I’m subjecting myself to watching the Keanu Reeves abomination called “The Day the Earth Stood Still.” Malthusian horseshit.
2.
debit
I had dinner with my parents, and was called upon to do tech support on my dad’s computer. I am now home, and having a medicinal Bailey’s before starting the cheesecake for my dinner with my kids tomorrow. Also too, I forgot to take the turkey breast out of the freezer until just now. Ooops.
ETA: Chloe almost didn’t make it home with me. My dad loves that dog and the feeling is mutual.
3.
General Stuck
Just bathed the dog and cleaned the apt, talked to pappy back east on the phone, along with a 17 year old niece I hadn’t talked to since she was about 8, which was kind of weird.
And now trying to batten down the hatches to my leaky apt. because it is going to get down to around 12 or 14 degrees tonight. Good night to finish watching Doc Zhivago.
And make a yeoman effort to forget the existence of Sarah Palin, whose voice is like a virus that lives in the brain for hours after hearing it.
I am now home, and having a medicinal Bailey’s before starting the cheesecake for my dinner with my kids tomorrow.
That’s what is missing for me. A drink.
6.
Joseph Nobles
I’m at my parents’ house, listening to their latest pair of dogs (beagles) bay at the neighbors. One is digging up a small tree, it looks like. After the moles, says Mom. I’m about to work up the ability to get a slice of pumpkin cheesecake.
Food hasn’t finished being prepped here yet. That will also be of service. Turkey, ham, mashed yams, cornbread dressing, green bean casserole. Dessert of two kinds of pie and whiskey-soaked apples with vanilla ice cream. I am with friends as opposed to family, which lightens the tension of the day considerably.
9.
General Stuck
And now all the thanksgiving gives way to reality in the mighty US of A.
If you are as bored as I am with the nearly 20 years of political blather about gays in the military, you’ve probably stopped reading already, assuming you started at all. But in all that I have read — before I stopped reading myself — and heard on the matter, I have never encountered my eminently sensible proposal, one that protects the patriotic urges of some homosexuals as well as the national interest on the basis of “force readiness” arguments which should govern the thinking of those charged with implementing the defense of our country: Lesbians should be allowed to serve, gay men (hereafter “gays”) should not.
Exceptions to every generalization I posit abound, but I don’t think I’m enlightening many of you when I assert that men by nature are more promiscuous than women. (You’ve noticed that, too, huh?) This is overwhelmingly true whether those men and women are straight or gay. Our instincts were designed by Parent Nature at a time when early humans were not the predators, but the prey, and our remote ancestors were still trying to avoid extinction and establish a permanent presence on this planet. It fell to men to swing through the trees and scour the caves in search of as many women as possible to subdue and impregnate — a tough job but someone had to do it. Women had to be more selective because, then as now, the principal consequences of copulation were theirs: pregnancy; childbirth; most of the responsibilities of childrearing whilst their baby-daddy hunter-gatherers were about hunting and gathering and finding other women to subdue; and the ruination of their pulchritudinous figures. How our ancient foremothers ever managed to establish any choice in the matter is utterly beyond me when one considers that they did not have access to Mace, police whistles, Lady Smith .38s, or domestic violence hotlines.
Regardless, Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons lost the evolutionary crapshoot while Homo sapiens endured and multiplied. Dumb luck is probably as responsible for our survival as our larger brains and female selectivity, but these characteristics prevail still and apply equally regardless of sexual orientation. The associations and lifestyles of gays encourage these opposing natural forces. Lesbians do not face the same pressures as straight women to “put out” for men. They therefore tend to develop long-term, monogamous, stable, and even permanent relationships.
This has been your holiday lesson in wingnut natural selection, brought to you from the idiot branch on The Tree of Evolution.
And you thought we lived in a civilized country. Bwa ha ha
It fell to men to swing through the trees and scour the caves in search of as many women as possible to subdue and impregnate — a tough job but someone had to do it.
They stab it with their steely knives, but .. just .. can’t… kill the beast
10.
James E. Powell
I’m not due at my friend’s house until 5PM PST, so I am watching mostly football. Surfed by CSpan and saw Condoleeza Rice. I’m wondering, was there any member of the Bush/Cheney Junta who trashed his or her public reputation and adulation as much as Rice? Is there anyone who cares what she says?
11.
SiubhanDuinne
Just got home from dinner with the cousins I spend most holiday dinners with. They’re always nice about letting me bring guests, so this year I invited a professor visiting from Canada and his wife. They are delightful people and got on beautifully with my relatives. Now I’m home, with a huge container of leftover turkey, dressing, two kinds of potatoes, and two kinds of pie. I work tomorrow, but all the food places in my building will be closed, so I definitely know what I’m having for lunch! Can’t wait, it’s usually even better on day two. Hope you all had a splendid day.
Thanks — it’s a wonderful old house, I love it, and I’m very sorry to have to leave it —
30.
General Stuck
This is my home on the US/Canada border. I think in these days that that’s a good place to be:
I live near the Mexican border, where it is much warmer for a sudden escape, if it becomes necessary, but also more dangerous with the drug cartel/federali war going on. I may hold off making a run for it until the heavy artillery starts, on my current side of the border.
Dammit. It looked better when it was 17-0. C’mon Saints!
And BTW I’ve had this earworm stuck in my brain for awhile, and think of you when I listen to it. I wasn’t sure if you’d forgive me if I told you though. :)
35.
Lysana
@Janet: It is a very charming house. I can see why you’d hate to part with it.
36.
PurpleGirl
@Citizen_X: I played the video last night and this afternoon once my guest arrived. Ah, the memories.
37.
Cat Lady
My pecan pie turned out to be one of my best ever and I was asked to make two next time. Considering the fury and frustration with the current political environment I was operating under while I baked yesterday, if this Thanksgiving were like a scene from Like Water for Chocolate, after eating my pies we would have all locked arms 8 across singing the Internationale while marching to the nearest Bank of America to ransack the place, burn it to the ground and salt the earth where it smoldered.
Instead, I watched the Patriots win on a full stomach surrounded by loved ones, and then listened to Alice’s Restaurant, and realized that I’m very thankful for everything that I have, and just wish everyone would stop being such fucking greedy assholes. Sigh.
ETA: and Lysana got there first, but there is no such thing as too much Arlo, only not enough Arlo.
I’m not interested in living anywhere in the US where I can’t cross an international border in 20 minutes.
39.
JAHILL10
Finished eating with the hubby. It was a winter veggie type of Thanksgiving with rutabaga, sweet potatoes and fresh green beans (okay, maybe not the green beans) and pumpkin pie made from a pumpkin we actually saw. Gave turkey tidbits to the puppy and the old kitty and am now enjoying a glass of white wine before tackling the turkey carcass.
Yup, way colder than usual, but I live at 6000 feet elevation, so that is why, and about 70 miles from the border, as the crow fly’s. Just to the west in Tucson, it is going to be 31 degrees tonight. Pretty chilly for them.
edit – out here in the wide open spaces, 70 miles is a puddle jump.
@South of I-10: Yea, the last street before the state park. We’ve been able to take the dogs down to the beach every day even thought they have heavy duty resident pooch laws. Fuck em if they can’t take a joke.
@General Stuck: Aha! I’ve spent a good bit of time there over the years. The Catalina’s are wonderful.
43.
BethanyAnne
Mom and I went to a seafood restaurant’s buffet. I had fried shrimp, and she had the traditional stuffs. Pretty effortless way to enjoy a meal, especially since it was going to be just the 2 of us. Now I’m back in Azeroth, grooving on the new Forsaken leveling experience.
44.
Yutsano
@JAHILL10: Just because it will drive me insane until I know for sure: did you delete your comment two threads down earlier? Or did WP eated it?
Had a Thanksgiving emergency; when I picked up our meal at the gourmet deli yesterday, silly me thought “herb roasted turkey breast” meant it had been roasted, with herbs.
Turns out, not so. However, it had one of those popout thingies, so it turned out quite well.
And the low sugar glug went over like gangbusters! Here’s the recipe:
One bottle glug wine, with umlaut (has spices in it)
One bottle dry red
One quartered orange
One quartered apple
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup raisins
Brew in crockpot for 4 hours, and enjoy in moderation. Unless you aren’t going anywhere.
It’s not just me, either. Every summer that I’ve lived here, people who’ve lived in the house in years past have come back to visit it, usually bringing their grandchildren to show the house to them.
Their visits are great for me, because I learn interesting (and sometimes very useful) things about the house and its history.
I’ve lived in a fair number of houses and this is the one I’ve loved best.
47.
JAHILL10
@Yutsano: I deleted it because I couldn’t get the link to work properly. I really wanted to share that video too!
48.
Yutsano
@JAHILL10: Okay, I wasn’t losing my gourd then. The FYWP is still quite appropriate though.
@SiubhanDuinne: Or just a case of Fat Finger Syndrome. However if the Cowboys end up getting ahead it may yet become appropriate.
49.
SiubhanDuinne
@Yutsano #34:
@South of I-10: :: pees at score ::
That seems unnecessarily aggressive.
50.
JAHILL10
@Yutsano: Yeah, some day when I am not quite as relaxed as I am now I’ll have to figure out how to work this frickin’ thing.
But if A. RIckman fans can’t wait til I do figure it out, go google Rickman In Tango and click on the video that’s loaded into MySpace. You won’t be sorry…
51.
Hal
My gravy turned out excellent! Potatoes were good but I forgot to salt the damn water, so it was a little bland, which was solved by the gravy. Greens, mac and cheese and vodka tonic. Not bad. But, my sister bought a turkey at the last minute, it was only 4.50! Great deal, right? There’s hardly any damn meat on the bird. I went to cut into the lusciously brown breast, and immediately hit bone. But it’s only three of us, and the Rat Terrier, whose been looking forlornly at the bird all afternoon; so not so bad.
52.
S. cerevisiae
Just woke up from my post-carb nap. Turkey and wild rice stuffing (with real Ojibwe rice from MN) can have that effect. Or it could be the Figgy Pudding.
53.
Yutsano
@SiubhanDuinne: Or just a case of Fat Finger Syndrome. However if the Cowboys end up getting ahead it may yet become appropriate.
@Hal: Low flesh bird = GREAT soup bird. Simmer that carcass until it disintegrates and the meat tastes like cardboard, then throw the solids out. You’ll have great easy to freeze turkey stock for months.
Made dinner for my very pregnant daughter, her husband and sister. Then took dinner to my son and his wife who just brought their new twin daughters home today. Much to be thankful for. (Also happy that crazy puppy never managed to steal food from the counter, even though she put on a good show). Now home listening to the rain , having a drink and watching Buffy.
56.
mr. whipple
F Dallas.
That is all.
57.
Zifnab25
As an avid football watcher and loyal Longhorn, I would like to add
Thanksgiving for me is happening tomorrow at the neighbors; I’m doing food prep tonight for the two dishes I’m contributing. Got the onions chopped for the rice pilaf, and am currently reducing the cherries for the oatmeal crisp. May or may not carmelize the onions and roast the mushrooms tonight. It’s nice to start the day before, know I have all tomorrow morning to cook, and not be frantically trying to do everything at once in a tiny galley kitchen.
I will also spend some quality time this long weekend packing for my long-awaited “Nearly a Whole Damn Month in Australia and New Zealand” trip. I hauled out the luggage, which freaked the cats out good and proper, and I haven’t even started tossing clothes into the bags yet. December is going to be a strange time for the kitties: Mom vanishes, and three different sets of people take overlapping turns house-and-cat-sitting.
@J.: Yea, you and the other 25 people that will get the game. Fuck the NFL network!
64.
MikeJ
@jeffreyw: Did you duck the tur yourself or buy it pre-kin’ed?
65.
South of I-10
@Yutsano: I think that is pretty damn funny, although I have never heard the song before. I have “Lafayette” by Lucinda Williams stuck in my head. A friend in for Thanksgiving was telling me she listens to it on her way home for the holidays every year. Apparently there is no youtube for it? Who knew?
66.
Yutsano
@CaseyL: I shall haz a mad jealous. And if TattooSydney hasn’t offered to treat you to dinner out yet I might have a chat with him. It’s not often a BJer gets to his side of the planet.
@South of I-10: The whole gal from Tennessee doing mock zydeco thingie kinda gives my brain a minor short circuit. But I have a bizarre crush on Dolly too, so it sort of smoothes things over.
67.
quaint irene
building will be closed, so I definitely know what I’m having for lunch! Can’t wait, it’s usually even better on day two
Forget Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving should officially be Sandwich Day!
My oven is on the fritz. Figuring it’d be hard to get a repairman right before turkey day, I bought some turkey cutlets as well as the bird of honor. So today I made turkey schnitzel. Quite tasty with a cranberry-wine-butter sauce.
My dog Kate had a quick vet visit last week. In the waiting room one of the tech’s was telling another owner that you ‘shouldn’t feed your dog turkey. They can’t digest it.” We all looked at each other like…;Whaaa?”
I’m sorry. Not giving your dog little turkey snacks on Thanksgiving? That’s just damn sacriligous!
The Beaujolais Nouveau is really good this year. Quite jammy.
68.
South of I-10
@stuckinred: I want to go back there. We went a couple of years ago with another couple and their kids. We rented a house on the beach and had a fantastic time. The kids would rock all day and they would just drop at night, they would be so tired, leaving plenty of time for us to sit on the deck and drink margaritas. :)
@quaint irene:
When Black Friday comes
I’m gonna dig myself a hole
Gonna lay down in it ’til
I satisfy my soul
Gonna let the world pass by me
The Archbishop’s gonna sanctify me
And if he don’t come across
I’m gonna let it roll
When Black Friday comes
I’m gonna stake my claim
I’ll guess I’ll change my name
@MikeJ: Bought it from Cajungrocer.com, outta Louisiana. Came frozen, already prepared. No way I’m doing that myself.
71.
SIA
A very sane turkey day here. Mr Screaming cooked the turkey Tuesday and the pumpkin pie last night, and we brought everything else over to an undisclosed location in AL. In 45 mins I made mashed potatoes, sauteed zuchini, and dressing from a whole foods bag (cringing as I wait for the blowback from the foodies). Overate just the right amount then stared at the lake through a carb torpor. Visited with siblings via text (we’re so much friendlier that way!), snuck some turkey to the dogs, and now watching DVDs. Tough life. Thank you Great Goddess and Flying Spaghetti Monster.
@South of I-10: It’s sooo family friendly. Even though we don’t have kids there is something nice about watching all of the families enjoying themselves. There is really nothing that compares with this on the west coast where things are so insanely expensive.
We always do Thanksgiving on Saturday to accommodate the in-laws…there are a lot of us.
So I’m back from some old friends’ house, basking in the quiet warmth of a new green furnace, dogs are settled, drink in hand, grateful for my health, family and friends and job, most of all.
And a hearty thanks to the best blog in the land!
76.
Yutsano
@Svensker: Uh-oh. RedKitten is gonna haz words with you now. At least you didn’t say anything disparaging about Sidney. Then life would get ugly.
77.
South of I-10
@jeffreyw: Totally got you hooked, huh? I am lucky, I can go down the street and get this stuff. :)
@stuckinred: Ha! Don’t clean fish either, but if you send me some frozen fillets I’ll send you some pictures. LOL
79.
SIA
So I’m back from some old friends’ house, basking in the quiet warmth of a new green furnace, dogs are settled, drink in hand, grateful for my health, family and friends and job, most of all.
Good thoughts. Having a country teetering on the verge of the precipice really sharpens one’s focus on what’s of value.
@South of I-10: The turducken was one component of a 60 pound package they delivered last week. Mmm…andouille, if it wasn’t turkey time I’d be looking at some red beans and rice. And yeah, stuckinred, I had em throw in some of Camellia’s red beans.
Back from American resto in Toronto, stuffed with turkey, wild rice (ugh, sorry hate that stuff), sweet potatoes, pumpkin cake and delicious wine, topped off with Ontario ice wine, which is just yum. Maybe not the States, but they do the Thanksgiving day daze here very well.
85.
South of I-10
@jeffreyw: The Camellia’s really are superior. I got a ham bone to cook with my Camellia black eyed peas, they were awesome!
86.
SiubhanDuinne
@Yutsano #53:
Or just a case of Fat Finger Syndrome.
I figured as much, and normally I wouldn’t have said a word. But some typos are just too perfect.
I’m in Uruguay, South America in the lobby of a hotel listening to “Achy Breaky Heart” on Montevideo pop station. Damn you Americans for exporting that song.
On day 5 of a 10 day trip through Argentina, Uruguay and a quick excursion into Brazil.
Thanksgiving (Part Deux since I’m Canadian) consisted of a juicy locally grown steak, papas (french fries) and a beer.
88.
SIA
@SiubhanDuinne: Mmmm. LOVE leftovers. Surprised you have to work tomorrow! Don’t they know Thurs AND Fri is a murrikan holiday?
89.
General Stuck
To make up for my earlier unfortunate Daily Caller comment
@Svensker: Anne Shirley is from up RedKitten’s way IIRC. As is Saint Sidney. Though I don’t recall if she moved to New Brunswick, so we could both be correct here. I’mma gonna go make cookies now.
91.
SiubhanDuinne
@KyCole #55:
Wonderful news about all the new additions to your family! Congratulations and an extra-happy Thanksgiving.
@South of I-10: I eat them almost weekly since our friends who live half-time in the Quarter bring em up regularly. I use smoked turkey necks.
93.
SiubhanDuinne
@General Stuck #85: Thanks for Charlie! All is forgiven.
@SIA: Well, I get Canada Day and Boxing Day off which most Murricans don’t, so it all works out. And actually, it’s usually a great opportunity to do a lot of sorting and tossing and generally getting organised before Crazy December.
94.
South of I-10
@stuckinred: I usually use Tasso, but the ham bone worked out great. I sauteed some onion, bell pepper and garlic, ham bone and 2 lbs of peas. I probably could have done 4, there was so much meat on the ham bone.
95.
Dream On
Can’t help but wonder as I munch on scones and Pumpkin pudding while the Thanksgiving Ham slowly glazes, whether some very very unfortunate temp worker is about to get trampled to death by determined shoppers a few hours from now on Black Friday.
@South of I-10: The word from the millions of Cajun and Creole cookbooks I have is that it’s the marrow that is crucial. I make my own turkey tasso on the water smoker. Don’t mess with no swine.
No, I’m not Anne Shirley! Does she have a nice house? (Please pass this Facebook link along if you know anyone who might be interested in living on the border.)
98.
jwb
@Zifnab25: On the other hand, if they win tonight, we’ll have to watch this team play another game, whereas if they lose, they are done for the season.
@South of I-10: I have some tasso, part of the latest care package. No all that familiar with it but it seems to be more for flavor than substance. Any hints?
David Broder is insane. One race in a state of only 700,000 people won by a bring-home-the-bacon incumbent (who narrowly lost in a low-turnout primary) and boilerplate heal-the-breach rhetoric, proves to Broder that “bipartisanship” – no matter how absurd it is in today’s world of strong differences – is what the entire country wants.
@jeffreyw: It’s a seasoning meat. Goes great in gumbo or jambalaya chopped in small pieces and sauteed with the holy trinity.
102.
Phyllis
Watching The This Old House Hour and polishing off a bowl of Blue Bell Spiced Pumpkin Pecan ice cream. If you don’t have access to Blue Bell ice cream where you are, well, more for me!
Just got home from a very nice Thanksgiving dinner with good friends at a restaurant here in OC that does Thanksgiving well. Getting ready to pack for tomorrow’s trip to Portland (a friend arranged tickets for the Duke-Oregon basketball game for us). After that I have a few hours of work to do, so that it’s not hanging over my head all weekend. And after that, a stern lecture to my hotheaded DFH kid about the necessity of keeping his temper under control no matter how stupid the TSA is.
And after that, a stern lecture to my hotheaded DFH kid about the necessity of keeping his temper under control no matter how stupid the TSA is.
Heh. Family tradition or did he get an extra helping o’ the Irish temper?
106.
South of I-10
@jeffreyw: I think that is correct. It is wonderful for seasoning. In black eyed peas or green beans I cut it into very small pieces and cook it down. Gives great flavor.
Off of our current topic, but my husband just told Little South she could stay up late if she helps fold clothes. It’s not real pretty, but I am liking this help folding clothes! She is doing the towels.
107.
BGK
Since my family has atrophied, and no one ever takes turkey leftovers home and I get stuck with the neverending carcass, I make a pork roast instead. About 2.5 hours in a 200F convection oven, then a quick blast for 10-15 minutes at 500 to brown the outside and get it to a 160 internal temperature. For some reason this time, the last 20 degrees from 140 to 160 took 45 minutes…forcing me to partake of a second bottle of sparkling wine to tide me over. It didn’t adversely affect my cooking ability, but I did find I had to concentrate rather more on serving the food than in past years.
Side dishes were cornbread-sausage stuffing, acorn squash glazed with maple syrup and brown sugar, brussels sprouts with bacon, cranberries, and homemade bread. Dessert was bread pudding with creme anglaise and butterscotch.
My mother loves spoiling her “grandcats,” so the mooching carnivores probably ate as much as I did.
@burnspbesq: Your presence and example will help a lot there. As long as it’s clear the TSA agent is just doing his job I bet you could pull him back in the rest of the way.
The words “Dude, that’s enough,” when delivered in a certain tone of voice, have historically worked very well.
112.
Yutsano
@burnspbesq: There are parents all over the country who are dying to know your secret. Hell I bet you even amaze some of the people in line with you. Controlling a 16 year old is notoriously difficult even under the best of circumstances.
113.
Phyllis
@BGK: I love both photos, but that second one is classic. As if he’s saying “Why? Why must you always throw the underwear on my head?”
I have a very big hammer. He’s on track to get his driver’s license in February. I can always change my mind about getting a car for his use. And he knows that.
115.
SiubhanDuinne
@Quiddity #100:
You know, I could almost forgive Broder* his hackish ways, pitiful lack of insight, and slavish allegiance to that will-o’-the-wisp Bipartisanship, if only he were a halfway decent writer. If he occasionally turned a graceful phrase, or had a little fun with the English language now and then, then I might at least be able to read his wretched column once in a while.
which country eats the most turkeys per capita in the world?
I admit I googled, and the answer is just …. odd…
Are turkeys extra special kosher or something?
120.
jwb
@SiubhanDuinne: What I don’t get is that Broder is not just a hack, but also is not and has never been smart, politically astute or even a decent writer; yet there he is. As far as I know his family is neither wealthy nor well-connected; yet there he is. Does anyone have a clue what his secret is?
“Nearly a Whole Damn Month in Australia and New Zealand”
If you need a tourguide or a friendly face in Sydney, just let me know…
122.
sherifffruitfly
Am I the only person who has “Godfather Addiction”? Whenever it’s on – and they typically show them both back to back – I can’t help but watch it.
AND HOW BOUT THEM COWBOYS!!!!!
oh wai…..
123.
Morbo
Only one beer and one bottle of wine that I brought to Thanksgiving were consumed. This is good news for -John McCain- me.
124.
suzanne
My husband and I spent the afternoon with his best friend and his wife, and their families. My ex-husband has my munchkin this year, and my mom decided to go visit her sister in New York, so we had a low-stress, low-cooking holiday… just in time for the coldest Thanksgiving Phoenix has experienced in, like, fifty years. It’s gonna be 25 degrees tonight.
I made stuffing for the first time. It turned out pretty well, but my mom makes better. I have a feeling there wasn’t enough wine in it. Ah well.
125.
South of I-10
@BGK: Too cute! I had to pitch a kitty off the clean clothes before we could fold them.
126.
Yutsano
@Tattoosydney: I got it wrong as well, and I didn’t go for any of the obvious answers like the US or Canada. Only thing I can think of is that they’re easy to kill via kosher rules. Maybe Emily Hauser can shed some light on this subject if she shows up.
And I really should have made rugelach dammit.
127.
MikeJ
@Yutsano: My guess was that they start off with the same turkey ratio as the US but everyplace we put ham or bacon they wind up with turkey. In Israel a DA can get an indictment against a turkey sandwich.
128.
Yutsano
@MikeJ: Even under strict Orthodox kashrut rules though you’re not supposed to eat turkey bacon. There’s a restriction in the Talmud (I think) that says that even appearing to eat something trefe, even if it is strictly kosher, is still not allowed. Having said that, the only other rationale is that turkeys are easy and fast to raise. I dunno though.
129.
Currants
@Janet: Small world, if you’re friends with Emily McGraime!? She was in my daughter’s wedding this past summer.
130.
Admiral_Komack
How ’bout them Cowboys!
131.
andy
One of my facebook peeps created an event called Thanksgiving Leftovers for all of us who are unattached or usually hate the Holidays to get together. It was fun. I brought a couple of crostatas I made and some beer. It was fun, though I got called in to work. Hopefully there’s still a little party left when I go back.
132.
motampa
I Love this site. Happy Thanskgiving all! Glad Dallas lost. I hate that team (they screwed my Vikings in the eighties and I cannot stand their smug owner. Also, I very much dislike the State of Texas and their screwed up Governor.
Roasted Cornish hen, stuffing, and asparagus cooked perfectly. Yeah, I’m a happy duck right now.
135.
S. cerevisiae
@Svensker: Have you tried the real Ojibwe wild rice (manoomin), hand harvested from a river or lake? The black crap you see in the stores and get in restaurants is paddy rice and it tastes like gravel. If you paid less than six to eight bucks per pound then you got paddy rice.
I don’t know, probably the cheap stuff. Tastes like musty dirt and too chewy (because I want to get it down quick and not savor it). Maybe I should look for the good wild rice — the idea of it seems so great.
137.
Yutsano
The guest drawing by Bill Amend got me to peek over at xkcd and see what the other guests were up to. It brought me to this gem which had me laughing like mad.
138.
S. cerevisiae
@Svensker: Yeah, you can boil that paddy rice till doomsday and it will never puff up like the real stuff will. The real stuff has a nutty flavor and is never chewy.
Edited to add: If you can get to a pow-wow in the Great Lakes region you should be able to get some of the real stuff (and maybe some in moose meat soup).
139.
Jane2
@Janet: We Canuckians can always celebrate 2 Thanksgivings! That’s a great photo.
@Jane2: I compared our Thanksgiving with yours with a good friend of mine from Burnaby. The meals aren’t all that different, it’s just the traditions and the reasons behind the holiday that mark the distinction. That and yours is a month earlier. :)
142.
MikeJ
@Yutsano: And the human sacrifice. Other than that they’re pretty similar.
If anyone is curious how Obama has failed me lately: I have to work tomorrow, and he had direct control of that happening or not. So there.
144.
cathaireverywhere
@BGK: your short haired kitteh looks just like my Max, may he rest in peace. Give her extra hugs from me- I miss my Max, even after 17 years. He used to fetch balls and bring them to me and was just an all-around cool cat.
@Yutsano: I’ve been on a Dolly kick lately. Very weird.
146.
Yutsano
@asiangrrlMN: I’ve been earworming on random lately. There seems to be little rhyme or reason to what I feel like hearing. I’m just gonna label it a minor insanity and focus on getting to the weekend.
PS: FH #1 has been lurking around somewhat. I bet he’s busy squeeing cuz a BJer s headed to his side of the planet.
@Yutsano: I saw he dropped in! And, I envy Casey L for traveling to the land of Oz. You and me, we will get there one day. I’m eating lunch now. Chicken and dumpling soup.
Lysana
I’m subjecting myself to watching the Keanu Reeves abomination called “The Day the Earth Stood Still.” Malthusian horseshit.
debit
I had dinner with my parents, and was called upon to do tech support on my dad’s computer. I am now home, and having a medicinal Bailey’s before starting the cheesecake for my dinner with my kids tomorrow. Also too, I forgot to take the turkey breast out of the freezer until just now. Ooops.
ETA: Chloe almost didn’t make it home with me. My dad loves that dog and the feeling is mutual.
General Stuck
Just bathed the dog and cleaned the apt, talked to pappy back east on the phone, along with a 17 year old niece I hadn’t talked to since she was about 8, which was kind of weird.
And now trying to batten down the hatches to my leaky apt. because it is going to get down to around 12 or 14 degrees tonight. Good night to finish watching Doc Zhivago.
And make a yeoman effort to forget the existence of Sarah Palin, whose voice is like a virus that lives in the brain for hours after hearing it.
monkeyboy
Thanksgiving is basically a Harvest Festival.
I’ve heard that pot growers have really great celebrations. How can I get on an invite list?
Lysana
@debit:
That’s what is missing for me. A drink.
Joseph Nobles
I’m at my parents’ house, listening to their latest pair of dogs (beagles) bay at the neighbors. One is digging up a small tree, it looks like. After the moles, says Mom. I’m about to work up the ability to get a slice of pumpkin cheesecake.
debit
@Lysana: ::pours you a glass::
I almost decided not to hit the liquor store last night. I’m glad I thought better of it.
Lysana
@debit:
Slainte!
Food hasn’t finished being prepped here yet. That will also be of service. Turkey, ham, mashed yams, cornbread dressing, green bean casserole. Dessert of two kinds of pie and whiskey-soaked apples with vanilla ice cream. I am with friends as opposed to family, which lightens the tension of the day considerably.
General Stuck
And now all the thanksgiving gives way to reality in the mighty US of A.
Judge Joe, and his “patriotic urges”
This has been your holiday lesson in wingnut natural selection, brought to you from the idiot branch on The Tree of Evolution.
And you thought we lived in a civilized country. Bwa ha ha
It fell to men to swing through the trees and scour the caves in search of as many women as possible to subdue and impregnate — a tough job but someone had to do it.
They stab it with their steely knives, but .. just .. can’t… kill the beast
James E. Powell
I’m not due at my friend’s house until 5PM PST, so I am watching mostly football. Surfed by CSpan and saw Condoleeza Rice. I’m wondering, was there any member of the Bush/Cheney Junta who trashed his or her public reputation and adulation as much as Rice? Is there anyone who cares what she says?
SiubhanDuinne
Just got home from dinner with the cousins I spend most holiday dinners with. They’re always nice about letting me bring guests, so this year I invited a professor visiting from Canada and his wife. They are delightful people and got on beautifully with my relatives. Now I’m home, with a huge container of leftover turkey, dressing, two kinds of potatoes, and two kinds of pie. I work tomorrow, but all the food places in my building will be closed, so I definitely know what I’m having for lunch! Can’t wait, it’s usually even better on day two. Hope you all had a splendid day.
stuckinred
@SiubhanDuinne: It’s nice down here on the Emerald Coast.
South of I-10
Evening y’all! Because I wasn’t quite stuffed enough, I’m having coffee and pecan pie. Are my Saints trying to screw this up?
gbear
Checked in, saw General Struck’s post. Checking out. Fuck it all.
Citizen_X
Well, this is party of my holiday tradition, anyway: a Thanksgiving prayer from America’s greatest gay junkie poet. And I mean it sincerely.
And that’s a fellow with a thousand times more guts than whatever idiot wrote that crap that General Stuck pasted, above.
Lysana
Don’t know if someone’s posted this here yet, but there’s another Thanksgiving tradition that can’t be beat.
Janet
I’m mostly a lurker, seldom a commenter and I’m not sure if this is OK to do — I guess moderation will decide —
This is my home on the US/Canada border. I think in these days that that’s a good place to be:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=175475682477872&set=a.173793575979416.45731.165974330094674#!/pages/Home-in-New-Brunswick-Canada/165974330094674
Please pass the Facebook link along to anyone who might be interested — Thanks!
(And my apologies if this comment isn’t comme il faut…)
stuckinred
@Lysana: “What’r ya in for kid?”
South of I-10
@stuckinred: I think you said in an earlier thread that you are in Seagrove? That is such a beautiful place.
General Stuck
@Janet:
I love old homes like this, and yours is beautiful, and looks cozy with lots of character. And the furniture just makes it more so.
stuckinred
@Janet: Is it for sale?
Lysana
@stuckinred: “Kid, have you ever been arrested?”
Linda Featheringill
@Lysana:
Alice:
Absolutely. Not Thanksgiving in Cleveland without it.
Do you have to be DFH to enjoy this masterpiece, or do conservatives like it too?
John, did you enjoy listening to Alice before you saw the light?
SiubhanDuinne
@stuckinred: So a more accurate handle for you at the moment would be stuckingreen?
It’s mild and misty here but supposed to turn cold and nasty tomorrow.
@General Stuck: That . . . that . . . I don’t even know what to call that dreadful piece of drivel. Even for Fucker Carlson’s rag. Just appalling.
:: shakes fist ::
*Why did you make me read that, General Stuck? WHY?*
Polish the Guillotines
I’m thankful for 2oz of gin, 3/4oz fresh lime juice, 1/2oz simple syrup. Shake, strain into a cocktail glass, enjoy.
stuckinred
@Lysana: “I wanna kill”
Tom Hilton
Thanksgiving is a sham. Happily, it’s a sham with yams.
stuckinred
@SiubhanDuinne: I wish I was stuck here!
Janet
@General Stuck:
Thanks — it’s a wonderful old house, I love it, and I’m very sorry to have to leave it —
General Stuck
I live near the Mexican border, where it is much warmer for a sudden escape, if it becomes necessary, but also more dangerous with the drug cartel/federali war going on. I may hold off making a run for it until the heavy artillery starts, on my current side of the border.
General Stuck
@SiubhanDuinne:
Because I’m evil, of course. :)
Janet
@stuckinred:
Hi,
Yes it is.
If you go to the top post (with the map) it gives specifics.
stuckinred
@General Stuck: You live near the Mexican border and it’s going to be “12 or 14 degrees”?
Yutsano
@South of I-10: :: pees at score ::
Dammit. It looked better when it was 17-0. C’mon Saints!
And BTW I’ve had this earworm stuck in my brain for awhile, and think of you when I listen to it. I wasn’t sure if you’d forgive me if I told you though. :)
Lysana
@Janet: It is a very charming house. I can see why you’d hate to part with it.
PurpleGirl
@Citizen_X: I played the video last night and this afternoon once my guest arrived. Ah, the memories.
Cat Lady
My pecan pie turned out to be one of my best ever and I was asked to make two next time. Considering the fury and frustration with the current political environment I was operating under while I baked yesterday, if this Thanksgiving were like a scene from Like Water for Chocolate, after eating my pies we would have all locked arms 8 across singing the Internationale while marching to the nearest Bank of America to ransack the place, burn it to the ground and salt the earth where it smoldered.
Instead, I watched the Patriots win on a full stomach surrounded by loved ones, and then listened to Alice’s Restaurant, and realized that I’m very thankful for everything that I have, and just wish everyone would stop being such fucking greedy assholes. Sigh.
ETA: and Lysana got there first, but there is no such thing as too much Arlo, only not enough Arlo.
Janet
@General Stuck:
I’m not interested in living anywhere in the US where I can’t cross an international border in 20 minutes.
JAHILL10
Finished eating with the hubby. It was a winter veggie type of Thanksgiving with rutabaga, sweet potatoes and fresh green beans (okay, maybe not the green beans) and pumpkin pie made from a pumpkin we actually saw. Gave turkey tidbits to the puppy and the old kitty and am now enjoying a glass of white wine before tackling the turkey carcass.
General Stuck
@stuckinred:
Yup, way colder than usual, but I live at 6000 feet elevation, so that is why, and about 70 miles from the border, as the crow fly’s. Just to the west in Tucson, it is going to be 31 degrees tonight. Pretty chilly for them.
edit – out here in the wide open spaces, 70 miles is a puddle jump.
stuckinred
@South of I-10: Yea, the last street before the state park. We’ve been able to take the dogs down to the beach every day even thought they have heavy duty resident pooch laws. Fuck em if they can’t take a joke.
stuckinred
@General Stuck: Aha! I’ve spent a good bit of time there over the years. The Catalina’s are wonderful.
BethanyAnne
Mom and I went to a seafood restaurant’s buffet. I had fried shrimp, and she had the traditional stuffs. Pretty effortless way to enjoy a meal, especially since it was going to be just the 2 of us. Now I’m back in Azeroth, grooving on the new Forsaken leveling experience.
Yutsano
@JAHILL10: Just because it will drive me insane until I know for sure: did you delete your comment two threads down earlier? Or did WP eated it?
WereBear
Had a Thanksgiving emergency; when I picked up our meal at the gourmet deli yesterday, silly me thought “herb roasted turkey breast” meant it had been roasted, with herbs.
Turns out, not so. However, it had one of those popout thingies, so it turned out quite well.
And the low sugar glug went over like gangbusters! Here’s the recipe:
One bottle glug wine, with umlaut (has spices in it)
One bottle dry red
One quartered orange
One quartered apple
1/2 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup raisins
Brew in crockpot for 4 hours, and enjoy in moderation. Unless you aren’t going anywhere.
Happy Thanksgiving to all.
Janet
@Lysana:
It’s not just me, either. Every summer that I’ve lived here, people who’ve lived in the house in years past have come back to visit it, usually bringing their grandchildren to show the house to them.
Their visits are great for me, because I learn interesting (and sometimes very useful) things about the house and its history.
I’ve lived in a fair number of houses and this is the one I’ve loved best.
JAHILL10
@Yutsano: I deleted it because I couldn’t get the link to work properly. I really wanted to share that video too!
Yutsano
@JAHILL10: Okay, I wasn’t losing my gourd then. The FYWP is still quite appropriate though.
@SiubhanDuinne: Or just a case of Fat Finger Syndrome. However if the Cowboys end up getting ahead it may yet become appropriate.
SiubhanDuinne
@Yutsano #34:
That seems unnecessarily aggressive.
JAHILL10
@Yutsano: Yeah, some day when I am not quite as relaxed as I am now I’ll have to figure out how to work this frickin’ thing.
But if A. RIckman fans can’t wait til I do figure it out, go google Rickman In Tango and click on the video that’s loaded into MySpace. You won’t be sorry…
Hal
My gravy turned out excellent! Potatoes were good but I forgot to salt the damn water, so it was a little bland, which was solved by the gravy. Greens, mac and cheese and vodka tonic. Not bad. But, my sister bought a turkey at the last minute, it was only 4.50! Great deal, right? There’s hardly any damn meat on the bird. I went to cut into the lusciously brown breast, and immediately hit bone. But it’s only three of us, and the Rat Terrier, whose been looking forlornly at the bird all afternoon; so not so bad.
S. cerevisiae
Just woke up from my post-carb nap. Turkey and wild rice stuffing (with real Ojibwe rice from MN) can have that effect. Or it could be the Figgy Pudding.
Yutsano
@SiubhanDuinne: Or just a case of Fat Finger Syndrome. However if the Cowboys end up getting ahead it may yet become appropriate.
@Hal: Low flesh bird = GREAT soup bird. Simmer that carcass until it disintegrates and the meat tastes like cardboard, then throw the solids out. You’ll have great easy to freeze turkey stock for months.
stuckinred
@Yutsano: brown the carcass first.
KyCole
Made dinner for my very pregnant daughter, her husband and sister. Then took dinner to my son and his wife who just brought their new twin daughters home today. Much to be thankful for. (Also happy that crazy puppy never managed to steal food from the counter, even though she put on a good show). Now home listening to the rain , having a drink and watching Buffy.
mr. whipple
F Dallas.
That is all.
Zifnab25
As an avid football watcher and loyal Longhorn, I would like to add
GO HORNS!
jeffreyw
Happy Thanksgiving!
jeffreyw
Turducken!
stuckinred
@jeffreyw: You too bro.
J.
Dear Lord, please let the Jets win tonight. Amen.
CaseyL
Thanksgiving for me is happening tomorrow at the neighbors; I’m doing food prep tonight for the two dishes I’m contributing. Got the onions chopped for the rice pilaf, and am currently reducing the cherries for the oatmeal crisp. May or may not carmelize the onions and roast the mushrooms tonight. It’s nice to start the day before, know I have all tomorrow morning to cook, and not be frantically trying to do everything at once in a tiny galley kitchen.
I will also spend some quality time this long weekend packing for my long-awaited “Nearly a Whole Damn Month in Australia and New Zealand” trip. I hauled out the luggage, which freaked the cats out good and proper, and I haven’t even started tossing clothes into the bags yet. December is going to be a strange time for the kitties: Mom vanishes, and three different sets of people take overlapping turns house-and-cat-sitting.
stuckinred
@J.: Yea, you and the other 25 people that will get the game. Fuck the NFL network!
MikeJ
@jeffreyw: Did you duck the tur yourself or buy it pre-kin’ed?
South of I-10
@Yutsano: I think that is pretty damn funny, although I have never heard the song before. I have “Lafayette” by Lucinda Williams stuck in my head. A friend in for Thanksgiving was telling me she listens to it on her way home for the holidays every year. Apparently there is no youtube for it? Who knew?
Yutsano
@CaseyL: I shall haz a mad jealous. And if TattooSydney hasn’t offered to treat you to dinner out yet I might have a chat with him. It’s not often a BJer gets to his side of the planet.
@South of I-10: The whole gal from Tennessee doing mock zydeco thingie kinda gives my brain a minor short circuit. But I have a bizarre crush on Dolly too, so it sort of smoothes things over.
quaint irene
Forget Black Friday. The day after Thanksgiving should officially be Sandwich Day!
My oven is on the fritz. Figuring it’d be hard to get a repairman right before turkey day, I bought some turkey cutlets as well as the bird of honor. So today I made turkey schnitzel. Quite tasty with a cranberry-wine-butter sauce.
My dog Kate had a quick vet visit last week. In the waiting room one of the tech’s was telling another owner that you ‘shouldn’t feed your dog turkey. They can’t digest it.” We all looked at each other like…;Whaaa?”
I’m sorry. Not giving your dog little turkey snacks on Thanksgiving? That’s just damn sacriligous!
The Beaujolais Nouveau is really good this year. Quite jammy.
South of I-10
@stuckinred: I want to go back there. We went a couple of years ago with another couple and their kids. We rented a house on the beach and had a fantastic time. The kids would rock all day and they would just drop at night, they would be so tired, leaving plenty of time for us to sit on the deck and drink margaritas. :)
stuckinred
@quaint irene:
When Black Friday comes
I’m gonna dig myself a hole
Gonna lay down in it ’til
I satisfy my soul
Gonna let the world pass by me
The Archbishop’s gonna sanctify me
And if he don’t come across
I’m gonna let it roll
When Black Friday comes
I’m gonna stake my claim
I’ll guess I’ll change my name
jeffreyw
@MikeJ: Bought it from Cajungrocer.com, outta Louisiana. Came frozen, already prepared. No way I’m doing that myself.
SIA
A very sane turkey day here. Mr Screaming cooked the turkey Tuesday and the pumpkin pie last night, and we brought everything else over to an undisclosed location in AL. In 45 mins I made mashed potatoes, sauteed zuchini, and dressing from a whole foods bag (cringing as I wait for the blowback from the foodies). Overate just the right amount then stared at the lake through a carb torpor. Visited with siblings via text (we’re so much friendlier that way!), snuck some turkey to the dogs, and now watching DVDs. Tough life. Thank you Great Goddess and Flying Spaghetti Monster.
stuckinred
@South of I-10: It’s sooo family friendly. Even though we don’t have kids there is something nice about watching all of the families enjoying themselves. There is really nothing that compares with this on the west coast where things are so insanely expensive.
stuckinred
@jeffreyw: The way you cook are you serious? It’d be a snap.
Svensker
@Janet:
Is that you, Anne Shirley? Love that crazy quilt. Beautiful house.
John O
We always do Thanksgiving on Saturday to accommodate the in-laws…there are a lot of us.
So I’m back from some old friends’ house, basking in the quiet warmth of a new green furnace, dogs are settled, drink in hand, grateful for my health, family and friends and job, most of all.
And a hearty thanks to the best blog in the land!
Yutsano
@Svensker: Uh-oh. RedKitten is gonna haz words with you now. At least you didn’t say anything disparaging about Sidney. Then life would get ugly.
South of I-10
@jeffreyw: Totally got you hooked, huh? I am lucky, I can go down the street and get this stuff. :)
jeffreyw
@stuckinred: Ha! Don’t clean fish either, but if you send me some frozen fillets I’ll send you some pictures. LOL
SIA
Good thoughts. Having a country teetering on the verge of the precipice really sharpens one’s focus on what’s of value.
jeffreyw
@South of I-10: The turducken was one component of a 60 pound package they delivered last week. Mmm…andouille, if it wasn’t turkey time I’d be looking at some red beans and rice. And yeah, stuckinred, I had em throw in some of Camellia’s red beans.
Tattoosydney
Happy Thanksgiving all!
Yutsano
@jeffreyw:
There is, of course, always tomorrow.
@Tattoosydney: Thanks hon! Random trivia question: which country eats the most turkeys per capita in the world?
stuckinred
@jeffreyw: laissez bon temps rouler
Svensker
@Yutsano:
Wah? Whaddi do?
Saints!
Go Jets!
Back from American resto in Toronto, stuffed with turkey, wild rice (ugh, sorry hate that stuff), sweet potatoes, pumpkin cake and delicious wine, topped off with Ontario ice wine, which is just yum. Maybe not the States, but they do the Thanksgiving day daze here very well.
South of I-10
@jeffreyw: The Camellia’s really are superior. I got a ham bone to cook with my Camellia black eyed peas, they were awesome!
SiubhanDuinne
@Yutsano #53:
I figured as much, and normally I wouldn’t have said a word. But some typos are just too perfect.
toujoursdan
I’m in Uruguay, South America in the lobby of a hotel listening to “Achy Breaky Heart” on Montevideo pop station. Damn you Americans for exporting that song.
On day 5 of a 10 day trip through Argentina, Uruguay and a quick excursion into Brazil.
Thanksgiving (Part Deux since I’m Canadian) consisted of a juicy locally grown steak, papas (french fries) and a beer.
SIA
@SiubhanDuinne: Mmmm. LOVE leftovers. Surprised you have to work tomorrow! Don’t they know Thurs AND Fri is a murrikan holiday?
General Stuck
To make up for my earlier unfortunate Daily Caller comment
Turkey Day Doggie
Yutsano
@stuckinred: Indeed. Geaux Saints!
@Svensker: Anne Shirley is from up RedKitten’s way IIRC. As is Saint Sidney. Though I don’t recall if she moved to New Brunswick, so we could both be correct here. I’mma gonna go make cookies now.
SiubhanDuinne
@KyCole #55:
Wonderful news about all the new additions to your family! Congratulations and an extra-happy Thanksgiving.
stuckinred
@South of I-10: I eat them almost weekly since our friends who live half-time in the Quarter bring em up regularly. I use smoked turkey necks.
SiubhanDuinne
@General Stuck #85: Thanks for Charlie! All is forgiven.
@SIA: Well, I get Canada Day and Boxing Day off which most Murricans don’t, so it all works out. And actually, it’s usually a great opportunity to do a lot of sorting and tossing and generally getting organised before Crazy December.
South of I-10
@stuckinred: I usually use Tasso, but the ham bone worked out great. I sauteed some onion, bell pepper and garlic, ham bone and 2 lbs of peas. I probably could have done 4, there was so much meat on the ham bone.
Dream On
Can’t help but wonder as I munch on scones and Pumpkin pudding while the Thanksgiving Ham slowly glazes, whether some very very unfortunate temp worker is about to get trampled to death by determined shoppers a few hours from now on Black Friday.
Seasons greetings.
stuckinred
@South of I-10: The word from the millions of Cajun and Creole cookbooks I have is that it’s the marrow that is crucial. I make my own turkey tasso on the water smoker. Don’t mess with no swine.
Janet
@Svensker:
Hi,
No, I’m not Anne Shirley! Does she have a nice house? (Please pass this Facebook link along if you know anyone who might be interested in living on the border.)
jwb
@Zifnab25: On the other hand, if they win tonight, we’ll have to watch this team play another game, whereas if they lose, they are done for the season.
jeffreyw
@South of I-10: I have some tasso, part of the latest care package. No all that familiar with it but it seems to be more for flavor than substance. Any hints?
Quiddity
David Broder is insane. One race in a state of only 700,000 people won by a bring-home-the-bacon incumbent (who narrowly lost in a low-turnout primary) and boilerplate heal-the-breach rhetoric, proves to Broder that “bipartisanship” – no matter how absurd it is in today’s world of strong differences – is what the entire country wants.
stuckinred
@jeffreyw: It’s a seasoning meat. Goes great in gumbo or jambalaya chopped in small pieces and sauteed with the holy trinity.
Phyllis
Watching The This Old House Hour and polishing off a bowl of Blue Bell Spiced Pumpkin Pecan ice cream. If you don’t have access to Blue Bell ice cream where you are, well, more for me!
stuckinred
Again, I use turkey thigh meat and season and smoke it
Here is Chef Alex Patout’s recipe:
* 8-10 pounds boneless pork butt
* 5 tablespoons salt
* 5 tablespoons cayenne pepper
* 3 tablespoons freshly ground black pepper
* 3 tablespoons white pepper
* 2 tablespoons paprika
* 2 tablespoons cinnamon
* 2 tablespoons garlic powder or granulated garlic
burnspbesq
Just got home from a very nice Thanksgiving dinner with good friends at a restaurant here in OC that does Thanksgiving well. Getting ready to pack for tomorrow’s trip to Portland (a friend arranged tickets for the Duke-Oregon basketball game for us). After that I have a few hours of work to do, so that it’s not hanging over my head all weekend. And after that, a stern lecture to my hotheaded DFH kid about the necessity of keeping his temper under control no matter how stupid the TSA is.
Yutsano
@burnspbesq:
Heh. Family tradition or did he get an extra helping o’ the Irish temper?
South of I-10
@jeffreyw: I think that is correct. It is wonderful for seasoning. In black eyed peas or green beans I cut it into very small pieces and cook it down. Gives great flavor.
Off of our current topic, but my husband just told Little South she could stay up late if she helps fold clothes. It’s not real pretty, but I am liking this help folding clothes! She is doing the towels.
BGK
Since my family has atrophied, and no one ever takes turkey leftovers home and I get stuck with the neverending carcass, I make a pork roast instead. About 2.5 hours in a 200F convection oven, then a quick blast for 10-15 minutes at 500 to brown the outside and get it to a 160 internal temperature. For some reason this time, the last 20 degrees from 140 to 160 took 45 minutes…forcing me to partake of a second bottle of sparkling wine to tide me over. It didn’t adversely affect my cooking ability, but I did find I had to concentrate rather more on serving the food than in past years.
Side dishes were cornbread-sausage stuffing, acorn squash glazed with maple syrup and brown sugar, brussels sprouts with bacon, cranberries, and homemade bread. Dessert was bread pudding with creme anglaise and butterscotch.
My mother loves spoiling her “grandcats,” so the mooching carnivores probably ate as much as I did.
burnspbesq
@Yutsano:
I don’t think he necessarily got more, but he has less experience at keeping it under control. My brothers were just like this when they were 16-17.
BGK
@South of I-10:
I get only nominal help folding towels.
Underpants, also.
Yutsano
@burnspbesq: Your presence and example will help a lot there. As long as it’s clear the TSA agent is just doing his job I bet you could pull him back in the rest of the way.
burnspbesq
@Yutsano:
The words “Dude, that’s enough,” when delivered in a certain tone of voice, have historically worked very well.
Yutsano
@burnspbesq: There are parents all over the country who are dying to know your secret. Hell I bet you even amaze some of the people in line with you. Controlling a 16 year old is notoriously difficult even under the best of circumstances.
Phyllis
@BGK: I love both photos, but that second one is classic. As if he’s saying “Why? Why must you always throw the underwear on my head?”
burnspbesq
@Yutsano:
I have a very big hammer. He’s on track to get his driver’s license in February. I can always change my mind about getting a car for his use. And he knows that.
SiubhanDuinne
@Quiddity #100:
You know, I could almost forgive Broder* his hackish ways, pitiful lack of insight, and slavish allegiance to that will-o’-the-wisp Bipartisanship, if only he were a halfway decent writer. If he occasionally turned a graceful phrase, or had a little fun with the English language now and then, then I might at least be able to read his wretched column once in a while.
*(Not really.)
SIA
@BGK: Ohhh! What a pretty baby!
@ Gen Stuck, OMG this series of hummers is incredible:http://www.flickr.com/photos/oxpecker/5039153250/lightbox/
SiubhanDuinne
@BGK: Gorgeous kitteh!
Maody
@BGK: those kitties made my thanksgiving complete. tx.
Tattoosydney
@Yutsano:
I admit I googled, and the answer is just …. odd…
Are turkeys extra special kosher or something?
jwb
@SiubhanDuinne: What I don’t get is that Broder is not just a hack, but also is not and has never been smart, politically astute or even a decent writer; yet there he is. As far as I know his family is neither wealthy nor well-connected; yet there he is. Does anyone have a clue what his secret is?
Tattoosydney
@CaseyL:
If you need a tourguide or a friendly face in Sydney, just let me know…
sherifffruitfly
Am I the only person who has “Godfather Addiction”? Whenever it’s on – and they typically show them both back to back – I can’t help but watch it.
AND HOW BOUT THEM COWBOYS!!!!!
oh wai…..
Morbo
Only one beer and one bottle of wine that I brought to Thanksgiving were consumed. This is good news for -John McCain- me.
suzanne
My husband and I spent the afternoon with his best friend and his wife, and their families. My ex-husband has my munchkin this year, and my mom decided to go visit her sister in New York, so we had a low-stress, low-cooking holiday… just in time for the coldest Thanksgiving Phoenix has experienced in, like, fifty years. It’s gonna be 25 degrees tonight.
I made stuffing for the first time. It turned out pretty well, but my mom makes better. I have a feeling there wasn’t enough wine in it. Ah well.
South of I-10
@BGK: Too cute! I had to pitch a kitty off the clean clothes before we could fold them.
Yutsano
@Tattoosydney: I got it wrong as well, and I didn’t go for any of the obvious answers like the US or Canada. Only thing I can think of is that they’re easy to kill via kosher rules. Maybe Emily Hauser can shed some light on this subject if she shows up.
And I really should have made rugelach dammit.
MikeJ
@Yutsano: My guess was that they start off with the same turkey ratio as the US but everyplace we put ham or bacon they wind up with turkey. In Israel a DA can get an indictment against a turkey sandwich.
Yutsano
@MikeJ: Even under strict Orthodox kashrut rules though you’re not supposed to eat turkey bacon. There’s a restriction in the Talmud (I think) that says that even appearing to eat something trefe, even if it is strictly kosher, is still not allowed. Having said that, the only other rationale is that turkeys are easy and fast to raise. I dunno though.
Currants
@Janet: Small world, if you’re friends with Emily McGraime!? She was in my daughter’s wedding this past summer.
Admiral_Komack
How ’bout them Cowboys!
andy
One of my facebook peeps created an event called Thanksgiving Leftovers for all of us who are unattached or usually hate the Holidays to get together. It was fun. I brought a couple of crostatas I made and some beer. It was fun, though I got called in to work. Hopefully there’s still a little party left when I go back.
motampa
I Love this site. Happy Thanskgiving all! Glad Dallas lost. I hate that team (they screwed my Vikings in the eighties and I cannot stand their smug owner. Also, I very much dislike the State of Texas and their screwed up Governor.
General Stuck
@SIA:
Why thank you SIA:)
Yutsano
Roasted Cornish hen, stuffing, and asparagus cooked perfectly. Yeah, I’m a happy duck right now.
S. cerevisiae
@Svensker: Have you tried the real Ojibwe wild rice (manoomin), hand harvested from a river or lake? The black crap you see in the stores and get in restaurants is paddy rice and it tastes like gravel. If you paid less than six to eight bucks per pound then you got paddy rice.
Svensker
@S. cerevisiae:
I don’t know, probably the cheap stuff. Tastes like musty dirt and too chewy (because I want to get it down quick and not savor it). Maybe I should look for the good wild rice — the idea of it seems so great.
Yutsano
The guest drawing by Bill Amend got me to peek over at xkcd and see what the other guests were up to. It brought me to this gem which had me laughing like mad.
S. cerevisiae
@Svensker: Yeah, you can boil that paddy rice till doomsday and it will never puff up like the real stuff will. The real stuff has a nutty flavor and is never chewy.
Edited to add: If you can get to a pow-wow in the Great Lakes region you should be able to get some of the real stuff (and maybe some in moose meat soup).
Jane2
@Janet: We Canuckians can always celebrate 2 Thanksgivings! That’s a great photo.
Jane2
@General Stuck: That doggie is adorable!
Yutsano
@Jane2: I compared our Thanksgiving with yours with a good friend of mine from Burnaby. The meals aren’t all that different, it’s just the traditions and the reasons behind the holiday that mark the distinction. That and yours is a month earlier. :)
MikeJ
@Yutsano: And the human sacrifice. Other than that they’re pretty similar.
Yutsano
@MikeJ: Oh yeah. Fergot that detail.
If anyone is curious how Obama has failed me lately: I have to work tomorrow, and he had direct control of that happening or not. So there.
cathaireverywhere
@BGK: your short haired kitteh looks just like my Max, may he rest in peace. Give her extra hugs from me- I miss my Max, even after 17 years. He used to fetch balls and bring them to me and was just an all-around cool cat.
asiangrrlMN
@General Stuck: Charlie is very cute. Lucky for you, too, given that absolutely shitty excerpt you posted above. You are marginally forgiven.
@BGK: Your kittehs are insanely cute.
@Yutsano: I’ve been on a Dolly kick lately. Very weird.
Yutsano
@asiangrrlMN: I’ve been earworming on random lately. There seems to be little rhyme or reason to what I feel like hearing. I’m just gonna label it a minor insanity and focus on getting to the weekend.
PS: FH #1 has been lurking around somewhat. I bet he’s busy squeeing cuz a BJer s headed to his side of the planet.
asiangrrlMN
@Yutsano: I saw he dropped in! And, I envy Casey L for traveling to the land of Oz. You and me, we will get there one day. I’m eating lunch now. Chicken and dumpling soup.
Tattoosydney
@Yutsano:
I is here. ’tis Friday afternoon and I am bored out of my little brain. Only an hour until the drinking can start.
Yutsano
@asiangrrlMN: Nom and haz a jealous. But I haz cookie dough, gonna bake it off either tomorrow or Saturday. Neener.
@Tattoosydney: That is exactly how I will be tomorrow. From what I understand it’s SLOW. Like painfully slow. Like why the fuck are we even here slow.
asiangrrlMN
@Yutsano: Jelus!
@Tattoosydney: Heh. Why not start early?
Tattoosydney
@asiangrrlMN:
Actually drinking in your office on your own tends to be frowned upon.
Yutsano
@Tattoosydney:
Especially if you don’t have enough to share.
asiangrrlMN
@Tattoosydney: Eh. Whatever. Put it in a mug and call it coffee.
asiangrrlMN
@Yutsano: Well, true. There is that.
Tattoosydney
@Yutsano: @asiangrrlMN:
It’s 5 o’clock, so I am going to go home and open a bottle of Italian red. Yum.
Yutsano
@Tattoosydney: Ya know, there’s a song for that. Jimmy keeps it from being too heinous.