Thanksgiving Day Weekend

Thanksgiving was interesting to say the least. Let's start with Friday...

Friday

We did a bit of cleaning because Katie was arriving in the evening. She came just after Dad left to pick up takeout from the local Italian restaurant, so she had a bit of my fettuccine and a bit of Mom's gnocchi. And she gave me my birthday present - Japanese Inspired Knits! I think she went out to meet with friends after dinner, if I remember correctly.

Saturday

This was pretty much Thanksgiving prep day. Mom baked her pumpkin pies, and then I think she and Katie got started on the potatoes. Or was that Sunday morning? I can't remember.

I went to the library to pick up my stuff, and not long after I came home I went back out with Katie to pick up Justin from the bus station, and then we went to a cafe downtown that sells fair trade stuff. I got a hot chocolate, Katie got coffee, and Justin got coffee and a bowl of soup because he hadn't eaten much.

Then we went back home and Katie and Justin went to visit Grandma while me and Mom watched the soccer game, then Katie and Justin came back and hung out, and then we all got hungry so Dad and Katie went to Wendy's to pick up burgers for Katie and Mom and chicken sandwiches for me and Justin. I accidentally took a bite out of Justin's spicy chicken sandwich, but he didn't mind. I had fries and a chocolate Frosty to go with my chicken sandwich, and Katie got a Frosty - not sure if it was chocolate or vanilla - and fries. I couldn't drink my Frosty with a straw so I chucked it out and got a spoon, haha. Then Uncle Brent came to pick Justin up.

Sunday - family dinner day

The morning was pretty calm. We watched Sunday Morning, then Katie and Mom made the corn casserole that Grandma loves (which Grandpa said he didn't want, and pretty much told Grandma she couldn't have it, but whatever). I think the potatoes were made on this day, but it might've been Saturday. Anyways, I put in Pieces of April, because it's a Thanksgiving movie and it's awesome and me and Katie love it and Mom loves it and yeah. Then Katie went to pick up Nathan and Steph, and I fretted over my hair while Mom showered, and I finished watching Pieces of April, and then I got dressed as Katie was coming back with Nathan and Steph. We stopped by the liquor store (where some idiot decided to walk right next to the van as it was moving, and acted like we were dumb or something), then we went to Grandma and Grandpa's (where Brent was being a douche by coming up right behind us and leaving no room for the back doors to open, so Dad had to move ahead). I threatened to stay in the car, but Mom told me to behave myself.

It went somewhat well. Patti was being polite, Grandpa was being a child, and it seems that Jesse has developed a wicked sense of humor. And Patti's boyfriend Kevin's mother kept sticking her oar in - first, with my Christmas list, telling me to unfold it for Grandma, and then asking me if my name was on it. WHAT. THE. HELL. MAN. And then Patti asked me to put pickles into glass dishes, so I filled up the big dish first, and when I got to the smaller dishes I was finding a lot of picked cauliflower, so Kevin's mother was taking cauliflower out of the smaller ones and putting it in the bigger dish, saying something like, "We should have it all evened out." I was like, WTF? Was that necessary? If it was that important, Patti would've asked me to move some cauliflower to the bigger dish.

Dinner was hilarious. There were two tables set up in the living room - one big-ish table and one small card table - and the dining room/kitchen table was set. Grandma sat at the dining room/kitchen table, because it was easier for her wheelchair, and with her sat Katie, Grandpa, Patti, Kevin, Kevin's two kids and Kevin's mother. In the living room we had...

At the big table: Mom, Dad, Justin, Breanne, Uncle Brent and Becca.
At the small table: Me, Nathan, Steph and Jesse.

So you might say I was at the 'cool tables'. We kept cracking jokes that were slightly dirty, and another joke that went back a long ways, back when my mom's cousins were young. Two of these cousins - I think Mom said their names were Leanne and Shelly - would ask for mayonnaise or Miracle Whip to go with their turkey, because that's how they liked their turkey. Well, I guess Grandpa would complain about how they 'shouldn't be eating mayonnaise with their turkey' because 'warm turkey is meant to be eaten with stuffing and gravy, not mayonnaise!" So, Mom told Becca she'd pay her $5 to go ask Grandpa for mayonnaise or Miracle Whip to go with her turkey, but she wouldn't. Dad even offered her $10, but she wouldn't. So, Breanne took the dare, and got a laugh from Grandma (and I think a glare from Grandpa) and $5 from Mom. And when I bit into my leg of goose, I found a beebee! I guess Uncle Brent, who shot and cooked the goose, forgot to run a magnet by it! lol. The turkey wasn't too bad, considering that Patti cooked it.

Grandpa was being very childish. For instance, when I was dishing out the pickles, I had to set my can of Pepsi down. I left the room when Grandpa bitched at us to clear the kitchen, even though Patti had told us to stay still because she thought he was coming with Grandma in the wheelchair. So, I went back to get my can of Pepsi, only to find that it had mysteriously disappeared. So, I got another one from the cellar downstairs. Sometime either before or after dinner he made a public stink about 'someone being wasteful and leaving a half can of Pepsi lying around'. JERK.

Dessert was lovely, but Patti was skimping on the whipped cream as she dished out pumpkin pie, which pissed Mom off because Mom not only made the pie, but also brought the cream. There was leftover whipped cream, so Jesse came out with the bowl and asked if anybody wanted some, and I held my plate out and he plopped a spoonful on my plate and then ate the rest out of the bowl. 'Twas funny.

Monday - today

Today was the day of rest for me and my parents. Katie left at around 11:00 in the morning. When I was up on my computer, Mom suddenly yelled, "Sam! You wanna go see Zombieland?" So, we locked the dogs up and went to the movie theatre and saw Zombieland. It was EPIC. Seriously, it's funny. There's nothing quite like leftover pumpkin pie and zombies on Thanksgiving Day.

Welcome to paradise.

Well, not really. The title is completely drenched in sarcasm.

Something's up, and people aren't telling me what or who or how or why. It's pissing me off. And eventually I'm gonna get to the bottom of it. I think it has something to do with Angela - my estranged grandmother on my father's side. I've talked about her before. She's the one who sent my siblings and I birthday cards and stickers (yes. stickers.) once every few years, and when we got older it would be a card and money (usually, like, $15). Something about Grandpa wondering why Dad won't talk to Angela. I don't know. But it's pissing me off.

Also, my birthday is days away. I'm not happy. I don't really want to do anything on my birthday except go out for dinner. That's it. I want to stay in my room all morning with some books, magazines (knitting magazines, of course), CDs and knitting close by. And I know Grandpa's going to be a dick in some way, shape or form. I just know it. He has a talent for being an asshole.

I can't wait for the fall HPKCHC classes to start so I have something to keep me busy - not that my preexisting knitting projects aren't keeping me busy, it's just that I think that if I have a deadline to meet, it'll take my mind off the bullshit that is my extended family (and immediate family, at times). I also can't wait for youth group on Wednesday, where I'll be around sane people. And then there's knit night tomorrow. Hopefully I can go. I couldn't go last week because Mom wasn't feeling well.

I think I'm going to start reading The Folk Keeper again. I started it and lost track of what was going on, so I have to re-read it. It's a good book. I highly recommend it.

I also want to read Coraline. I watched the movie yesterday. Mom was being a total bitch about it - she wanted to watch it in 3-D, so I thought, okay, let's give it a shot, even if I have to wear my 3-D glasses while knitting, even if we have to have all the lights off. Well, then she starts fiddling with the TV settings to get it just right. I can't watch a movie if someone's fiddling with settings! She's as bad as Dad sometimes! So I said we should just watch it in 2-D, and she got all huffy and 'maybe I'll make you watch it on the little TV!' and all that shit. Honestly. I just want to watch my frikkin' movie. When did MY library materials become HER library materials?! It's like when I had The Wrestler out of the library. I had to watch it when SHE wanted to watch it because 'Dad's going back to work tomorrow and won't be able to see it'. Um... he's got a library card. So does Mom. It's not rocket science to reserve a DVD.

I miss kickboxing, dammit.