PIERRE -- The Thanksgiving folk story about Pilgrim colonists and native Americans came full circle for me this year. We ate our feast at Dakota Sioux Casino at Watertown.
I heaped full one plate of dressing, mashed potatoes, corn, gravy and turkey meat. That was plenty. I never made it to the side of the buffet where the ham, beef, beans and salad awaited.
I also never made it to the desert island. Others in our family did, and I finished some of what they brought back.
It all tasted too good to me.
"Fat and happy," I told the waitresses clustered around the cashier's counter as we left.
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I know I ate at least one Thanksgiving meal at a hotel buffet long ago, up in Aberdeen.
But for most of my life, the Thanksgiving dinner has been home-cooked, whether at my mom's or a relative's or our home.
One Thanksgiving, 24 years ago, we ate at the Pierre hospital. Kimmie was born that morning.
She lives in downtown Denver now and is an assistant manager at a clothing store. She worked on Thanksgiving this year. Someone surprised her: About 40 people came in and sang "Happy Birthday" a day early.
She and Dylan ate their Thanksgiving meal at a Ruby Tuesday restaurant on Thursday night.
We went to Watertown to spend Wednesday night and Thanksgiving Day with our son, Mac. He worked until 10 p.m. Wednesday and had to be back for work Friday.
We struggled to find a restaurant offering a traditional Thanksgiving meal, however. Then came the idea of checking the casino, which has a buffet everyday.
There were no dishes to wash afterward. We went into the bar where a truly giant TV showed the Bears-Lions NFL game. We settled back on a couch and a chair like we were in our living room and relaxed after our meal.
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We gambled a little, too. That was something new for me on Thanksgiving. We lost, of course. That isn't something new for me, which is why I seldom gamble. But we had fun.
We took part in some early shopping too. The Herberger's store in the Watertown mall started its Thanksgiving sale at 6 p.m. It was a madhouse.
For women, shopping is like hunting, I was informed.
I woke up Friday and felt a little hungry.
Because we were full from Thanksgiving dinner, we didn't have supper that evening. We didn't have any leftovers from Thanksgiving, either.
No dishes to wash but no leftovers for the next week? I should have asked about a buffet go-box.
Ten years ago we ate our Thanksgiving meal at the Beacon restaurant in Manhattan. We went to New York City to see the Macy's Parade.
A few years later, when we were moving to our current house, our plan was to go to a local buffet. They ran out of turkey. We ate Thanksgiving cheeseburgers at the pool hall.
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Driving home this Thanksgiving night, I looked at the distant lights of homes and farms.
They're all thanks giving, I said.
