I really wasn’t looking forward to Thanksgiving this year. It wasn’t my year to have the kids. One Thanksgiving that happened after my family was broken up, I didn’t want to be alone like I was the previous year, so I somewhat invited myself to a Thanksgiving dinner. I hated that meal, but the people were loving and caring, which I appreciated. First of all, when I walked in, I noticed an anti-Fauci book prominently on display, so I had to be very careful about what to talk about, and I hate being around people with whom I have to think before I speak to avoid any friction, instead of just being able to be myself. Also, there was nothing traditional about the meal. We ate a baked chicken breast. There was no stuffing, mashed potatoes, dressing, gravy, or even a roll. I left that meal thinking that spending holidays all by my lonesome might be better than the alternative. And, it’s something I’ve started to embrace. Again, that lesson a friend taught me, “Acceptance is the answer to all my problems,” proved true.
This year, my good friend, whom I’ve reconnected with, invited me to Brownwood, but they were having their dinner on a Tuesday. I politely declined and told him I was making a turkey dinner for one this year and planned to lean into it. I’m glad I stayed put, because the day before Thanksgiving, the mother of my children called, saying she needed to fly to one of the coasts as a member of her new husband’s family was going into hospice, and asked if I could take the kids, as she didn’t know when she might be back. Well, of course, the kids are the priority in my life. An hour or so later, BoyGeeding and DaughterGeeding were at my house, and I was off to the grocery store to shop for ingredients to cook a Thanksgiving dinner for three.
I’m grateful I had this opportunity, even if it wasn’t the whimsical experience I was hoping for. My children are teens now, and their attention is on other things; they don’t always have the best attitude when it comes to making the most of an unfavorable situation. And there was an expression of feeling like dropped-off luggage or being boarded up as a pet, rather than feeling like a priority in their parents’ lives. At least I was able to get them to drive with me to my parents’ grave at the DFW National Cemetery and place an American flag and some poinsettias on it.
DaughterGeeding wanted to binge the latest season of Stranger Things. It was much better than I anticipated. I really got into it.
Three weeks ago, a good friend and I were talking about the upcoming Aggie vs Longhorn game. All he could talk about was the Aggies’ undefeated season and how they looked unstoppable. I told him to bet the farm on the Longhorns because everything was setting up to be a typical Aggie letdown. It’s just in their DNA. They still haven’t been to an SEC Championship game, and Texas made it in their first year. However, Texas has to call Georgia “Daddy” because they can’t get past that powerhouse.
As for if Texas should get into the playoffs, I find arguments on both sides completely valid. I’m torn, though my heart leans a tad more one way than the other. While the Longhorns may feel great beating both the Sooners and Aggies by double digits, it would be strange for them to make the playoffs and Texas be sidelined. They have proven they are the better team.
Talk about a bad Thanksgiving.
College freshman deported flying home to Texas for Thanksgiving, despite court order
A college freshman trying to fly from Boston to Texas to surprise her family for Thanksgiving was instead deported to Honduras in violation of a court order, according to her attorney.
Any Lucia Lopez Belloza, 19, had already passed through security at Boston Logan International Airport on Nov. 20 when she was told there was an issue with her boarding pass, said attorney Todd Pomerleau. Immigration officials then detained the Babson College student and within two days, sent to Texas and then Honduras, the country she left at age 7.
Texas teen uses candle business to pay off school’s lunch debt
Rock Mistaken for a Gold Nugget for Years Turned Out to Be 4.6 Billion-Year-Old Meteorite
Yesterday, a CBS Sunday Morning segment began with a young woman who obtained her commercial driver’s license through a scholarship set up by the heavy metal band Metallica. It turns out, the lead singer’s father was a truck driver, and it was one way he wanted to give back. The rest of the segment focused on their foundation, which helps people attend trade schools, become laborers, and feed the hungry. It all started because they didn’t know what to do with all the leftover food after one of their concerts.
Bay Area teacher wrongly ID’d as convict, pulled from class due to last name ‘Smith’
Magician forgets password to his own hand after RFID chip implant
This video has some great aerial shots of the Baker Hotel in my hometown of Mineral Wells. It’s a bit slow, but you get a history and a bit of an idea of the progress of the restoration. It’s obviously narrated by AI.
@jonny.goodday Beneath the Dust is the story of @thebakerhotelandspa in Mineral Wells, told from the inside. We walk the lobby, climb to the top, and trace how a spa town built a landmark, how it thrived, why it went quiet, and what it will take to bring it back. This is the past, the present, and the future of a Texas icon. If this story speaks to you, share it with someone who remembers the Baker or wants to see it come alive again. #bakerhotel #mineralwells #texashistory #historicpreservation #architecture #spanishrevival #abandonedplaces #documentary #jonnygoodday #texasfilm
I’m sure I’m the only person interested in this video, and it’s only because my father worked in this building for over 20 years when the Palo Pinto Community Service Corporation called it home. At the time, the Catholic church owned it, and Dad told me that the church leased the building for one dollar a year to the non-profit, which I thought was cool.
@jonny.goodday Nazareth Hospital: From Lifeline to Legend in Mineral Wells | A seven story brick landmark once delivered babies, fought polio, and sheltered the poor of Mineral Wells. Then modern medicine moved on, the lights went dark, and the legends took over, fires, basement wards, and the elusive Blue Nun. This film traces Nazareth Hospital’s full arc: hopeful 1930s origins, four decades of nonstop care, abrupt shutdown, brief haunted-house experiment, and its uncertain future as a protected, but padlocked, historic site. Stick around to the end of the film to hear a custom song I created with suno just for this story. Every lyric and note is drawn from the building’s century long pulse. Disclaimer: All interior footage was recorded during an authorized visit. Nazareth Hospital is private property, structurally unsafe, and secured against entry. Trespassing is illegal and dangerous, please respect posted warnings. Share the video if you think this slice of Texas history deserves fresh eyes. And if you’d like to fuel the next deep dive for just a buck, my Facebook page offers a $1/month subscriber option that keeps the camera rolling. Thanks for coming along.. plenty more untold Texas stories ahead. fyp urbex abandonedplaces hauntedtok texashistory mineralwells nazarethhospital ghoststories historytok urbanexploration