As we all learned in Mrs. Negri's second grade Thanksgiving recital, the first Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1621 by black-hatted men with buckles on their shoes and women wearing kerchiefs and uncomfortably long woolen dresses, otherwise known as the Pilgrims. They sailed across the Atlantic on an old wooden ship named the Mayflower bringing little with them other than smallpox, hatred for the Church of England, and a shit-ton of beer.

They landed at Cape Cod, Massachusetts on November 11, 1620 after 65 days of sailing, being seasick, and presumably endless renditions of 99 bottles of beer on the wall. They were bitterly disappointed that Plymouth Rock was not nearly as kick-ass of a concert venue as the name implies, but figured it was as good of place as any to spend the winter burying their friends and family as they died of Indian Fever and boredom.

When summer arrived, an Abnaki Indian named Squanto swooped in like MacGyver to a Burmese village and taught the Pilgrims how to survive by tapping maple trees, planting crops, and disarming missile systems with a paper clip.

By the the time November rolled around again, the Pilgrims had much to celebrate. They had beaten the odds and survived, and also raised enough corn, pumpkins, and mashed potatoes to last them through the winter. In celebration they generously invited some of the local people whose land they would eventually seize to partake in their cornucopia of organic produce and turkey. And for three days they feasted and drank and watched the Detroit Lions lose.

This was the first Thanksgiving.

While history has taught us that our Pilgrim forefathers lived austere, hard-working, and god-fearing lives with little diversion for pleasure, the HOBO lifestyle resembles this in almost no way whatsoever. In order to celebrate this, we cordially invite you to:

HOBO Thanksgiving
May 30, 5:00 PM
3350 S 98th St.
Milwaukee, WI 53227

Yes, the HOBOs are having Thanksgiving in May to commemorate those who have taken part in the HOBO Pilgrimage known as Every Day in May. This is going to be both a festivity of gratitude for having such an outstanding group of friends as well as a house-warming party for ReRe and I in our new home in Milwaukee just a few short days after my 29th birthday.

For those who are interested in coming to town the night before HOBO T-Give, the weekend will begin on Friday, May 29th with a Brewers game vs. the Cincinnati Reds at 7:05 PM. You can join us for a Miller Park tailgate and a baseball game if you are interested. We have plenty of room to house HOBOs in our new bunk-house, so we can crash there after the game.

For those arriving on Saturday, we will plan on having the feast about 5 PM so we will have time to watch the Brewers game at 6. You may show up at anytime. We ask that you bring an appetizer, a side, or a dessert to pass. We plan on providing a full Thanksgiving dinner with a HOBO twist :) so you can use your imagination on what you'd like to bring.

After the dinner we will set up the backyard and the garage to watch the Brewers game, play flip-cup/cornhole, and hang out with our HOBOs that we haven't seen in so long. And again, there should be ample room for anyone that needs to spend the night.

Going from the Hobowl to the Fourth of July without a HOBO event is just too long. We plan on making this an annual springtime HOBO event. We miss you guys and it's time we got another chance to hang out with our HOBOs and enjoy the friendships we're so thankful for.

So plan on making the trip right now! Make sure you wear some loose-fitting pants. And let's celebrate May and HOBO, before the summer gets too crazy.