The Rickroll to End All Rickrolls

I was at my brother's house, enjoying a plate of bacon and swiss quiche and roasted ham, and watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. There was really no reason for me to watch or being interested in the parade, but it was something to do while chewing. (My family was always fond of watching the Disney Very Merry Christmas Parade, before us darn kids got old and started sleeping through the whole damn thing.)

Float by float, band by band, crappy kiddy act by crappy kiddy act, everyone went by with little differentiation between them. Then came a float for Cartoon Network's Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends. I'd never heard of the show, and it looked silly only with respect to the fact that the blue dude hanging out the window looked like a penis and we'd just made a penis joke. (This is my family, after all.)

Then suddenly, the music cuts out. And in its place, a very familiar beat -- accompanied by a rather striking man in a black overcoat with a disarmingly pleasing baritone.

My parents responded with mild surprise, followed by several affirmations that they loved that song. My brother and his wife just kinda watched with blank stare.

I was laughing my ass off and trying to suppress it.

Because I could have tried to explain, but that would have been futile at best.

Instead, I took out my cell phone, picked out as many people as I could think would appreciate it, and sent out the following succinct, direct, and extremely gratifying message:

OMG RICK ASTLEY RICKROLLED THE MACY'S THANKSGIVING DAY PARADE ROFL!

This Thanksgiving, I was thankful for Rick -- and for his astonishing sense of humor and willingness to take part in such awesome. And, tangentially, to Eleanor and Caitlin, for appreciating it to precisely the level that I'd wished someone would have.