TheBanyanTree: After the Feast

[Margaret R. Kramer]

My stomach is plump and satisfied after eating turkey, cranberries, mashed
potatoes, gravy, and a big piece of pumpkin pie.  The turkey was tender and
juicy.  Everything came out as planned.

My first real Thanksgiving dinner wasn’t a disaster, but it was a mess.  The
mashed potatoes were lumpy.  I don’t think the turkey was as done as it
should have been.  My stuffing wasn’t as good as it is now.

The only thing I’m not good at is making gravy.  The gravy I made yesterday
was OK, but the quantity was small.  I think I need one of those dropper
things to more accurately measure the fat.  It’s one of the few times I miss
my ex-husband.  His mother showed him how to make gravy and after that one
lesson, he was an expert.  He died last summer and I tried to conjure him
back from the dead just to make the gravy, but he didn’t show up, so I was
on my own.

Everything takes practice and an excellent big Thanksgiving meal is no
exception.  I have the whole process down like clock work.  Jello, stuffing,
turkey basted and in the oven.  Peel and quarter the potatoes and put them
in water until ready for boiling.  Get vegetables and pickles ready.  Set
the table.  Relax for a couple of hours, then boil the potatoes and make the
wild rice.  Everything is done at one time, but don’t panic.  Use the oven
and microwave to keep things warm as I finish the potatoes and begin the
gravy.  Put all the pans in the dishwasher before cutting the turkey, so
they’re washing while we’re eating dinner.  Ray and grandsons help clear the
table.  We eat pie and drink hot coffee while the boys are watching “Spy
Kids.”

The four year old grandson made many comments about the turkey smell and how
good it was.
Yes, he’s experiencing the best Thanksgiving tradition of all – the
wonderful smell of roasting turkey.  Although when the turkey came out of
the oven, he said, “What’s that big old thing?”  And he only ate a small
amount before spitting it into his napkin.  Well, there’s always next year
to indoctrinate him into actually eating the turkey.

CoCo began barking at 3:30 am this morning to be let outside.  There was a
big buck at one of my bird feeders slurping down the seed and CoCo got to
scare him away.

Although it’s a day off for me, it’s a busy one.  I get to do another cardio
kickboxing session to work off the calories from yesterday.  I rarely do
aerobics classes, so this is a treat and a nice change of pace as far as
exercising goes for me.

I’ll brave some of the post-Thanksgiving crowds to buy some bird seed and
pet food.

And today’s main event is to put up the outdoor and indoor Christmas lights.
I can’t put up Christmas decorations before Thanksgiving is over and I still
feel bad that the turkey is barely cold and I’m already kicking Thanksgiving
to the side and inviting Christmas into my life so quickly.  We bought the
wreath and pine garland the other night.  And I bought tons of extension
cords and surge protectors so I won’t be yelling at Ray when I can’t find
something.

I’ll boil the turkey bones while I’m working on the lights for soup later
this weekend.  Then we’ll go grocery shopping.

We’ll collapse in front of the TV tonight because Ray is working today and I
’ll be exhausted from doing my first stage of spreading holiday cheer.  I’m
sure I’ll be in bed before 10 pm.

There’s no resting after feasting.

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at earthlink.net

http://www.polarispublications.com
Be a star!

http://www.bpwmn.org
Business and Professional Women of Minnesota

Nature has no mercy at all. Nature says, "I'm going to snow. If you have on
a bikini and no snowshoes, that's tough. I am going to snow anyway."

* Maya Angelou