Motor City Doesn’t Disappoint on Turkey Day

Thanksgiving and the traditional Lions game in Detroit, first time being in Detroit for all of us, but what a great reason to be there. We were away from our families which always is a bummer, but we found some family and fit right in at our tailgating spot in the Eastern Market. We rolled into the Market about 8:30 am and it was already getting rowdy. We couldn’t have picked a better spot. As soon as we parked, we saw a few legends in the tailgating community; Joe the tailgating commissioner and Hans, founder of nflfootballstadiums.com and Quest for 31, at a nearby tailgate. So we said hello and started to set up and enjoy the camaraderie of both teams’ fans. We were right next to a local tailgate that sported a hot tub. Apparently the hot tub traces it roots back a few decades ago to tailgating at the Silverdome. The originators hosted a few local radio DJs and some strippers for the yearly Thanksgiving game in the hot tub. One year, the Silverdome asked them to never come back, and the Tubgator 2 was erected in its honor at the now-popular Eastern Market. I know this may be surprising, but I did not get in the hot tub. I was planning on doing a cannonball off the RV roof after the game, but it was gone when we got back. Maybe next year.

Nolan and I went to the game and had a good time rooting for the hometown Lions. The stadium was pretty interesting and very unique, in that, all the club seats and suites were only on one side of the stadium. It was weird, though, because a lot of the club level seats were empty. I would have thought that all the club seats would be filled. But all the other seats were rocking with fans in blue and white. The crowd was pretty silent, however, maybe because the Lions have only won two games this year. And Stafford, playing with a sore non-throwing shoulder, didn’t help things out by throwing four interceptions. After the defense made some great stops, Stafford didn’t help his team throwing those picks at potentially pivotal moments of the game. I’m sure he will use this week as a learning experience. The Packers took the game home in the third quarter and helped the Lions lose their sixth straight holiday game.

We took off in the early evening and headed to Cracker Barrel for some turkey dinner. We had some left over turkey from my aunt that we ate during the day to celebrate Thanksgiving. But my parents drove my car out to Kansas last Thanksgiving after my deployment and ate at a Cracker Barrel. So, since we were on the road this year, we decided to do the same, not because we had no other place to go, but because we wanted to. It definitely did not hold a candle to any family Thanksgiving dinner but it was still delicious. We were very thankful of what we were doing and being able to do such a trip. Thanks to all those who helped make it happen.

Here’s to a new Thanksgiving tradition of tailgating and water pong, I mean, turkey pong. Detroit knows how to enjoy a Thanksgiving!