Thanksgiving

I got up around 3:30 AM on Thanksgiving for a bathroom break. It was raining hard here. But when I really got up for good (around 7:00) the rain had stopped. Judging from the many puddles, it had rained a long time. So, I went out and checked the gauge. I had just under an inch of rain in it! Lucky it had stayed above freezing overnight.

I made a pot of coffee and had a couple of cups. Then I turned on the TV to watch the Thanksgiving parade in downtown Detroit. I started cleaning the house (getting a jump on the weekend) and watched the parade every now and then.

I shaved and showered, got dressed and left for Jake and Carla’s about 1:10 PM (having taken a lot of flack for being late the last few times). So, naturally, I got there 20 minutes too early. When Carla opened the door, I volunteered to sit in the car, but she told me to get inside.

Shades of the old days, they had an eight-foot folding table set up in the living room! There was a fresh, free range 25 pound turkey tented in the oven and it smelled fantastic! The only problem was the heat.

Jeremy, Jyl, Joe and Riese showed up around 2:00 PM. They brought the desserts: a pumpkin tart, an Achatz berry pie (yes, the same family I recently wrote about), an apple pie and Jyl had made pumpkin ginger biscotti (without nuts, so Carla could eat it.

Even though Jake and Carla had done all the prep work the night before, they mostly spent the next two hours in the kitchen. Jeremy’s family and I spent our time in the family room, watching hilarious and sometimes touching reruns of “The Cosby Show.” The dog had fun, moving from petter to petter (is “petter” a word?) all day.

Remember the appetizer I was supposed to bring, but couldn’t figure out? Well, I’d even discussed it with my friend B___, who couldn’t figure it out either (mix the Brie with the olives and spread them on toasted baguette slices?). Well, it turned out the appetizer was just that! They sliced the Brie, the baguette and put them and the olives in a three-section tray and we ate them as is. I over-thought that one, I guess.

Finally, about 4:00 PM, dinner was ready. It consisted of the turkey (moist like you’d never believe a 25 pound turkey would be), mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes (done in Lu’s favorite style, mashed with pineapple), baked acorn squash, homemade cranberry sauce (accompanied by a can of the jellied stuff for the more traditional eaters), excellent gravy, cornbread dressing and whole green beans sautéed with wild mushrooms.

Knowing how little I can eat these days, I just took a small spoonful of each. But, I couldn’t help myself and went back for more of the turkey and gravy. I sat across from Riese, who did ample justice to a plateful of just mashed potatoes (she said she loves them) and the turkey. All that food doesn’t seem to make her fat, just tall!

We sat around the table and chatted after dinner, sated. The more we sat there, the more I realized just how full and how tired I was. Now, normally, I would have just taken a nap on their couch, but with this many people it would have been inconsiderate. So, I reluctantly made my goodbyes. Carla tried to give me some leftovers but, knowing how much I had to go, I declined (I’ll regret that). I missed dessert, but really shouldn’t have eaten it, anyway (although it looked fantastic!)

I drove home in a light rain, took care of some business and then treated the cats. I tried to take a nap, but only dozed. I dozed enough to be able to stay up until 1:30 AM, though!

Jake and Carla, always good to see you and thanks for an excellent meal! Jeremy, Jyl, Joe and Riese, it was good to see you all; we should do it more often! All in all, it was a GREAT Thanksgiving!!

Hope your Thanksgiving was as good as mine...