A G.I. Joe Thanksgiving
Disclaimer: G.I. Joe is the property of Hasbro. I have no intention of infringing on them. The characters are from the 1980s cartoon A Real American Hero.
I always wondered what Thanksgiving would be like on a secret military base.
It was a cold but beautiful late fall morning, the fallen leaves were being blown about the base. It was the week before Thanksgiving. A few soldiers of the elite fighting force G.I. Joe were guarding the main gate after the night watch had ended. They were jumping, rubbing their hands together and slapping their biceps.
Scarlett was enjoying a nice quiet walk and noticed the guards were doing their best to keep warm. She walked over to them and said, "A little cold out here, eh?"
One of the guards looked over at Scarlett, blowing his breath in his hands, "Yeah, it's a little chilly."
Scarlett paused for a moment, thinking. She noticed a jeep parked next to the guard house, pointed to it and said to the guards, "I'm going to borrow this, I'll be right back."
She went to the mess hall and asked, "Hey Roadblock, how about some hot apple cider with a cinnamon stick, please?"
Roadblock asked, "How many you need, Red?"
"Five, one for me and four for the guards."
"Coming right up," he said.
As she waited for her order, she thought of the many Thanksgivings she celebrated as a child with her father Patrick and her brothers Sean, Frank and Brian in Atlanta and smiled on those memories.
Just as Roadblock came up with her drinks, he noticed her smiling and asked, "What's with the smile?"
"Just thinking of home and all the memories of this time of year," she said.
"Yeah, I know how you feel," he said.
Scarlett took the drinks, "Thanks, I know of some soldiers that would appreciate these."
Scarlett walked out of the mess hall, placed her precious cargo on the passenger side floor of the jeep and drove carefully towards the main gate. Back at the guard house, still trying to keep warm, one of the guards notices a vehicle approaching, elbows the other, "Hey, she's coming back!"
As she pulls to a stop, she waves them over, "I've got something for you," She handed each a hot drink.
"Thank you, ma'am," said one of the guards.
"You're welcome, Happy Thanksgiving." She lifted her cup to them.
The other guards joined in, clinking the paper cups together, "Thank you, same to you, ma'am."
Scarlett smiled and walked away; she'd just made the guards' day.
General Hawk was sitting at his desk looking at mission reports when there is a knock on his door. "Enter" he says and sees Lady Jaye. "What do you need, Lady Jaye?" he asks.
She enters the office, closing the door behind her saying "Sir, Thanksgiving is a week away. I think I've come up with an idea."
Hawk asks, "What did you have in mind, Lady Jaye?"
She clears her throat and says "Well, I was thinking, instead of giving everyone who has to stay on base holiday leave for Thanksgiving Day, why not have them bring a little bit of home here?" As he listens to what she is saying, a small smile creeps across his face, "What are smiling about?"
"Nothing, just thinking of home and remembering the holidays, that's all."
"So am I, Sir. Mine are filled with painful memories that I don't want to talk about. The people in this unit are my family now and I have made great friendships. I want to remember sharing the holiday with them," she says.
Hawk stands up and sits on his desk in front of Lady Jaye and places a hand on her shoulder and says "I understand. Listen, I think that's a great idea."
Her face lights up at his comment, "You really think so?" A smile lights up her face.
"Yes, it is. Let me run it by everybody tomorrow and see what they think, OK?" Hawk says.
"Yes, Sir. Thank you, Sir." She says and walks out of Hawks office with a spring in her step.
As Lady Jaye walks down the corridor to her office she bumps into Duke who was also on his way to his office to take care of some paperwork.
"Oops, sorry Duke," she says as the papers fall to the floor.
Duke says with a chuckle, "It's OK, What are you so happy about, anyway?"
Lady Jaye winks, "Sorry, that's classified information. Here, let me help you clean up this mess."
The next day
Hawk calls a meeting in the conference room to discuss Lady Jaye's idea.
He clears his throat. "It has come to my attention that a few of us won't be able to, or don't wish to, go home for the Thanksgiving holiday." He glances at Lady Jaye. "However, one of us have come up with an idea to bring Thanksgiving here at the base to have a little taste of home. Also, for those of us that have to travel, I have given you a couple of days leave. I would like to hear your thoughts on this."
Duke stands up and says, "Sir, I think that's a wonderful idea. When I was growing up in St. Louis, my mom always made an apple pie from scratch. I can call her when we're done and get her recipe." He sits down.
"Anybody else?" Hawk asks.
Scarlett stands up, "I agree with Duke. Since my family has been living in Atlanta, we have always had peach cobbler. We also gave an Irish blessing for the meal, with your permission, sir I would like to give the blessing?" She asks then sits back down.
Hawk ponders her request, then says, "That would be nice. Permission granted, Scarlett."
Flint stands "Ever since I can remember, my family always had a warm loaf of homemade bread made with grains from the wheat fields in Kansas on the table, I can smell it now. I think I might be able to manage something." He says and then sits down.
Cover Girl stands and says, "I'll bet no one has mentioned appetizers." She looks around the room, "No? Well, I'm bringing one. Being from Illinois, one dish that I can't get enough of is, wait for it, deviled eggs! Since it takes a bit of time to make them, I'll get started on them when this meeting is over." She takes her seat.
There are many ooh's and ahh's going around the room after what Cover Girl said she is going to make. Hawk puts his hand up, then says, "all right everybody quiet down." The whole room goes silent.
Wild Bill stands and says in his southern drawl, "Back when I was knee high to a grasshopper, there was always traditional southern greens on our table. So, in keepin' with that, I'll be a-bringin' some collard greens with red onions."
Lady Jaye stands up, her face bright red with embarrassment says "First, let me say that it was my idea to have Thanksgiving here. Second, as you know, I'm of Scottish decent and we never celebrated the holiday. I'll make some Highland toffee and since Scarlett is giving an Irish blessing for the meal, if it's OK with you Hawk, I'd like to do a Scottish blessing."
Hawk turns to Lady Jaye and says, "I don't think it will hurt to have the meal blessed twice." He then looks at Scarlett who nods her approval. "I'll make sure that happens, Jaye."
Hawk then says, "For those of us that don't want to have turkey, but would like the option of something different. I'll prepare a nice clover honey spiral sliced ham."
"I didn't know you can cook, sir," A female voice pipes up.
Hawk scans the room to see Scarlett standing up again, he smiles and says "Oh yeah, when the need arises."
Shipwreck stands up, "Since I'm the only member of the team from California, I'll bring some of the finest wines from the best vineyards in Napa and Sonoma valleys. I'll also not try to drink it on the way back." That gets a laugh from everybody.
Beach Head stands up, "Well, as some of you know, my family Thanksgiving dinners were never grand but I'll try my best and think you all might enjoy a summer squash and onion cheesy casserole."
Gung-Ho is the next one to stand and say, "Since I was born and raised in New Orleans, which is bayou country, we always had a crawfish boil. I'll make a Louisiana Crawfish bisque with some of the crawfish from the swamps of the region, and possibly teach y'all how to eat 'em."
After Gung-Ho sits down, Roadblock stands and says, "Well, it all sounds good. I was asked by General Hawk to prepare the bird. I'm also gonna bring a Mississippi Mud cheesecake, and help those who can't cook prepare their dishes."
The general looks at Roadblock "That is so nice of you to do, Roadblock. I'll share the work load, as well. I have one request, though. When we sit down to have the meal, no code names. I want us to use our real names." He then continues. "Any questions?" he scans the room and points to Duke who raised his hand. "Yes, Duke?"
Duke asks "How should we dress?"
Hawk says "Civilian clothing, suits for the gentlemen, and nice dresses for the women. I also want the ladies to choose their dates for the evening," he continues, "If there are no more questions? Dismissed."
As everyone leaves the conference room they stand and salute the general, waiting for him to leave before going to their offices and quarters to get the recipes for their dishes they will share.
Shipwreck asks Ace "Hey Ace, I need to ask you a favor."
"What kind of favor, Shipwreck?" Ace asks.
"I'm going out to California and was wondering if you can fly me there?"
Ace says "Sure, give me about a half hour to get a Skystriker and a flight plan ready."
"That will give me plenty of time to pack a duffle for a couple of days." Shipwreck says.
Meanwhile, Duke walks into his office and picks up the phone to call his mother.
"Hello?" a female voice says.
"Mom, it's Conrad" he says.
"Conrad, what a pleasant surprise. It's been a while since you called." She says.
"I know, I'm sorry. I've been very busy. Listen, I need a favor" he says.
"What kind of favor, sweetheart?" she asks.
"Well, I won't be able to come home for Thanksgiving, sorry. However, one of the people I work with has come up with an idea to bring a little bit of home for the meal" he says.
"Oh, that's wonderful, dear!" she says.
"You know how wonderful your apple pie is?" he asks.
"Yes, I have been told that many times." She says and then asks, "Why?"
"I told my boss that I would make an apple pie and would ask you for your recipe," he says.
"Well,..." she hesitates then gives in "all right, let me find it." Duke can hear the sound of paper shuffling as she flips through her recipe box. "Ah, here it is, you got a pen?" she says.
"Yeah, let me find a piece of paper," he says as he gets one from his printer, "OK, go ahead."
She proceeds to relay the recipe as he writes it down. "Thanks, mom. I love you and Happy Thanksgiving."
"You're welcome, Happy Thanksgiving to you too, dear. I love you, too." She says. They say their goodbyes and Duke hangs up the phone.
He smiles and thinks to himself 'This is going to be a wonderful Thanksgiving. One they will never forget.' He starts to leave his office, but as he reaches for the knob, he tries his best to keep a straight face, he can't control his laughter.
Once he gathers himself and stops laughing he makes his way to the mess hall.
When he arrives he can smell the various dishes being prepared. "It's starting to smell really good in here!" he says as he smells nutmeg, cinnamon and various other spices wafting in the air.
He offers his help to Scarlett who is making her peach cobbler "Need some help there, Red?" he asks.
She turns towards Duke, "Nope, I'm good, thanks anyway."
"No problem, it looks good." he says looking down at Scarletts dessert. He looks around and manages to find an open area to work on his moms apple pie.
"How's it going over there, Duke?" Lady Jaye asks.
"It's going great, thanks for asking Jaye," he says as he gets the pie ready to put in the oven.
"Your first time making a pie, Duke?" Cover Girl asks.
"Yep, it was not as hard as I thought it would be." He says as he puts the pie in the oven.
Hawk overhears and says "So, what you're saying is, it was easy as pie?"
the whole room breaks out in laughter at Hawks use of the pun.
Roadblock is at the other end of the kitchen getting the turkey ready and looks over at Lady Jaye. "You doin' OK, Jaye?" He asks.
"Yes, I am." she says.
He checks the fire under the pot of sugar. "The fire is just right, Jaye. Turn it up after you add the condensed milk for about twenty minutes then put the toffee in the two large greased trays to cool."
"Thanks Roadblock," She says as she stirs the mixture.
Just then, Cover Girl says, "My dish is done," then asks "anyone need help?" She puts her dish in the refrigerator to chill.
Hawk looks over at Cover Girl, "Yeah, try a little bit of this ham and tell me what you think." He pulls a piece for her to try and hands it to her.
She takes the piece, "Mmmm, that is delicious!" she says as she gestures for a high five from the general and he slaps her hand.
"You like?" asks the general.
Cover Girl just nods her head.
"Score one for the General," exclaims Flint. Hawk looks over at Flint and smiles.
There is a flurry of cuss words as Beach Head is trying to prepare his dish. "Everything OK, Beach?" Roadblock asks.
"NO, everything is NOT OK," he says as he slams the knife down on the cutting board.
Cover Girl calmly comes over, places a hand on his shoulder and asks, "Would you like some help?"
Beach Head sighs in frustration, "Yes, I would."
Roadblock hears the exchange between them and says, "Have no fear, Roadblock is here." The trio work on the dish, get it prepared, and ready for the oven.
"I'll go and put this in to bake," Cover Girl says with a smile on her face.
Wild Bill sees Scarlett walking by and says to her, "Hey Red, how do these collard greens taste to you?"
Scarlett takes a taste, "Could use a little salt."
He adds a little salt. "How about now?"
Scarlett tries another taste and gives the sign for perfect.
"Yee Hew!" he says with excitement.
"Hoo wee!" Gung-Ho says as he stirs his dish.
"How's the bisque coming there, Gung-Ho?" Flint asks.
"Absolutely perfect, Flint, Would you like a taste?"
"Sure, if it's not too spicy." Flint tries a taste of the dish, coughs and says, "Man, that is good. This would go good with my loaf of bread."
"Merci, Flint." Gung-Ho says.
After helping Beach Head with his dish, Roadblock goes back to prepping the turkey for the dinner. He rubs butter on the skin and in between on the meat to give it flavor and crispiness along with salt, pepper, and other savory spices. He also prepares the stuffing and gravy. When that's done, he gets going on his own dish, while keeping an eye on Lady Jaye and her toffee.
"OK, Jaye, turn the fire off and slowly pour the toffee into the trays and let them cool."
"OK," she says as she wipes her brow, "Phew, I never knew cooking could be such hard work."
Roadblock turns to her and says, "Yeah, but that hard work pays off in the long run, Jaye."
"How's that?" she asks.
"Well, for one thing you become more self sufficient and you're able to learn new things which is rewarding in it's own right." says Flint.
"I agree with that, Flint." says Hawk.
"I wonder how Shipwreck is doing?" asks Hawk in concern.
"I'll call him if you want me to, sir?" Scarlett asks.
"Yeah, would you, please?" he asks.
"If you'll excuse me for a few minutes." She leaves the mess kitchen and calls Shipwreck.
"Hello?" he says.
"How's it going?" she asks.
"I just landed in California. I'm going to spend a day here, get the wines and then be on my way back," he says.
"Good, see you in a couple of days. Have a wonderful time. Bye Shipwreck." she says.
"I will, bye Scarlett" he says.
Scarlett returns to the kitchen. "Shipwreck just landed in California. He's going to spend a day relaxing, get the wines and then come back,"
"That's good, I'm glad he arrived safely." Hawk says breathing a sigh of relief.
"Me, too," Scarlett says.
Just then, a timer dings and Duke goes to get his apple pie from the oven. "That turned out really nice and smells absolutely wonderful, Duke," Cover Girl says.
"Thanks, Cover Girl. Yes, it does, I really want to try it, but like everybody else I have to wait." he says with a bit of sadness in his voice.
"That's right, not until after the meal." Hawk says to a chorus of groans.
There's another ding of a timer, everyone that is baking scurries to find out if it was for them. "Oh, that's for me," says Scarlett as she gets her peach cobbler from the oven.
"Mmmm, that smells really good, Red," Lady Jaye says.
"Thanks, Jaye. I'm going to let this cool then put it in the refrigerator." She says and then asks, "Roadblock, would you warm this up when we have the meal?"
Roadblock looks her way, gives a nod and says "You got it, Red,"
In California, Ace and Shipwreck spent the evening resting from the flight. "It's good to be home, thanks for flying me here, Ace."
"You're welcome, Shipwreck," Ace said giving a nod.
Shipwreck yawns, "I think I'll take a shower, order room service and sleep in until tomorrow," he said.
"That sounds like a good idea," Ace said.
The next morning, Shipwreck shows Ace around the navel yards, "Welcome to the Port of San Diego," he said smiling, "I used to spend a lot of time here as a young boy before joining the Navy and the Joe team,"
Ace looks out the front passenger side window of the rental car, "A lot of goods come through here?" Ace asks in amazement.
"Yes, a lot of the items we buy come to this port from Asia, but that's not why we're here, remember?" Shipwreck says rather sternly.
"Right, we're here for your contribution for the dinner," says Ace.
They continue the drive to Napa Valley, making a stop at one of the wineries.
"Can I help you?" the receptionist asks.
"Yes, what wines go good with ham and turkey?" He asks,
"If you want a red wine, I'd recommend either a Beaujolais or Pinot Noir. For whites, anything from a Chardonnay to White Zinfandel," she says.
"I'll take a case each of Reisling, Chardonnay, White Zinfandel, Pinot Noir and Beaujolais, please?" he asks,
"OK, who do I charge this to?" asks the receptionist, "Hector Delgado," he says while getting out his credit card.
The woman hands the card back along with a signature slip for him to sign.
He signs it and is given a copy of the charge, "Thank you and Happy Thanksgiving," he says,
"Thank you and the same to you, gentlemen," she says as they leave with their order.
"OK, we need do get to the Sonoma valley and get some wines from there," he says to Ace then asks tossing the keys to Ace, "You want to drive?"
"Sure," he says catching the keys, "just point me in the right direction,"
They drive up the interstate to the Sonoma valley, get the wines and head back to the rental car, "I think we have enough, let's go home," Shipwreck said as they head back to the closest Air Force Base.
"I'll get some help loading the plane," said Ace who asks for help loading the plane.
"While you do that, I'm going to give Scarlett a call," he said dialing Scarlett's number,
"Hello?" She says,
"Hey, I thought I'd call and tell you that we are loading the plane now and are on our way back," he said.
"Good, I'll have a jeep waiting for you when you land," she said.
"OK, in case you're wondering if I drank any of it, you'll be happy to know that I did not, I have a witness," he said laughing.
"See you in a few hours Shipwreck. Have a safe flight, bye," she said.
"See you then, I will, bye," He said closing his phone.
Back at the base, Scarlett returns to the kitchen, "Shipwreck's on his way back with the wine, he has reassured me that he didn't drink any of it. I'm gonna go get a jeep and wait for him to land,"
"That's good, Scarlett," Hawk said.
Scarlett goes to the motor pool, hops in a jeep and drives to the Tarmac. Just then, the sound of a jet engine is heard overhead, she looks up and sees the Skystriker make an approach to the runway and land.
"Welcome back, guys! How was the trip?"
"Absolutely Wonderful! It felt good to be home," Shipwreck says coming off the plane.
"Yeah, it was nice to visit the west coast," said Ace, also climbing from the cockpit.
"That's great to hear, guys," She says going to the rear of the plane.
While grabbing a case of White Zinfandel from the plane she asks, "How many cases did you get, Shipwreck?"
"Ten, two cases each from two vineyards," he says while picking up a case of Pinot Noir.
"The drive to the vineyards was nice," says Ace taking a case of Reisling to the jeep.
"It sure was, Ace," he says while grabbing a case of Beaujolais and walking to the jeep.
As they finish loading the jeep, Scarlett, Ace and Shipwreck make their way to the mess hall kitchen. They each grab a case and walk in, "The reds can stay out, while the whites and blushes are better chilled," Shipwreck lists to Scarlett.
"Hey guys, welcome back," Hawk says to Shipwreck and Ace.
"Thank you, Sir," Shipwreck says to Hawk saluting. Hawk returns the salute.
Shipwreck and Ace continue with the off load of the wine.
"That's the last of it. Thanks for your help Scarlett," he says placing the last case on the floor.
"You're welcome, guys, I was glad to help," she says.
"I'm going to go get cleaned up and rest," he says then asks "What time is dinner tomorrow?"
"OK, Shipwreck,1330 Hours. Eat a light lunch," Hawk said.
"OK, Thanks," he says leaving the room.
Thanksgiving Day 1200 Hours:
In about an hour and a half the Thanksgiving meal will be served and the mood in the mess hall was festive. The food table was decorated with a Horn O'Plenty, small pumpkins and leaves from the trees outside. Vivaldi's Suite to the Four Seasons Autumn Concerto was playing softly in the background. Roadblock was in the kitchen warming up the dishes that needed to be hot. Everyone else was getting ready for the meal and were in their quarters getting dressed.
They were also not members of G.I. Joe. Today, they were a family, brothers, sisters, sons, daughters, and husbands and wives.
Duke checked himself in the mirror one last time, smiled and left his quarters to go to dinner. Along the way he stopped at the door to the women's quarters and knocked.
She answered the door. "Hi handsome!"
Duke was amazed at how beautiful she looked. "Hello yourself, gorgeous!"
Scarlett blushed as red as her hair at his compliment. "Ready to go?" he asks.
"Yes, I am. Let's go." Duke offers Scarlett his arm. She slides her arm in his and they make their way to the mess hall, talking along the way.
As Duke and Scarlett were leaving her quarters, Flint approached them with a bouquet of flowers for Lady Jaye.
"Hey Flint. Ooh, those are beautiful!" Scarlett says looking at the bouquet.
"Thank you, only the best for my lady." he said smiling. Flint stops at the door and knocks.
"Just a minute!" Jaye says as she checks herself in the mirror one last time. She walks to the door and opens it.
"Good afternoon, Ma'am, My name is Lord Dashiell Faireborn. I'm looking for Lady Alison Hart-Burnett. Do you know where I can find her?" he says while looking around the room.
"I think she is standing right in front of you m'lord," she said with a light chuckle.
"These are for you," he says handing her the bouquet.
"Oh! Dash, they're beautiful!" she says admiring the flowers.
"Just like you m'lady," he says.
She blushes then says "Let me put these in water,"
As Alison goes to the kitchen, a tear rolls down her cheek. Dash hears a sniffle, "What's wrong, Allie?" he asks with concern in his voice.
"Nothing, Dash. It's just...just...the flowers, you know how to make me happy,"
She says while putting the flowers in a vase and trying to control her sobs.
"You do the same for me too, Allie. Come on, lets get to the mess hall." he says as he offers her his arm.
Beach Head noticed Flint and Lady Jaye leaving the women's quarters "Is Courtney there?" He asks Lady Jaye.
"She was getting ready when we left," she says.
He goes to the door and knocks.
"Be right there." she says while smoothing her dress.
She answers the door, his eyes get wide and jaw drops.
"Wayne, you might want to put your eyes back in their sockets and pick your jaw up off the floor." she says with a laugh.
"Sorry. Uh, Wow! you look amazing, Courtney." he says while admiring her beauty.
She smiles and says "Thank you, Wayne. You look handsome,"
"Enough of that mushy stuff, let's get to the mess hall." he says.
Everyone made their way to the mess hall and found the dishes that they made were spread out on the table with their names in front of them.
The women looked at everything, got a little emotional and smiled.
"Everything looks and smells wonderful," says Shana.
"Yes, it does, Shana." Dash said.
"Everyone really has outdone themselves this year." says Clayton.
"Yes, we have Clay. This is going to be a wonderful holiday." Conrad says while hugging Shana from behind.
Clayton looks at everyone and says "Well, I'm getting hungry. Let's eat. But first I think we need to say grace."
"Agreed." Hector says.
"Ladies, would you please give your blessings." says Clayton.
Everyone gathered in a circle and held hands, bowed their heads, held hands and listened to Shana give her blessing. "Thank you, Clayton. I will say this in english and then repeat it in Irish Gaelic."
After a short pause, she proceeds, "May you live a long life, Full of gladness and health, With a pocket full of gold, As the least of you wealth. May the dreams you hold dearest, Be those which come true, The kindness you spread, Keep returning to you."
Another brief pause then she repeats it in Irish Gaelic.
Clayton says, "Thank you, Shana. Alison, you're next."
Alison says, "Thank you, Clayton. Here we go." She looks at everybody, closes her eyes and says, "Good health and every good blessing to you!"
Like Shana she paused for a minute and says her blessing again in Scottish Gaelic.
They raise their heads, Conrad says, "Very nice, ladies. That was wonderful. Thank you."
"You're welcome, guys." They both say.
After looking around, Dash says, "Let's go get some of this wonderful food."
They go to sit and the table that was setup and Clayton being the C.O. gets the seat at the head of the table.
Conrad gets the seat to Claytons left with Shana next to him on his left.
Dash goes to the seat on Claytons right with Alison next to him on his right.
They all take their seats and sit down at the table.
Marvin comes in with the turkey and sets it in front of Clayton, "Here we go sir, you get the honors." he says while handing the carving knife and meat fork to Clayton.
"Thanks, Marvin. Smells delicious," he says while starting to carve the turkey, "who wants white meat?" he asks.
"I do, but make it a small piece, please. I want to try some of the ham you made." says Shana. "I do, too." says Conrad.
Clayton carves the turkey for anyone that wants it.
They then go to the food table to get a sample of the dishes that everyone made.
Once everyone sits back down at the table, Conrad asks "I was wondering, what everybody is thankful for?"
"Well, I'm thankful for the friends that I have made here," Alison said while wiping a tear away, "I'm also thankful for this wonderful man sitting to my left." kissing Dash on the cheek.
Dash also says, "I too am thankful for the friends I've made," raising his glass of wine, "and this lovely lady to my right." Giving Alison a kiss on the head.
Everyone else says what they are thankful for and the meal is a success with everybody.
As far as the desserts that Shana, Conrad, Alison and Marvin made, a vote had to be taken to determine which one was the best. It was a four-way tie, they were all good.
After such a wonderful meal, they all headed for the Rec Room to watch the Thanksgiving Day Parade, football and to possibly sleep off the meal.
"Oh, look! There's Santa and Mrs. Claus," says Shana excitedly.
"Has everyone been good boys and girls?" asks Clayton with a smile on his face. Everyone sheepishly raises their hands saying that they have.
After the parade, it was time for some college football games and the trash talk to begin.
"Hey Bill, are you ready for your Aggies to go down to my Tigers?" Conrad asks Bill.
"Let's hope it's the other way around there, Pardner." Bill says while tipping his hat.
"May the best man and team win, Bill." Conrad says while extending his hand.
"Yep!" Bill said returning the gesture.
"You know, there is nothing like a little friendly rivalry when it comes to college football." Dash says while taking a piece of Alisons Highland toffee.
"I know, it's fun to watch, let's just hope it stays friendly." says Shana. "Good luck guys!" she said.
"Allie," Dash says taking a bite of toffee.
"Yes, Dash?" Alison asks.
"This toffee you made is really good!" he says in amazement.
"Thank you, sweetheart. I'm glad you like it." she says.
"Like it! I love it just as much as I love you." he says kissing Alison on the cheek.
Just as the game goes into halftime the alarm goes off, nobody knows why.
Hawks phone rings. "Hawk here. Yes Breaker. Why is the alarm going off? I see. Well, figure it out and shut it off. There are people trying to watch a football game in here." he says over the wail of the alarm, then ends the call.
Author's Note: I wanted to do this as a way of showing what might happen on a military base during the holiday time. I also want to wish everybody that reads this a very safe, healthy and Happy Thanksgiving.
A special Irish Holiday blessing from me. May the blessings of each day, Be the blessings you need most.