Gobble Gobble, Yo

ADDENDA:
Thanksgiving in Andover, a suburb of Boston, this year is the first time in my life I've spent this holiday away from my hometown, NYC. Though I guess I should of saw it coming a million miles away, I'm missing my parents horribly today.

Different wings of the extended family took different holidays, and our wing was Thanksgiving. This was the only time of year my mom would 'cook', and by cook I mean coordinate. My dad would be responsible for the turkey and the salad, my mom would put the potatoes in the oven to bake, I would be responsible for the stuffing. My mom would make a big deal about how I 'made' the stuffing, but in reality it was from a box of Stouffers. I remember one year I suggested we actually stuff the turkey with it before cooking, I think the level of complexity it entailed was beyond the pale for my mom. My Brazilian uncle would bring really good homemade chocolate mouse, a trendy thing in the 70s. Aunts would bring booze and other pies. My mom could NOT go to sleep unless ALL the dishes were washed and set up to air-dry. The house (and in later years the apartment) was always full of people on Thanksgiving, and it was always a home-cooked meal. My mom would buy the turkey at least a week in advance, the table would be set at least 48 hours in advance, the nervous tension she had the day of, hours before anyone were to come and the entire home was scrubbed clean and there was just nothing left to do other than lie down and watch TV.

I look forward to the day of regularly hosting a holiday in my home with family and friends, with homemade food and days of preparation.

BREAKFAST: 7:30am, good yogurt with honey, vanilla, raw nuts, hunger 3/5

AM SNACK: 10:30am, veggie booty, liter of seltzer, hunger 4/5
Train to Boston.

AM SNACK: 11:30am, saltless whole wheat pretzels, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 12:30pm, bag of potato chips, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 3pm, toated chiabatta bread with bruchetta stuff, hunger 4/5

DINNER: 4pm, squash maple soup, grape sorbet, turkey medallions with apple cranberry stuffing, whipped potato croquet, steamed carrots, lots of bread & butter, pumpkin creme brulee, water, hunger 4/5
Formal dinner at the very white, WASPy New England Andover Inn.

EVENING SNACK: 7:30pm, popcorn, hunger 3/5
A Thankgiving evening movie out, a first for me.