Different people have different holidays that they designate as their favorite, and for different reasons.
Some people look forward all year long to Christmas. The weeks that surround Christmas are the one time during the year when they "officially" take time off from work, because in the business of the internets, checking email on Christmas Day doesn’t count as “work.” It’s when their kids come home to visit, when they get to travel to sunny/snowy destinations, when they bake eight dozen cookies, when they make lists, check them twice, and attack on the mall in a spending blitzkrieg brandishing plastic and shrieking “gift receipt!” in high-pitched, kamikaze screams.
For other people, their favorite holiday is a testimony to their rockstar lifestyle. They love New Year’s Eve because it’s the. Biggest(!) Party(!) Of(!) The(!) Year! All the Sinderella debauchery becomes "history" once the clock strikes midnight; their resolutions of healthwealthandthepursuitofhotness go into effect in a whole new year. Brand new. Clean slate. Fresh start. After two Tylenol chased with a sparkling Alka-seltzer.
Still others adopt the Hallmark Effect, manufacturing full-blown holidays out of days that were never meant to be holidays. They circle the day on the calendar in red perma-Juicy-gloss. They "x" it out because they're not going into work that day. They set reminders in everyone else's Outlook to make sure that everyone remembers the most important day of the year - their birthdays are the biggest, baddest, best holiday of the year.
Some reasons are more noble than others, but then again, who am I to say that "spending time with family" is a more virtuous reason to like a holiday than, oh, I don't know, say "I get presents!?" Who am I to say?
I am Delicious. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year.
And it has nothing to do with virtue.
Yes, I love that I get the day off from work. I love that normally, I would get two days off from work, making the whole lovely holiday into a four day weekend, but not abnormally, because I am a blogger so I work every day, and I am a Web 2.0 Marketing Whore 2.0, so I work every day. Yes, I finally get to see all of my family, all at once, in a giant Asianized version of a Normal Rockwen turkey-centered tableau, but I don't actually get to spend much time with them. I have schlepped down to The OC with laptop in tow and am camped out in my Dad's study, blogging. And working. Everyone else is playing golf. Besides, I talk to my parents almost every other day. I see my sisters almost every other day. Thanksgiving is not special in that way.
I love Thanksgiving because it's the one day out of the year that I have absolutely no inhibitions, no restrictions, no time contraints, in the kitchen. All year long, work and blogging and work and family commitments and blogging and friends and work and *ahem* dates *coughcough* (that last one is a total lie, but I thought I'd try to slip it past anyway) keep me so busy that I resort to styrofoam plates of nachos at 10 PM and skip breakfast because I don't have time to cook a bowl of Cheerios.
for my kosher bird
But come that fourth Thursday in November, I actually get to relax. Planning and cooking a meal for 10-12 of the pickiest people on earth is stressful, but in a strange way, that kind of stress gives me satisfaction. It relaxes me. While everyone else packs up their little weekender totebag full of elastic waistbanded pants and cardigans appliques with reindeer, I happily hum as I gather up my knives, my thermometer, and the last few capfuls of Fit Fruit and Veggie Wash because who knows what kind of produce they have in OC. I get to demonstrate my utter culinary genius. I get to wield my power in the pantry, display my skills at the stovetop, show my mastery of mire poix. Bow down in the presence of the Goddess of Gourmandry! Bow down, you insignificant little 18 pound bird! I'll show you who's the Boss of Brine!
I swear I did not say that out loud as my Mom and I hauled a large plastic bin of kosherly salted water outside to brine the turkey.
But I was thinking it out loud. Very loud.
And it felt awesome.
** a year ago today, holly golightly had a greek omelette for breakfast at tifanos **
tags :: food : and drink : american : cooking : thanksgiving : los angeles
Neil says
I love all your recommendations, although a food loop lace?! Have you ever seen anyone actually use one?