by Brent Kellogg
Originally published
November 23, 2005
Oh, this should be fun. Thanksgiving in Genoa City. Like everything
else, warped. You've no doubt heard by now that Victor Newman was
thinking about inviting Ashley Carlton and her crabby daughter to
dinner at the Newman Ponderosa. Deep down, Victor's always had this
thing for Ashley and she'd jump his old bones in a heartbeat. Sex is
not the motive. Not if you ask Victor. He'll say he invited
Ashley not because he wants to see her, but so he can spend some
time with his biological daughter whom Ashley spawned with his
stolen sperm.
Victor's current wife, Nikki came in on the phone conversation and from the look on her face Victor
knew not to invite Ashley. He simply wished Ashley a
happy Thanksgiving and hung up. This is how it always starts.
Find a premise, any reason lame as it is, to pit old foes against
each other on a day when the city is giving thanks. Have Ashley haul
her ass an hour's drive away on a day she should be spending time
with her own family, dysfunctional as it is. That's not to say
Ashley will be spending time with her family, as in Brad Carlton and
daughter Abby all under the same roof, those days are history.
Ashley now lives with her faux father and for a moment there was
some question as to whether the Abbotts could afford a turkey this
year. Sure, they've got two in residence, but John and Gloria, with
their flabby turkey skin throats, don't count. Gloria has
wasted a mountain of John's money, but there was enough left over for
the housekeeper to purchase a turkey suitable for eating. Gloria and
Abby pretended to be helping with the meal but everyone knows who
did the dirty work. That's what housekeepers are for. That's what
the Newman slave is for. The rich can hold their family
get-togethers because the hired help, with no families,
do all the work.
There was the slim chance this year John and Gloria would be so
embroiled in another squabble over her waste of money, and his
stupidity for giving it to her, the home wouldn't be conducive to
family gatherings, but John let Gloria's latest deception slide. It
is, after all, Thanksgiving. Still, had tension been running high,
John and Ashley could have eaten out - on Wednesday as Turkey Day
was moved up this year. As anyone who has lived in Genoa City for
any length of time is aware, restaurants and coffee shops are open
most holidays. No concern is given employees of the Jitter Joint and
Athletic Club. AC Manager Gina Roma, ostracized from John's life and
with no family of her own in town, prefers working on Thanksgiving
and Christmas.
As an added bonus for her customers who haven't planned ahead or
don't know frozen turkeys need to be thawed before cooking, Gina
now sells them out of her restaurant. It's true! Phyllis Summers
came looking for one late Wednesday only it was too late. The AC was
sold out. It did, however, have plenty of pies for sale. Daniel
Romalotti got his hands on one of them and together with his mother,
delivered it in person to the Newmans as a token of his appreciation
for Nick Newman having saved his ass from prison. It took a lot of
encouragement from Noah Newman, but finally Nikki and the rest of
the family relented when Noah suggested Phyllis and Daniel be
allowed to stay for dinner.
And as usual, before they ate, before certain members of the family
and invited guests exchanged stink eyes and evil vibes, Victor led
them in prayer. Thank God they are so rich. Thank God they have good
friends and family. Thank God they aren't like millions of other
Americans on this day living on the streets looking for a meal. Not
that the homeless weren't being thought of otherwise.
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