‘Blackout Wednesday’ Goes Dark With COVID-19 Bar Closures
Published Nov. 23, 2020
Last call is coming early – if at all – on one of the biggest bar party days of the year in the USA.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions and protocols, bars and restaurants across the USA are either closed or closing early on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. In Philadelphia, last call is at 5 p.m., and in Los Angeles, bars and restaurants are not even allowed to open other than to provide take-out food.
That’s the case in cities all over the country. As a result, this holiday night is going to be as dry as day-old turkey.
Traditionally, this is one of the biggest party days of the year. Known as “Drinksgiving,” “Whacky Wednesday,” Blackout Wedneday” and a few other descriptive and clever names, it is a time of home town reunions, Indians and Pilgrims themed pub crawls and nightlife nirvana only seen during the week when New Year’s Eve or the Fourth of July falls on something other than a weekend.
Of course, it’s 2020.
The reason “Drinksgiving” is a such a big deal among partying singles is that they spend the rest of the four-day weekend with the family. It’s the only time to reunite with friends who have traveled back home. Or, it’s a chance to do something silly, such as to dress up like a turkey and go on a pub crawl.
It’s a tradition for singles as much as eating turkey and watching the Detroit Lions lose on Thanksgiving Day.
And it’s another social activity that has been canceled during the coronavirus pandemic. In fact, government officials are encouraging people not even to travel this weekend and are restricting them from going out whether they are at home or away.
Heck, even some sports traditions are affected by COVID-19; the Washington-Washington Stage college football game, known as the Apple Cup because of the state’s apple-producing prowess, has been canceled. Some traditional rivalries are not even being played on this weekend because of late scheduling of games, such as Michigan Ohio-State and USC-UCLA.
The Iron Bowl between Alabama and Auburn will take place on Saturday, albeit it with only about 25% of fans in the stands.
For many reasons, Turkey Day Weekend will be a real turkey in 2020.
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