thanksgiving, parts 1 and 2

guddu and i celebrated thanksgiving in two parts: day and night.

day thanksgiving: we went to c'ville and were welcomed by holly and deepak and a traditional turkey feast (see the turkey!)-- mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole, corn pudding, a big ol' turkey neck, pumpkin pie, green beans, salad, corn muffins, jello and cool whip, stuffing... and i think that was it. after lunch we played a mean game of scrabble (no Hindi words allowed! so, guddu, you can't spell "bangla"...), and i lost by one point despite 59-pt "query" i had laid down. holly was the true winner that day-- of both the kitchen and the scrabble. besides holly and deepak, we also lunched with sibi and pushpa (seated above).

at night we headed to my aunt's house for thanksgiving part 2. my uncle ned was in a talkative mood and told some entertaining stories about his dating years. he dated my aunt for only 6 months or so before marrying, and they will celebrate 38 years this weekend.

my cousin thomas, a rat at VMI, also shared all the rules and regulations of how he has to live. VMI is pretty strict and they only get 6-7 hrs of sleep a night. my uncles, VMI alumni, also shared their stories of "break out" (when the rats fight their way to the 4th floor of the barracks) and of "bloody sunday" (paddling rats until they bleed-- this is no longer practiced i am told).

i woke up this morning and when i went outside, it was instantly christmastime-- christmas music, christmas scents, shopping, etc. i blew $35 at bath & body works, but it was all stuff i REALLY NEEDED.