Giving Thanks

Evil

The calendar says it's winter, but it's 40's and 50's outside so you can still walk down the street and hold somebody's hand without bulky gloves getting in the way. The calendar says tomorrow is Thanksgiving and for the first time in years, I think I'm looking forward to seeing my family for the holidays. I used to fret about the holidays for some reason... maybe because social situations make me nervous or maybe because I come from a family of misfits and freaks. One year, I blew off the family dinner and convinced my friend Judy to take me in -- she made roast goose, glazed root vegetables, corn bread, herb rice, and what seemed like a dozen other dishes. There were eight people at Judy's dinner and at the end of the night, I counted more empty wine bottles than guests. That was a good Thanksgiving.

But this year, things somehow feel different. But I guess, in reality, much will be the same.

When I see my grandmother, she'll take my hand, feel my forearm and say that I'm either too fat or too skinny. Her assessment is utterly random I'm sure. Either that, or the woman is nearly legally blind. Probably both.

When I see my grandfather, he'll act very startled to see me. I think it's because he's lost all peripheral vision so he doesn't see anything not directly in front of him. I'll say hi to grandpa and he'll ask me if I'm working on my PhD and I'll shake my head and he'll mumble, "Oh." It's weird... the word for "Oh" in Vietnamese is actually "Oh." Go figure.

My aunts and uncles will all ask me if I'm married and I'll say no. Then they'll ask me if I have a girlfriend and I'll also say no, at which point they'll say various things to imply that I'm a loser. Sometimes, they actually call me a loser outright because in Asian families, it's OK to do that sort of thing (apparently). My third uncle will insert himself and point out that his son, who's a year younger than me, is already married. In my mind, I am always like, "FUCK THAT! Your kid might be married, but he's been working on his undergrad degree for ongoing 9 years now and he's still living in your basement, wife and all. F-ing loser."

My second uncle will be overly happy to see me. He is always overly happy to see anyone at all. We, the younger generation, suspect it had something to do with his long service during the Vietnam war. Something must have snapped because my second uncle acts pretty insane sometimes, but the older generation doesn't tell us anything about what's really going on.

Even with all the insanity though, I know there will be good food. My grandfather was a chef in his younger days, so his entire side of the family cooks up a storm for the holiday dinner.

Anyway, I just wanted to wish all 8 of you (the loyal Hose readers) a Happy Thanksgiving.