I’ve just stuffed my face with a delicious dinner that my husband and I cooked, “The Man Show” is paused on the TV while my husband is talking to his mother on the phone, I’ve just finished eating some apple pie my mom made, and I’m drinking some Liquid Vinyl Russian imperial stout with a bit of strawberry blonde mixed in (it tastes like heaven)!

And I’m listening to “Alice’s Restaurant” on Spotify. Arlo Guthrie’s hippie Boston drawl is like a lullaby to me. This seminal recording is an important part of hippie pop culture – with the Vietnam War draft serving as a backdrop. The song outlines Arlo’s real-life (though maybe slightly fictionalized) humorous experiences with the draft board after he was slapped with a fine for littering. The landfill he attempted to use was closed for Thanksgiving. You can find a full recap of this story pretty much anywhere on the Internets…

I read recently that Arlo Guthrie is officially retired from music – and is living with his girlfriend in Florida. Good the f— for him. He owes the world nothing else! “Alice’s Restaurant” is such a huge part of my childhood and it will always evoke fonder memories than ANY Christmas carol.

Well, he’s off the phone now – but I’m not going to turn off this song until it’s DONE! And in about an hour, I have to “see” my family on Zoom (modern times, I tell ya).

Happy Thanksgiving!