The Night Before Thanksgiving

As a young man, the night before Thanksgiving was a huge bar night.

Do people do such things anymore?

I left drinking behind about 15 years ago.

It’s a young man’s game and I couldn’t deal anymore because if I had even a few beers on a Friday I’d feel cloudy until Monday.

So, I won’t be going out to a bar this evening.

But I have a good memory.

There were two ‘night before Thanksgiving evenings’ that stood out.

1). 1985 - college break - we all packed our cars for the week-long break. My roommate George, who was heading in the opposite direction, said:

“Let’s grab a beer before we head out.”

“One!” I said.

About 18 hours later, on Thanksgiving morning, I woke to a ringing telephone in our apartment.

George answered the phone.

“It’s your Mom. She’s pissed!”

I made it home in time for Thanksgiving dinner, but I wasn’t real popular with Mom or Dad that year.

We had more than one.

A couple of years later, I headed to the bar in the small town where I grew up.

Saw someone drinking a Bloody Mary.

“That looks tasty!”

I don’t recall how many Bloody Mary’s I had that night, but it was more than one.

Getting caught in a small town dive bar when you grew up with everyone who walks through the door is a dangerous endeavor.

I do recall that the Thanksgiving dinner hit hard that year.

So, if you’re going out tonight, do as I say, not as I did.

And definitely…

…no driving!

Most of all, remember that you have to eat a lot tomorrow!