Entry bubble Thanksgiving, Gov Gab Style

By: Nancy | November 22, 2007 | Category: Home and Family

turkey looking at calendarIt's ok.

I know you're not reading a government blog today. You're at the table with your family, negotiating with your 10-year-old nephew for the second drumstick (go on, let the kid have it). Or you're with your gang, having a Friends kind of Thanksgiving. Or you're going it solo this year, kicking back at home, watching the parades and football games and enjoying your own version of Thanksgiving dinner. A friend of mine is making herself some glazed Spam today. See, that's good eatin' if you asked me.

But you didn't. Because you're not here.

If you were though, I'd be telling you about USA.gov's Thanksgiving page. Its facts, tips and trivia could actually save you during dinner discussion today, distracting your mom from asking you when you were going to give her a grandchild because she's "tired of waiting and you're not getting any younger, you know."

You could have been your family's Top Chef, learning how to cook turkey safely, the old fashioned way in the oven or by using alternate methods. I'm kind of partial to my cousin Tim's "boiler 'im up in oil" deep fryer technique.

The Thanksgiving page could have made you the know-it-all of the family, with US Census Bureau Thanksgiving stats like:

  • 1.6 billion pounds of sweet potatoes are produced each year in the US. No word on how many millions of pounds of marshmallows it takes to top all the resulting sweet potato casseroles.
  • There are nine "Turkey Townships" in the US, three of them in Kansas alone. Don't know what's up with that.
  • 272 million turkeys are raised in the US each year, only one of which gets a pardon from the President and a free trip to Disney World.  Something tells me tofurkeys don't get that same honor. 

Or you could have been the family historian, holding up dessert by first making everyone listen to your recitation of America's Thanksgiving beginnings, including George Washington's proclamation that established the holiday.

But see, you can't do any of those things because you're not here learning about them with your lonely Thursday blogger. But I'll be ok. Really. You just go right ahead and have yourself a Happy Thanksgiving. And eat some of that cranberry jelly stuff for me.  And a roll.  Two rolls.  Oh, and some of that pie...

| Comments [4] | envelope Email This Entry | Tags: census   nancy   thanksgiving   turkey  

 

Entry bubble Food, Family, & Football

By: Sam | November 21, 2007 | Category: Home and Family

Colleen likes to say that Thanksgiving is for food, family, friends, and football.  I couldn’t agree more.  Except, I hail from the South where game day is on Saturday.  And this Saturday my GA Bulldawgs play the Ramblin’ Wreck from GA Tech.  With only 70 miles separating the schools, this annual slugfest gives the winner bragging rights at family dinners and neighborhood BBQs for the coming year.

Saturday also marks the last regular season game in college football.  With a season full of surprises (An undefeated Kansas? A 2-9 Notre Dame? ), one common thread is the amount of injuries the players sustain.  From concussions to torn ACLs, there’s not a week that goes by where one of your favorite players or Heisman candidates isn’t sitting on the sidelines injured.

Even though I don’t sweat it out on the gridiron every Saturday, I do try to workout  several times a week, particularly right before Thanksgiving.  And over time, I have succumbed to plenty of my own injuries.  So much so that I no longer associate the word rice with food but instead with rest, ice, compression, and elevation.

Some of my most common injuries are those pesky sprains and strains.  And for as long as I’ve been running, I can never remember the difference between the two.  Thankfully, this great sprains and strains Q & A publication helps me sort it all out and gives me great tips on how I can prevent them.     

Lately, sprains and strains haven’t been the only problems that keep me sidelined from my workouts.  Unfortunately, years of pounding the pavement haven’t been too kind on my knees.  I now try to switch up my workouts with more gentle aerobic exercises like walking or swimming (watch out Michael Phelps).

Feel free to share how you like to say fit, whether it’s by gardening or jogging, and what you do to prevent injuries.  Meanwhile, I’ll be gearing up for Saturday’s showdown in the ATL.  Go Dawgs!!!

| envelope Email This Entry | Tags: exercise   fitness   football   injuries   sports   thanksgiving   workout  

 

Entry bubble Thanksgiving Travel

By: Marybeth | November 20, 2007 | Category: Travel

Photo of heavy trafficMy daily commute makes me want to take a holiday from travel when the holidays come round. I’m staying put this year, but I know what it’s like to be one among millions of Thanksgiving travelers.

When I’ve flown home in the past, I’ve had good luck with early morning, nonstop flights. Unless weather is an issue, morning flights tend to leave on time; and, if you have the option of taking a nonstop flight, they generally save time, negate the connecting-flight worry, and decrease your chances of losing your luggage.

Other time-savers if you’re flying include checking for airport delays before leaving home and knowing the rules about prohibited carry-on items so that you aren’t delayed at security checkpoints.

News reports on holiday travel often focus on airports, but the vast majority of Americans actually drive to their Thanksgiving destinations. A few resources for drivers include:

It can be difficult to keep a sense of humor when your holidays are disrupted by traffic jams, overbooked flights, bad weather, and other elements beyond your control. For a little help tapping into holiday travel humor, a pre-Thanksgiving viewing of Planes, Trains and Automobiles might be just the thing. 

| Comments [3] | envelope Email This Entry | Tags: driving   flying   thanksgiving   travel