My Thanksgiving day...

A few days ago, athenawindsong invited me to spend Thanksgiving with her and her parents if I was still in Dayton that day. So I took her up on her offer. We watched TV, played cards, talked, and had a yummy feast of turkey, stuffing muffins, asparagus, zucchini, rolls, and wine. And we had a wonderful peach cobbler for dessert.

We were going to watch Kung Fu Panda on DVD after the meal, but there was a manufacturing defect in the DVD: there was a particle of something that was underneath the laminated surface of the DVD, rendering it unplayable. So we watched part of the Thorn Birds instead. I remember this created such a buzz when it was first broadcast 25 years ago, mosly among the womenfolk.

It is good to have friends.

Today I plan to stay at home. I may make a run to the hardware store to get bird seed and glue sticks for my glue gun, or to the grocery store to pick up some food.

Native American Heritage Day....

This fall, legislation was passed and signed declaring the Friday after Thanksgiving as Native American Heritage Day.

This is something that has been long overdue. We, as a people, have mistreated the indigenous people of North America for many years -- taking their land, appropriating their resources, mocking their customs. It is time to start undoing the damage. And that means more than showing up and gambling at their casinos.

Personally, I'd like to see this become a federal holiday. Government offices, post offices, and banks are still open today.

As one of my colleages -- Rev. Three Feathers -- recently said, we should use this day to reflect on our own heritage. ( Mine's Italian and Polish. )