2020–2021 and Christmas and holiday season
 

Tomorrow is American Thanksgiving Day, on Friday is Black Friday and on Sunday is First Advent Sunday.

This means the Christmas and holiday season is arriving. So, once again it's time to talk about the traditions, music and everything else Christmas-related.

With the Corona pandemic still around, the lyrics of I'll Be Home for Christmas will have a different meaning this year.

The holidays are coming up way too fast. And sounds like way more people here are traveling then they aught to be, so I really hope that doesn't make this whole current virus situation worse.

But Happy Thanksgiving to fellow Americans, as well has any in Brazil who I just learned also do it the 4th Thursday. :)

My partner and I were originally planning to fly from Oregon to West Virginia for the holidays but with covid spiking that's looking incredibly unlikely. I can't be stuck in West Virginia since my job requires me to be onsite and in January we have some big tasks to take care of.

Despite that, I'll be making the most of the situation. tonight is me and my buddies annual Smashgiving. A night of drinking and playing Smash Bros. is always involved. Not all of us have it though so this year I'm gonna stream a tourney of a smash mod, smash infinite. Good way to start off the thanksgiving break.

We're going over her grandmother's for Thanksgiving. There's going to be a few people over but I don't know how many. We usually go over there for Christmas too but apparently she's moving to North Carolina between now and then so I guess nobody's going to be doing anything for Christmas at all, since most of her family's going to be down there.

I already got most of my Christmas shopping done so there's that at least.

When did your local radio stations start the Christmas music?

The one I generally have on in the car started it back on election day. >.< Pretty sure that's sooner than usual. I guess they felt we needed some cheer.

edit: Also, just realized "Where are you Christmas" is one of the perfect songs for this year.

first time i'm not working at the store on thanksgiving. still gotta work friday morning though.

We're usually at my wife's mom's house on the 24th and at my mom's on the 25th. But there's no way I'll be in someone's living room with 10 people so we need to discuss what to do.

Okay look... I can deal with the masks, the lock down for a bit, the distancing thing, but when you ruin the parades that's just going too far, Covid. *tisk*

Well, at least Santa was still live (I guess?) and glimpses of the Rise costume Turtles trying to dance to a lip synced Spanish language song was amusing.


Shame that it shut down the Philly parade 100 years after it's first in 1920, but I'm glad it got its 100th parade last year before all this mess broke loose.

You should buy a bag of those big bubbles to put people in and sort of roll around the room like hamsters. It'd probably be fun as hell.

Flaming Lips 2020 Bubble Concert

We used to do the big family gathering thing as well..... 20 people, two or three tables setup. It used to be a lot of fun. Then Grandparents move on, uncles move on, etc.

Enjoy those family gatherings while you can. :)

Went over her grandmother's place, 10 people altogether, pretty much the normal scene maybe about 5 or 6 fewer people than usual. Her cousin's kid was being a punk. I made extra stuffing, which came in handy, but I lacked the foresight to anticipate that nobody was going to make mashed potatoes so that was kind of a drag. They made sweet potatoes and regular baked potatoes, both of which I'm not big on, but no mashed for probably the first time ever. Really wish I would've known that. Stayed about 3 hours; the second half was pretty much just me waiting for her to finish making small talk so we could go. I hate football, so to me the holiday's over when the food's all put away. I just drank wine until she wanted to go. :trazz:

Was fine. Pretty standard. Felt no different than any other year. Her 90-something grandmother was the one who hosted and was insistent that we all get together so it's safe to say there's not much cause for concern on their end.

Apparently we are doing Christmas there, too, and she's not moving south until after. So it'll probably be the same ten people.

Turkey Day will be Sunday with my 4 person family, my sister, her husband and daughter and my parents at my parents.

Christmas is usually spent at my aunts who took over hosting from my grandma, but so far no plans have been made. My 87 year old grandma still wants us to make the trip even if it's just my dad's bunch together with her and grandpa at their place.

Since grandparents passing and mom breaking it off with her sister and brother-in-law years ago, we just do our own little dinner here at home. Though with my uncle (dad's brother) having moved in for the time being a year and a half ago and a friend of my brother-in-law also coming here for a while post breakup of an engagement and sorting things out, 7 of us was a nice little bunch at the table.

Waiting for his father to come back to the table -- who apparently run to get the bottle of sparking apple/grape cider that they'd opened over in their kitchen and immediately exploded out of the bottle at my sister :lol: -- my nephew insisted on a game (he's obsessed with playing or otherwise making up games) so we pretty much had a rock paper scissors showdown. lol Also, I beat everyone except the one guy who didn't get a turn to challenge me because the 4-year-old's attention span ended. Heh.

Brother-in-law decided to try to make a pumpkin pie from scratch. Mom and I were quietly a little apprehensive because we weren't so sure that the pumpkin he used is a variety usually intended for pies, but he actually did a good job for a first try at one and turned out quite good. The guy can cook pretty decent when he wants to challenge himself to it.

Some have already started, but you can always check out the Internet and Spotify if you want something else Christmas-related, after 202 years of Silent Night overdoses. There is no need to Christmas party like it it's 1818, over and over again.

Not quite the Polar Express, but a lovely leisurely ride, part of the time rolling slowly passed Christmas decorated homes along the tracks. One of the few places where people decorate their backyard with the train in mind.

https://i.imgur.com/9tC9A3s.jpg

I envy the people who live there, off and on seeing those old historic trains, including the one decorated for Christmas every year, rolling by their homes. That's the one train track I'd love to live next to. But at least we've always lived close enough to the little station to hear them.

Christmas break has officially started for me, I'm mostly ready, just got to review a good order I have placed for a few days time, that's it. Having a more laid back Christmas this year given the circumstances.

Anyone able to see the so-called "Christmas star"?

Not seen for 800 years...so of course we'd be cloudy over here and the next coming days not much better. Darn.

It's only 3PM here. Not sure if I'll have a view from where I'll be later tonight, but I'm going to try to look and find it. I can usually see Jupiter, so maybe.

We kinda saw it last night, at least I think that's what we were looking at. Didn't look like much, tbh. Hardly the big deal it's been made out to be.

Tried looking this evening since it's at least less cloudy, but it's probably just too low for us to see around here.

Best I could do was an aircraft or something trying to trick me. No blinky lights, just a bright stagnate light sitting there for a bit. Kept an eye on it for a few trying to judge if it was moving at all, even if just slowly. Didn't seem to budge. Of course, thinking it might be that "star," by the time I deiced to grab the camera and took a couple pics out a window, then moved. :tconfuse: Hmph. lol

So I have a pic of a weird orange (white in the pic without zoom) wannabe Christmas "UFO" instead.

At least you got to see it. It's been cloudy and impossible to see here....
All of these sky events are always fun but I think they get hyped as if they are a life changing experience.