A Thanksgiving Salvaged ~ And... How Dark Is Your Black Friday?

 I woke up Thanksgiving Morning to a Phone Call from my Brother in Cali.  Neither of us makes many Phone Calls as we're not big on talking on the Phone, but, it was really good to hear from him.  He and his Lady weren't doing anything Special for Thanksgiving and didn't have a hectic houseful of folks like we do here.  We've got Two Guests joining us this Year, plus the Crew of Seven of us who are here all the time, so, Nine for Dinner.  The Daughter was watching a Martha Stewart Video on how to cook the Turkey again and arguing with her Brother about how he was trying to do the Mashed Potatoes 3 Hours too early!  His Autism is in high gear and she's being Mental too, so, it's not going well.

Often Holidays are too much Sensory Overload for the Mentally Ill and they deteriorate Behaviorally and Emotionally.  There's no way to mitigate that but to Step Away.  So, I left with The Man and we stayed out 'til late Afternoon.  The Kiddos intentionally didn't eat Dinner they'd prepared 'til we got back, I didn't Care if they did or they didn't.  I wasn't handling Mental on Thanksgiving and ruining it for us, so we just went out in Nature for about 7 Hours and it was Peaceful and nice.  By the time we got back Home everyone had Mood Regulated enuf we could have Thanksgiving properly and eat Dinner.  *Winks*  Otherwise I would have left again and Fasted for the Day, I didn't give a fuck and they knew it.  When Family aren't getting along it Triggers me, get along and play well with others and clean up after yourselves are my main House Rules, break them and Dark Dawn is who emerges to Deal with the nonsense.

But everyone pulled it together, made Nice with one another and prepared an excellent meal.  So it was a Thanksgiving Salvaged.  *Whew* We had plenty for everyone and it all turned out lovely.  We set a Buffet Table up in the Living Room in front of the Christmas Tree and put the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on TV.  The Man had watched it this Morning before I even got up but they are looping it and the Floats and Balloons are spectacular.  I must say I don't know who half the Entertainers are, except for the OG ones.  *LOL*  I really enjoyed the meal and that everyone was getting along and apologized for this Morning acting Mental.  The Young Prince will also spend Thanksgiving with his Dad and Family so I'll take him over there in the City now we're all done eating and taking Pixs.   The Son dropped his Phone in the Pumpkin Pie while taking Pixs!  *LMAO*

My Brother hadn't had good News so that set the Tone for my Day really, tho' I enjoyed hearing from him, due to ACA Cuts to the most vulnerable, and those like him who've lived too long with Terminal expensive illness, they dropped him.  His Morphine Pump crapped out and they won't approve fixing or replacing it and he's going thru Withdrawals along with excruciating Pain and can't afford the rest of his Medicines to stay Alive.  He's to the place where he could give a fuck and is on none of his Life Saving or Pain Management Meds and is having serious Withdrawal Symptoms which may just put him in the Hospital.  It makes me angry that this Administration is being so Cruel on purpose to the most vulnerable and Sick, the Poor, the very Young and the Elderly of Society, it's Evil incarnate.  

  

Most of my Pixs turned out shitty coz nobody knows how to use an Old School Camera anymore and Mando stepped so far back he was almost Two Rooms over trying to take the Group shots.  *LOL*  We took only a few with my Phone coz my Screen being broken is now affecting the function, I'll have to invest in a new one when we can afford to.  I didn't break it, one of the Kids borrowed it and now it's broken, but everyone claims it wasn't them that broke it... whatever... it didn't break itself.  Luckily all the Kiddos have their own Phones and some of their Cameras and Pixs are much better.  But I had to edit background coz rather than taking the Pixs out front where we have it decorated for Autumn nicely.  They took them on the back Porch which is cluttered with Banana Boxes and stuff we're storing back there temporarily right now.   And they got all the clutter on the edge of the Sectional and on The Man's Media Chair Side Table!!! *Le Sigh*  Kids!!!

  

I don't know where Amber went, she'd been there this Morning help to Cook, but perhaps she was just there to Sous Chef for The Daughter and then was going to her own Family for Dinner?   Q was with us, his Wife and Kids were visiting Relatives and he had to Work, so when his Boss let him off early he just came here for Thanksgiving Dinner coz we live near the Gravel Pit he works at.  He brought Pies {Pumpkin, Apple and Pecan} and some Chips & Salsa.  So, we still have 3.5 Pies left after Dinner coz I'd bought 4 Pies and that is just a lot of Pies.  *Smiles*  We'd polished off the Pumpkin Pie I bought before it was even Thanksgiving, so it's fortuitous Q brought another one to replace it.

Princess T doesn't like large gatherings so she opted out to go to her Boyfriend's for Thanksgiving.  Plus, she semi-joked that it usually will be Drama and a Headache when the Mentals can't handle the Stimulus and Sensory Overload of a Holiday Gathering and prepping Meals for them.  She Called that one Spot On and everyone laughed about it after everyone had come back to Center and put all that Drama that never should have happened, behind them.   I've known Q since he was a small Child so he's like one of our Family and knows how Crazy things can get here, so he rolls with it.  He and our Kiddos grew up together, since they weren't even old enuf to go to School yet, and now he's 40.  So, he and The Son are more like Brothers from other Mothers than just Best Friends.   And he's always called me Mom, coz I'm like a 2nd Mom to him and he has been like a Son to me too.  Most people don't even realize he's not my Biological Son.  *LOL*

We couldn't get all of us in the Pixs coz someone had to take the Photos.  And, like I said, mostly they turned out terrible and out of focus.   Or with less than Ideal Backgrounds that I had to Edit and Crop out.  *LOL*  There aren't much in the way of Leftovers either, it was so good that it's almost all gone, which, is fine.   Same thing happened with the Holiday Ham a few days ago and we'll likely buy another Ham when I get Paid again, after the 1st of the Month.   I did have to transfer some Emergency Savings over so we'd have Gas Money and to buy any perishables we run out of like Milk, otherwise our Pantry and Freezer is stocked well enuf to last a while.  As you can see, we had a nice spread.

   

We don't do Black Fridays, never have, never will.  Plus, we're probably not exchanging Gifts this Christmas due to everyone's Economic hardships this Year, Finances are tighter than they ever have been.  Princess T is the only one Working and getting a Salary right now so she insisted that she'll give everyone some Cash for Christmas so they can Buy what they Need.  Should the Economy rebound some by the New Year, and The Son get a new Job, we can always do a Gift Exchange then.  The Daughter is still waiting to have her request for SNAP assistance to be approved.  The News was saying Donnie Two Dolls has cut who Qualifies for SNAP Nutritional Assistance now, eliminating Veterans and the Homeless from being able to receive any... the Rat Bastard.     

Many Disabled Veterans are also Homeless, so it's a double insult and whammy to them to be Disqualified just due to being Veterans and having no place to Live, just WTF?!!!!!!!  He claims the Expanded Work Requirements are the 'valid' reason.   And he's assuming that just expanding Work Requirements means hungry people who can't afford their basic necessities like Food and Shelter, can even find and get a Job!!!   I know Qualified people of all walks of life who got Laid Off Months ago and can't find any Work at all, no matter how hard they're trying and how desperate they are.   By the time you get evicted and lose Shelter, it makes it just that much harder then to get Work coz you have no Address, no access to Sanitation to stay Clean and Presentable.  You can't be on the Streets and expect to be Gainfully Employed and show up to Work every Day when you have no Toilet, no Shower, no Shelter, no Food, have to carry everything you own, probably have no Transportation and no access to Money.

Anyway, with this Regime Cruelty IS the Point, so, I'm not Surprised at all and most recipients of SNAP are from Red States that Voted him in and most in those States are Poorer Whites.   He'd like people to Believe most recipients aren't White, and that the most in Need aren't Children, Seniors and Low Income Working People he's hurting, along with many of those who were his Voting Base.   He doesn't Care, inflicting suffering somehow gets him Off and he's so out of Touch with the Needs of Average Americans, completely Clueless.   He's led such a Life of Privilege and enormous Entitlement, he only knows how to Waste Money recklessly and frivolously and have no Needs not met.   He's costing the Taxpayers more than all the SNAP Beneficiaries combined, they're NOT the Problem of Wasteful and Looted Tax Dollars, and committing Fraud, he is tho'.

The Pecan Pie was Sublime, I forget how much I J'Adore Pecan Pie, and I'm not much of a Dessert Person and rarely eat Cakes or Pies.  I took a few more Pixs after Dinner since Mando had only been in One since he did most of the Photography and is shy about being in front of the Lens.  He's taking one for the Team and volunteered to doing the Dishes, Bless him!!!  We were taking the Grandson to his Dad's and Princess T has been at her Boyfriend's since the Night before, he'll drop her off on his way in to Work in the Morning and she has to go to Work that Morning also.  At least she got One Paid extra Day Off for Thanksgiving.  Very few places were Open Today so Downtown had no Traffic and Neighborhoods in the Suburbs only had people returning from visits to Family or Friends.  They said more people drove than flew this Year for Thanksgiving.

I think Tomorrow I will price more Inventory to bring in for the balance of our Sale at the Antique Mall... at least this Year they FINALLY did a Black Friday Sale... about Time!!!   It's rather a lame Sale IMO to get only $5 off every $50 spent, but, whatever.  The average Shopper there isn't spending that much but the Pokemon Buyers do, which won't help the Sales stimulation for the rest of us who don't hawk that genre of Merch.   But, they're doing it for Four Days thru the 30th, which is better than the Nothing they did every other Thanksgiving, Black Friday & Weekend after.  So, we'll see what happens?

My Adorable Vendor Friend Sarah and her DH {pictured Below}, she always looks so Retro Cute and they are the sweetest Couple.  Her Booths used to be near my Old Showroom #114 near the back of the Mall, now I'm in Showroom #140 near the front of the Mall, more desirable location and less Loss Prevention concerns coz it's a heavier traffic area and nearest to where Paid Staff are Working at the Registers up Front.   Sarah works Shifts and every so often we get to work together, she's such Fun.  Her Merch is Retro Period coz she Lives that Era 24-7 and 365 and she has the Cutest 1950's-1960's Inventory and Collects it to Decorate her own Home and wear the Fashions.

The Kids had everything put away by the time we got Home so the Day had been work-free for me, which was Nice.   I'm at the Season of Life now to where I'm passing the Baton to the Younger Generations to be in charge of the Holiday Gatherings and Menu/Cooking if we're Hosting it at Home.   I did it for a long time and my Parents did it for a long time before me too.  Before they finally passed the Baton to us and we'd just either deliver them a Holiday Meal, if they weren't up to a hectic Day around a slew of Youngsters vying for their Attention and being Intense, or, invite them to join us if they were up for it.  *Smiles*   My Parents were great with Grandkids and anyone else's Little Ones being around tho', they hung tough with Small Children being around and didn't mind it.  But, sometimes they just wanted our Home Cooked Meal Delivered to their Home and just bring the whole Family later Thanksgiving Day or Christmas Day.

 We Raised some Grandkids so had uninterrupted exposure daily to the intensity of Children and their Friends, so, we didn't fade like a lot of Seniors do, you didn't have the Luxury to as Custodial Grandparents.  And, we became Custodial Grandparents of Two Grandkids even before our Youngest Child, The Son, was even Grown.  So we had a Teenager of one Generation of Kiddos, and a Kindergartner and a Newborn of another Generation, at one point of Parenting them all concurrently in 2005.  The Son had become an Uncle at an even much Younger Age of only 7 Years Old when our Oldest Daughter began having her Children... and her Youngest Daughter of her Trio of Girls, is only a Year Younger than The Young Prince is.   Both Daughters were Teen Moms and had Kids too Young IMO.  But, her Two Oldest Daughters waited to have their Kiddos much, much later, in late 20's and early 30's, and the Youngest, whose 24, has none yet.   Princess T {20} and The Young Prince {25} don't want Kids at all.  I'm good with that too if they don't.  *LOL & Winks*

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Hope your Thanksgiving was memorable... Dawn... The Bohemian