Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Ungrateful

I have to confess that I am not the biggest fan of Thanksgiving food. It's not like I hate it--it's fine. But I don't eagerly look forward to chowing down on yams and pumpkin pie and cranberry sauce, because in fact I don't like any of those things. I do like turkey, and mashed potatoes, and stuffing, and gravy. But those aren't the types of things I crave the rest of the year.

I'm much more about Christmas food, at least the way we do it at my parents' house. My dad usually cooks a roast beef and makes Yorkshire pudding in a throwback to his British heritage, and I have to say, OMG delicious. Plus there's eggnog, and we've more or less moved past the pumpkin thing by the time Christmas rolls around. So, all in all, Christmas dinner is much more my speed.

But I still love Thanksgiving. I like that it's a relatively stress-free holiday. I love the hustle of Christmas and I love giving and receiving gifts, and I love Christmas trees, but I don't think anyone can deny that the preparations, the gift purchasing, the gift SELECTING, the decorating, and all the rest--it can be stressful. But Thanksgiving, at least for me... you can sleep in, you don't really have to worry about it ahead of time (other than buying a turkey and figuring out how to fit it in the oven), and then you just gather with family for a relaxed meal, and then it's over and you have three more days off. Very simple. And lovely.

Even though I suspect that part of what makes Thanksgiving so relaxing for me is that my parents handle it all (and there's no guilt about not celebrating it with Torsten's parents, since he is German and therefore his parents don't celebrate it). I mean, I don't have to figure out what size turkey to get, and then try to jam it in the oven and make sure not to overcook it. No, all I have to do is sit around drinking eggnog and possibly offering to help peel potatoes. Except the one year, my first Thanksgiving after living in France, when my dad and I prepared a French Thanksgiving meal--there was still a turkey with stuffing, but all the rest of the side dishes were French and taught to me by my French host mother. That was a fun year.

But what I really look forward to is someday hosting Thanksgiving ourselves. I want to own a house, not a huge mansion, but a house big enough for guests to stay over. And maybe one year on Thanksgiving I'll be too pregnant to travel, or have a very small child, and the whole family will have to come to us. I look forward to having a home that is ours, and family staying with us, and dealing with the turkey ourselves, and serving Thanksgiving dinner on our own dining room table. A table that, most likely, we don't even own yet, unless we decide to keep our Ikea dining room table even after we have a proper dining room.

Lastly, in the spirit of contrariness, since everyone else is doing posts about the things they are grateful for, I thought I'd mention a few things that I'm coveting at the moment. Don't worry, this isn't a hint--they are way too pricy for that. But ooh, they are lovely. And after all, there will be plenty of time for giving thanks tomorrow. Right? (Note: this is a joke. Mostly. I have lots of things to be thankful for and I am well aware of that.)
  • This Kate Spade bag. It's just so pretty! And structured! I could totally bring that to a business meeting and not worry that it looked out of place. And it's a steal! On Kate Spade terms, anyway.
  • This Tiffany cocktail ring. Yes, it's huge and flashy--definitely not an everyday piece. But it's purple! And gorgeous! And, if you compare it to the $700k rings they also have available for purchase on their website, it's DEFINITELY a bargain.
  • This computer, in purple. Except actually, I'm already getting that. I needed a new computer and Torsten sacrificed his birthday present so we could pay for it. And then I got an awesome bonus at work that paid for the rest. It is already on order and I cannot wait for it to arrive. And in case anyone is wondering, the fact that it was purple was definitely a contributing factor to my desire for it, but it is not the only reason I'm getting it. It's also an awesome and super-fast machine. I know, because Torsten told me and he is an expert on this stuff. So there.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

23 comments:

  1. Wow, that ring is gorgeous. And I love that purse, too. You and I must have similar taste.

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  2. I'm not particularly fond of yams, pumpkins and cranberry sauce either.. but I WILL chow down on a pumpkin cheesecake.. which I am totally baking this year.

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  3. I hate Thanksgiving food. HATE IT. Except for rolls. I eat 10 every year. Literally.

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  4. Mmm... Yorkshire pudding. We have that at least once a month with a roast beef dinner. As I don't eat meat, I just have the YP with horseradish!

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  5. I am SO thankful you shared that Kate Spade purse with me, mmmmm...

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  6. I second the Christmas dinner - Prime Rib and Yorkshire pudding are my faves too.

    But right now I am NOT digging the hosting thing, this is the 5th year (not in a row) we have done T-day but we are so not prepared. I need to do everything today and I am so overwhelmed!

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  7. I love everything about Thanksgiving. In fact, I love it so much that I couldn't bear knowing that my Austrian friends don't have Thanksgiving, so I began our own tradition. This will be the fourth time I am cooking Thanksgiving dinner for them. Plus, I also have thanksgiving dinner with my family. So that's one dinner where I can get away with peeling some potatoes and one where I do everything myself. I love both equally!

    Happy Thanksgiving!

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  8. Pretty pretty bag! That just reminds me I need a new one...

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  9. I should not be surprised that they make computers in purple, or that you are getting one. lol

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  10. I love the holidays mostly becuase they make the descent into wintertime bearable. But then where are you in January? Out in the cold, with na'ry a big holiday to celebrate.

    And I love pumpkin pie, but it's the turkey I can never get into eating. I love making them, though.

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  11. I so totally have been lusting for that computer too! In fire-engine RED! So pretty. I already have a Dell laptop that I love so I can recommend them strongly.

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  12. I'm only into Thanksgiving dinner for the turkey and mashed potatoes, honestly. Everything else...meh. I hope you have a great one!

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  13. Ooh, that ring is gorgeous! And such a (relative) bargain, too! ;)

    I'm with you on loving Thanksgiving, and for all of the reasons you mentioned. It is so much more relaxing than Christmas. Although I never really do a lot of the cooking, so I guess it is easy for me to say that when the most I ever have to do is some extra grocery shopping and house cleaning.

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  14. Lemme get this straight. You would NOT eat mashed potatoes every day if given the choice, and you WANT your family to come visit? You and me = NOT the same person. ;-) But that's OK. It takes all kinds, right?

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  15. After I totally messed up Round One of this Thanksgiving I'm not at all as excited as I had been to host Thanksgiving eventually - maybe next year I'll have it more under control!

    In the mean time enjoy!

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  16. Happy Thanksgiving! I do have to disagree, though-- I would eat yams and stuffing everyday if I could. That's why I'm sad we had Thanksgiving a month ago in Canada.

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  17. I'm with you about liking Christmas dinner more than thanksgiving. We always have more ethnically traditional food at Christmas which I LOVE and let's face it, it's a rare t-giving bird, indeed, that is not dry.

    Also, that ring is gorgeous! 5th anniversary?? :)

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  18. oh man, i LOVE LOVE LOVE thanksgiving food. part of it is because my mom gets a heritage turkey, which is roughly 800x better and more flavorful than a normal crappy frozen turkey. but stuffing is one of my favorite foods on earth. as is pumpkin pie. and potatoes and gravy. the rest of the stuff (you know, "vegetables" or whatever") are fine.. i mean, not stuffing, but fine :-)

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  19. Happy Thanksgiving!

    I personally adore turkey, pie and stuffing. So it's probably a GOOD thing that Thanksgiving comes once a year.

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  20. I love Thanksgiving food, but I love the holiday NOT for the food, but for all the fuss without the stress (i.e., PRESENTS) of Christmas. Plus it involves a FOUR DAY WEEKEND. Awesome.

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  21. Also, I have NO IDEA what Yorkshire pudding is.

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  22. Even though Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday, I think it is because of the time I get to spend with family more than it is about the food (which, funny enough, I think is all fairly bland and boring in color!).

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  23. I'm not into Thanksgiving food either. Except maybe the cranberry sauce (homemade, of course) and cranberry orange relish. We managed to convince my mom to get a HoneyBaked Ham next year. Already looking forward to a Thanksgiving without turkey!

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