Thanksgiving Leftovers

Today was nearly warmish, in the 50s F., unlike the deep chill blanketing Thanksgiving itself this year, so a thousand outdoor Christmas displays bloomed. Or so it seemed driving home after dark. It's probably an erroneous impression, but more wattage seems to be out there this year, at least in my neighborhood. If I drive through another couple of neighborhoods and get the same impression, that's enough material for a trend piece: Homes Lighting Up More in Hopes of Better '11. But I don't usually write that kind of article.

Not long ago I almost submitted this sentence for publication, regarding residential mortgage foreclosures and bunged up paperwork: "[Some] have suggested that the only relevant facts are that the borrower owes the money and has to pay it back," Iowa Attorney General Tom Miller... told the Senate Banking Committee on Tuesday, stating what might be called the 'Milton Drysdale' mindset. AG Miller begged to differ."

But I changed it to "Montgomery Burns." For one thing (sigh) my editor might not have known who Mr. Drysdale is. But more importantly, I needed a touch of malice in the reference. Mr. Drysdale might have been Avarice incarnate, but otherwise didn't seem evil.

At its earliest, Thanksgiving can be on the 22nd; at its latest, the 28th. So Lilly's birthday won't ever fall on Thanksgiving, but it will always be pretty close. Her celebration was the weekend before the holiday this time around.

The day after Thanksgiving, I got a calendar in the mail from a Realtor I don't ever remember having any dealings with. It's a customized calendar advertising his services, of course, but I like his idiosyncratic choice of noteworthy days. In January, for example, there's the standard New Year's Day, MLK Jr. Day and even Epiphany, but there's also "Save the Eagles Day" (January 10), "Amelia Earhart Day" (January 11) and "Christa McAuliffe Day" (January 28). I wonder about that last one. It's all very well to remember Christa McAuliffe, but six other crew members died that day too.

Also included -- besides a sizable assortment of secular, Christian, Jewish and Islamic holidays -- are Chinese New Year, Income Taxes Due, V-E Day, Atlantic Hurricane Season Begins (June 1), D-Day, Juneteenth, V-J Day, National Aviation Day (August 19), Women's Equality Day (August 26), Stepfamily Day (September 16), International Day of Peace (September 21), Native American Day (September 23), Mother-in-Law Day (October 23) Wright Brothers Day (December 17) and Forefather's Day (December 21). I sense that this fellow might be a pilot, besides selling real estate.