I had a drunky weekend.

The thing about Happy Hour is that you're drinking on an empty stomach, which means that three beers will get you well on your way to toasted. Then, you're ready for bed by eight p.m. Fortunately, I was able to power through that on Friday. Then on Saturday, I had to drink if I was going to blow off some of the stress that inevitably accumulates from lying around the house watching disaster movies and taking naps. I went to a party whose theme was Thankstaking, though there wasn't really much to the theme besides the clever name. I spoke with someone who had just come off his first two-week stint as a truck driver. Jason and I interviewed him for close to ninety minutes about his new profession: fuel capacity (2 100-gallon tanks), mileage (7.5 mpg on diesel), payload (it varies; once it was an entire truckload of Trivial Pursuit games), hours, wages, driving strategies, routes, trucker culture, etc. We were fascinated. After that, things get a little hazy, but I remember the aforementioned truck driver drawing a frighteningly accurate map of Maryland, and a discussion about the media wherein I proclaimed The Today Show "the blackest show on television."

Speaking of television (if that's not a tight segue, I don't know what is), I've developed a new theory about the Simpsons. I think it might be possible that the show's been on so long, and has gotten so bad, that it inevitably has to travel all the way around the quality curve until it gradually begins to get better. I can't tell how long this might take, or how complete the circle will be, but the latest episodes haven't been the worst ever. This season's first two episodes had fewer cheap gags and meaningless celebrity cameos and jarring departures from character than the last few seasons. Last night's had a simplicity and a continuity that has been lacking in recent seasons. It was also pretty dark: Lisa with an eating disorder; Marge being depressed about her failures as a mother; Homer consoling Marge by saying she can look forward to "the peace of the grave." I don't know. I'm not going to say it was a fantastic episode, but it had some surprisingly smart moments.

And now, I have a confession to make. I'm just going to come out and say it: I love Thanksgiving. I think it might be my favorite holiday, if only because it requires no giving of gifts and inevitably drives everyone homeward. This means a peaceful early winter drive to Grinnell with my brother, a couple surreal nights at the local tavernery & drunkatorium, and a lot of sleeping and eating. Thank you.

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