Thanksgiving 2025

Saturday, I woke up and made some chorizo potatoes while Yvette was having her hair done and everyone else slept in. It was a nice, cool morning—still too damp outside for me to clean up after last week’s storm—so I decided to go shopping. I’d rather cook a brisket.

I checked with Yvette, and we decided the whole family should come over. We were doing family photos around four o’clock, so it only made sense to have everyone over afterward. I grabbed the meat (btw, beef is fucking expensive these days), went home, applied a dry rub of my own concoction, wrapped it in foil, and put it in the oven to cook for a good six hours or more.

With the meat taken care of, I put away all the fall decorations so Christmas could take over. Nothing went up inside the house yet, but I knocked it out on the exterior—porch lights, my sad little tree, and my funny mesquite with lights. I was happy. I know Yvette wants more outdoor decorations, and maybe I’ll accommodate her later. For now, that was all I had in me.

We had family photos around four, just before sundown—the best time for light. I think the photo shoot went pretty well. I’m not entirely sure how good our photographer was, but I assumed some of the pictures would turn out. I had fun taking photos with the kids and grandkids. This was all very new to me. My first family photos since I was much younger, taking them with my brothers, mother, and father. It brought back some long-lost memories.

After pictures, we came home and finished cooking dinner: brisket, potato salad, beans, slaw, pasta salad, sausage, and deviled eggs—the works. Everyone came to grub around 6:30, and it was a fun evening of laughs. I even had leftovers.

Sunday was a perfectly gloomy morning, great for staying in bed a little later than usual. When I finally rolled out, I decided to make breakfast tacos using the leftover brisket—machacado. Brisket, sautéed onion and jalapeño, chopped tomato, eggs, and fresh cilantro. I still have my homemade hot sauce, so I applied it generously. Served with black beans. A damn tasty way to start the day.

Next up: coffee and Christmas decorations. I’d put them off for a day, and I figured getting them done would make everyone happy. I was surprised by how happy it made me feel. My grandmother’s ceramic tree really made me smile. I loved that damn thing growing up—forty years of memories gazing at that little tree.

After the decorations were up, I battled the acorns for the second weekend in a row while everyone else ran off to lunch at Yvette’s parents. Have I said how much I hate the goddamn things? It took at least an hour. I prayed that was the end of them for another year.

Oh yeah—Teegan got his first deer! A nine-point buck. He kept the skull to have mounted. Looks like we’ll be eating some venison. I could tell he was extremely excited about his first kill. I was happy for him. I’ve never been much of a hunter myself; I care about animals far too much to be entertained by the idea of killing one. That’s just me. I don’t judge those who hunt for meat. I do judge trophy hunters. Fuck those guys.

Sunday wound down like it always does—errands and preparation for the week. A short week, thank God. We did get some torrential rainfall—three inches and one loud bitch of a storm.

Monday, work was lame. I was tired from the storm. I did my job and filled in for some coworkers who had the week off. Had lunch with my mom since Yvette was participating in an interview. Helped Teegan boil the flesh off his deer head. Just another day.

Tuesday at work was dead. I mean dead as a doornail. Even fewer people from my team were there, and my boss was gone. I had to find things to keep me busy, and even that was difficult.

Yvette was lucky enough to get off work early—noon. Her boss told everyone to leave. Must be nice. I was stuck at work thinking about what I could be doing if I were off. I kept thinking about how exciting it would be to have my brothers in town. I was thinking about anything but being at work, watching the clock go tick tock, tick tock.

I had some damn diabetic issues all day long. Not with me, but with my devices. My fucking sensor kept malfunctioning, beeping, and driving me FUCKING insane all day. I had to resort to the old days of finger-pricking. Let me tell you—that hurts when your fingers are no longer calloused.

What I found out later was that it was reading the opposite side of the spectrum. It told me I was about to die while I was at H-E-B. I was shopping before dinner when my devices blew up. Yvette soon called because she had gotten the alert. I started to panic—not feeling low, but sometimes I just don’t know. I grabbed a Sprite and opened it right there in the store, drinking greedily. I paid out and went home. My sugar was actually high. I ripped that fucking device off my arm and proceeded to curse and replace it with a new one.

I hate being diabetic.

That evening, Yvette and I went to dinner with my mother, my brother, and his girlfriend. It was some nice adult time before the nephews arrived and all sorts of crazy ensued. It was also the only way we could avoid spending a small fortune. The kids don’t really eat much, but they still order full meals.

We got there first. I was still frustrated with my diabetic shit, and the place was fucking packed. I couldn’t hear the hostess, and she couldn’t hear me. I might have been a little rude. Honestly, I shouldn’t have been talking to anyone. I felt bad, but our 15-minute wait suddenly turned into a 45-minute wait, and I can’t help but feel that was her doing. We waited.

Once seated—with a nice little evil-eye glance from the hostess—it was mostly a nice evening. We of course ordered drinks. Something strong after that wait. My brother and his girlfriend had a little problem getting their drinks; I don’t think our waiter was all that great. But when everything finally aligned, it was great. We had a fun night at each other’s expense—mostly mine, for obvious reasons.

After dinner, Yvette and I drove around for a little while looking at Christmas lights. It’s amazing how early people put them up nowadays. My own yard has them up earlier than I ever have, so I’m one to talk. But at least it’s one less thing to worry about after Thanksgiving. It usually feels like a chore at that point.

We got home, and I initially got comfortable for the night. That was until I talked to my brother. He was going to the bar to meet some folks. I asked Yvette if she wanted to go, and we ended up heading out to Parrots Head. I saw some people I hadn’t seen in a long time, and we had a good time hanging out. We had shots and beer, and after watching a friend do karaoke, we took off. It was about two hours of good times, and I was really happy we went. We never do that, so it was impulsive—and worth it for the laughs alone. It was a damn good Tuesday night.

I will admit that Wednesday I was a bit exhausted when I first woke up. We had a large group of us going to see Wicked: For Good. Last year Yvette, my brother, my mother, and I all went to see the first one during Thanksgiving. This year, it was eight of us.

I had some issues upon arrival—a pounding headache. No one had anything for relief, so I went to my car to dig around. What I found was six pairs of sunglasses. Good lord, why?? I guess I unknowingly hoard them. I also realized I was dehydrated. I hadn’t had any water. And I was tired, without any caffeine. I was struggling. The struggle was real. I chugged a bottle of water.

I made it back to the theater just in time for the movie to start. I was excited—until my damn insulin pump began to bitch at me. It was expiring, because of course it was a good time for that. I did my best to ignore it, but it was relentless. At least I had the foresight to mute the bitch.

The movie was really good when I was able to focus. I had been surprised I liked the first one, so this one might not have been quite as magical an event, but I still really liked it—and the whole experience.

Thanksgiving! I slept in a little — and I needed it. When I finally got up, I found that Yvette had been busy making breakfast. Since lunch wasn’t until one o’clock, I figured, why not pig out?

I got ready pretty quickly, so while everyone else was making themselves look presentable, I decided to enjoy the nice day and take a walk around the neighborhood. While I walked, I ran into some great people — Uncle Dick and Aunt Cathy. They were on their way to Thanksgiving and recognized me as I was walking down the street. It was good seeing them, even if only briefly.

We had lunch at Yvette’s parents’ house. They put out the full Thanksgiving spread — damn good food, as usual. I realized this was my third Thanksgiving with her family, and it made me smile. We always take some family photos, and the 2023 picture was one of the first that Yvette made public.

I had some meal prepping to do between lunch and dinner. Back at the house, I made the deviled eggs and the “fresh” green bean casserole. The eggs are always a little bitch, so I knew what to expect with them. The green beans were new. Lola and Yvette took a nap while Teegan watched football and I cooked. I decided to put on some Christmas music. The time flew by, and before I knew it, we were off to dinner at my mother’s.

My side of the family celebrates with booze — wine and beer. There are always lots of “games” between my brothers and me. And by games, I mean that if a glass of wine is left unattended, it will likely be chugged by whoever finds it. This has been going on for years, and I’m not even sure how it started. The only real loser is the one whose wine gets polished off, only for them to discover there’s no more left to refill the glass. That’s a bummer.

The food was good all day long, and it was great seeing all the families together at both get-togethers. I felt very thankful for family. Blessed.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

Jalapeño.