a not-so-traditional holiday

Normally for Thanksgiving, my family gathers out in the middle of the woods and has a huge meal -- Southern-style. Eighty or so people are usually in attendance, but this year we were forced to do something new because our gathering spot had been destroyed by Hurricane Charley -- this year we went to the Keys...

The Florida Keys are located at the very southern tip of the peninsula, and they're basically a string of islands linked by a buttload of bridges.

My immediate family has been living down there for a while and we decided to do the turkey day in the sun -- with lots of seafood and absolutely no turkey.

It was great to be around the family because they keep me grounded. They really don't have much interest in my music or integral activities or whatever. It's usually just about us having some laughs and drinking a bit of rum. Okay, maybe a lot of rum.

Highlights include:

- Riding on the tuna tower of my folks' 31' Blackfin mesmerized by the magnificent color of the water.

- Eating a lot of great food -- seafood.

- Visiting the Dry Tortugas for the first time. It was a 140 mile roundtrip boat ride in 4-6 ft seas and I didn't throw up on one person. Sweet.

- Meeting my new "sister" -- my parents adopted a new kitty appropriately named Chum.

- Going for walks with my Dad.

- Coming home to my pup.

Hope the holiday went well for you, too.

Metta

posted by tripp on November 28, 2004 12:36 PM | in Blogs