Giving Thanks...

On Thanksgiving we set aside a day to give thanks for the bountiful harvest of our lives. In simpler times this was a literal harvest, as the crops would have been collected long before now and prepared for the long winter. In current times it's more metaphorical, a philosophical pause before the craziness of the Christmas frenzy and New Year's celebration.

So what am I thankful for?

• I'm thankful for my family: Mrs. G., TheBoy, and BabyGirl G. I am blessed beyond belief with two smart, healthy children that I love more than life itself, and I thank G-d everyday that I may be strong, smart, and good enough to help them grow and be the father they need. I struggle every day to be a better person, a stronger man and better Christian so that I may set a good example for them. Sometimes I fail; and when I do I am thankful for their forgiveness.
• I'm thankful for the good friends, both in real life and online, that I am in contact with on a regular basis, as well as those that I may not see or talk to every day but think of often. I may not tell you how much I value our friendships, but believe me, some days talking to my friends is the only thing between maintaining the last shred of my sanity and diving into a large bottle of bourbon...
• I'm thankful to be employed in a job I don't hate in a business that is steady and reliable. I appreciate getting up in the morning and not dreading the drive into work. Life is much better without the constant threat of layoffs hanging over one's head.
• I'm thankful for the good, smart, funny people that, for some strange reason, see fit to come to my little corner of the internet and read the monkey poo I fling against the walls random thoughts and anecdotes I post.
• I'm thankful for my fellow gunbloggers and conservatives fighting the good fight around our country and around the world. At times it seems a Sisyphean challenge to keep the forces of evil socialism and incremental nanny-state-ism at bay, but we must remember that no less than the fate of the last bastion of freedom is at stake.
• I'm thankful for the men and women in our armed forces both at home and abroad fighting to keep us safe and free. It is their sacrifice that allows me to sit in comfort at my computer and complain about that which I feel is not right; may I never forget that my freedom hinges on their commitment to our nation.
• And on a lighter note, I'm thankful for eight cylinder engines, Magnum caliber handguns, and evil black rifles with large capacity magazines. G-d bless the United States of America.

As we gorge on turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and pie today, please stop and take a moment to think about what's truly important in your lives and give thanks. Think of the men and women serving around the world who will sit down to Thanksgiving dinner with their brothers and sisters in arms, the finest family the world has ever seen. Think of those who have gone before us, our forebears who sacrificed and struggled through times much harder than these to scratch out a living and insure that their children went further than they did.

And have a second piece of pie and an after dinner aperitif...

That is all.