Musings
an Online Journal of Sorts

By Alyce Wilson

On Friday, everybody was pretty much working their normal hours, so The Gryphon and I got up, drove to the local Sheetz for coffee, and then took our dog, Una, for a walk around town before my afternoon assignment.

We passed the local Methodist Church, where a church member was trimming the holly bushes. She gave us enough cuttings to make a wreath.

Since we were just starting our walk, she left it on the corner of the little garden area, so we could pick it up on our way back. We thanked her.

After my assignment, we drove to my eye doctor's to order some new glasses. It's been about seven years since I got a new pair, since my prescription hasn't changed much in that time. I figured I was about due.

I wore my contacts so that I could see the frames I was trying, and The Gryphon gave me his opinion. We chose some plastic frames with a gold and brown pattern. I can't wait until they come in.

Then we drove to a local garden and gift store to look for a frame for the wreath. The clerk directed us to their floral department, where a very helpful assistant sold us the frame for a small wreath, as well as some green wire for holding the holly in place.

Afterwards, we tried to find a coffee place I used to go, but they'd closed. We did drive to another coffee place we knew, but they were closed. I found this strange, since they're located in a furniture outlet and it was one of the biggest shopping days of the year. So we ended up with more Sheetz coffee.

We met up with Dad for dinner, going to a local Italian place we all like. I got a shrimp pasta dish and had them box up half of it.

Dad was excited because he'd picked up his new car that day. For years, ever since he and mom divorced, he's had a variety of sports cars. They've often been a little difficult to get in and out of, since they were often two-door.

Now that he's got two grandkids and his family keeps expanding, he figured it would be better to get a roomier four-door car. He did manage to find one that was fuel efficient. It was kind of fun tooling around in the new car, with the new car smell. Every time he discovered a new feature, he'd get all excited and tell us about it.

Just like the previous night, I could start a little later than usual. This gave us enough time to watch Napoleon Dynamite, which we'd received from Blockbuster.com. It follows the lead character, Napoleon, an offbeat outcast, as he navigates the pitfalls of dating and social interactions. Speaking as someone who's been there, I thought it was great! The dialogue and the acting make it seem more like heightened reality than your typical Hollywood teen flick. It reminded me a lot of Welcome to the Dollhouse, which takes a similar approach to the subject of popularity and belonging. We all enjoyed it.

I actually managed to finish a little early that night, but Dad had gone to bed early, so it was just The Gryphon and I again.

More from Thanksgiving weekend:

November 29, 2006 - Healthy Thanksgiving

December 1, 2006 - Holly and Coffee

Copyright 2006 by Alyce Wilson

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