Wow, Thanksgiving was late.  Only three weeks to go at work before I’m off for Christmas.  Lea’s gotten most of the boys’ shopping done, and I’ve pointed and clicked here and there for them too.  I’ll probably finish up the rest of my shopping this week.

(Speaking of avoiding all of the damned retail traffic:  I thought to buy dog food last week, but I’m still going to have to get out for air intake filters at some point.  What time does Home Depot open?  6?)

The s-word has crept into the forecast for tonight and tomorrow.  It’s not nearly cold enough to cause any logistical problems (sorry, Melanie, though I’m sure you’ve parsed all of this already).  Nevertheless, I’m encouraged.  This is early for us, and it really has been a damned cold November, relatively speaking.  Perhaps we’ll get our overdue debilitating stay-home event this winter.

When I carry tension around with me (doesn’t happen as often as it used to, but still does sometimes), I generally do it in my neck and upper back.  I’ve allowed more than one person to deposit an excessive amount there over the past week, and I’ve decided to refuse to lift it again.  It will not be there when I stand up from the bed in the morning.  Buh bye, jetsam.

• I’m not sure when I lost the ability to sleep late, but it’s quite gone.  I got up to pee at 6:15 this morning and started ambling out to make coffee, and thought “this is completely ridiculous.  Go back to bed, Bo.”  So I did.  Then I popped right back up at 7:30, and clearly wasn’t going back down.  That just sucks.  Is that a sign of latent tension?  Just getting old?
• It’s been a chilly November, but it got to 62º today.  I wore a T-shirt.
• My lovely mother-in-law doesn’t believe in any less than ten different dishes on the table for Thanksgiving.  My niece and nephews are now pleasant to visit with in a young-adult sort of way, as opposed to an older-kid sort of way.  That’s cool.
• I worked on a Michelob Craft Sampler with my dad.  The pale ale is really very good; the porter, tolerable.  We played gin rummy for the first time in a while.
• Kirstie Alley was pretty damned hot in 1989.  (Look Who’s Talking is on, and far more engaging background noise than the Texas-Texas A&M blowout.)
• Lea has only limited plans for the Black Friday insanity.  She, her sisters, and her mom have previously done the four-in-the-morning commando thing, but I think her excursion tomorrow may be limited to Old Time Pottery (which is on our end of town and three-quarters of a mile from Wal-Mart).
• Incidentally, the rest of you who get out in that shit are nuts.  When shopping like a normal person during normal hours and paying normal prices, I’m content viewing the whole thing as paying a slight surcharge in exchange for not being surrounded by throngs of lunatics.
• Lots of Iron Bowl talk today from all quarters.  More on that tomorrow.