.” I finally did finish reading it, and I explained it to him. (I gave him my best guess, anyway, as I’ve never seen this kind of power on a Pokemon — it’s not a Poke-POWER or a Poke-BODY.)

When we got home, after the boys went to bed, I pulled out that card from his stack left on the kitchen counter. I put on my reading glasses and tried to read it again. Holy geez, but it’s difficult for me to read that tiny writing even with my glasses on. The next time I play Pokemon with him, I’m going to need a magnifying glass at hand.

It’s sad for me to think that being able to read the dag-blame game cards are going to start being an obstacle for me to play games with my boys. Do I need to petition Pokemon to make special large print versions of their cards?

Bullgrit