Life in the Ville by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville Times belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville Times, its staff or publishers)

I would like to present another story by my friend and fellow Somerville native, Anthony Accardi Jr.

Thanksgiving has always been one of my favorite holidays. We always celebrated Thanksgiving with my grandparents on my mother’s side of the family. The travel was easy; just walk down one flight of stairs to an afternoon of turkey, lasagna, various side dishes and lots of sweets. After dinner the tryptophan from the turkey would kick in and then it was one flight back upstairs for a nice nap on the couch. However it wasn’t just the turkey, lasagna and desserts that made me crave a nap. It was the night before Thanksgiving. Otherwise known as “Thanksgiving Eve.” It was a night out for a few drinks; maybe reunite with friends that you hadn’t seen in years and then afterward a visit to Kay and Chip’s for breakfast.

As a kid Thanksgiving Eve meant helping my mom bake pies or other desserts. My grandmother would go up and down the stairs between her first floor apartment and our second floor apartment. She must have gone up and down those stairs 50 times that night. She would be entertaining approximately 30 people for Thanksgiving and everything had to be just right. It was an exciting night for us kids as we had no school on Thanksgiving – and also the day after. That meant we were allowed to stay up late two additional nights that week. You had so many “good thoughts” on your mind. No school on Thursday or Friday – plus the weekend, lots of relatives visiting, a ton of food to eat and Christmas was just around the corner.

As an adult, Thanksgiving Eve meant going to a bar or nightclub and blowing off steam as if it were a regular weekend night. I have to say for me the Thanksgiving Eve tradition started at a place called Dapper Dan’s. Frequently referred to as Dapper’s, it was located in the original Assembly Square Mall. Like most places on Thanksgiving Eve, Dapper Dan’s would be packed early and stay that way until closing. If you didn’t get into Dapper’s early on Thanksgiving eve, then you had to either wait in line or go somewhere else. Since most people travel home for Thanksgiving, that night would bring out the many people that you had not seen in years. Catching up with old friends and telling “war stories” was the best part of the night. It was a simple night of having a few drinks and heading home early.

In later years that simple night did not stay simple. We would still go to Dapper Dans, however we would not head home early. Just about when Johnny Carson was starting his monologue, we all got into someone’s car and headed for Boston. Almost always we would end up at “9 Landsdowne Street” or “The Metro”. Do you remember those nightclubs? Kay and Chips was the last stop before heading home. I would get home around 5a.m. The task then was to make it up the stairs and into bed. The aroma of my grandmother’s cooking filled the back hallway. We had a stove in our basement and that is where the turkey was cooking. I had just finished a full breakfast, but that smell always made me want to go down and just take one sample piece of the turkey. Remarkably, I was able to fight off that temptation. Thanksgiving Eve had become a night of staying out too late, having too many drinks and the thought of regret for the next day.

I really don’t remember when I stopped partying on Thanksgiving Eve. If I had to guess, it was probably around 1996 when Dapper Dan’s closed. I was about 34 years old at the time and I was entering a new phase in my life. I think the novelty of partying and staying out late had run its course. I really didn’t go out as often as I used to. When I did go out, I returned home in a much better condition than I would have 10 years before. I would take my own car so I could come and go as I please. Going out for breakfast was not only becoming the high point of the night, it was also happening much earlier in the night.

So now time has come around for me. My Thanksgiving Eve now consists of my kids helping me make pies and other desserts. I can still stay up late as there is no work the next day. I still watch holiday specials with my two young boys. I reflect on how I thought Thanksgiving was when I was their age and wonder if they think the same. I do keep in the back of my mind that like me, they won’t always be young boys. I hope when they do get to the age where they start going out with their friends (and especially on Thanksgiving Eve) that they do have a good time, but that they also use good judgment. I also hope they don’t spend too many Thanksgiving Days nursing a hangover like their ol’ man did.

Happy Thanksgiving All!