Be thankful for the end of the year

This time of year is the time when we pause to give thanks. Often times with the hectic pace of our daily lives we take what we have for granted and the ever-extending Christmas shopping season doesn't do much to aid us in appreciating what we have. Instead, we are fixated on what we want/"need" but that rabid consumerism is what makes the world go round and what lines my pockets so who am I to complain?

Instead, I have actually taken time to think about what we have and how lucky we are to have the things we need. This is especially important given the events of yesterday but we've always had a certain amount of luck on our side.

To illustrate that luck, here are some examples. When my old lady was pregnant we were told that the level of fluid in our daughter's kidneys was low (or high, I don't even remember now) and that we needed to head to the Mayo Clinic for a more involved ultrasound. As I assumed, it was just overly cautious medicine at work and nothing was wrong. Another fine example was my old lady falling in to a job just after graduating college. Sure, it has absolutely nothing to do with her degree but it has provided for her and us and her boss greatly appreciates her work. It's more than many people can say.

But back to appreciating what we have. We are both gainfully employed. Sure, I've suffered a setback or two in the past year or so and my old lady is facing some uncertainties but we're proactive and we've survived. We have made it through another year and while every day has had some sort of challenge lurking around the corner we've paid most of our bills, done some small improvements around the homestead and even managed to buy a new ride so we can more easily wrangle the toddler in and out of the back seat. I have long been anti-SUV but this is a crossover so don't call me a hypocrite.

We know that things are looking up. Every job seems to be facing a certain amount of uncertainty but if you add value to what you do by doing more and teaching yourself valuable lessons and skills that can bring more to your duties then you are being proactive and that alone should give you a certain amount of comfort. So, in the final days of the year, pause for a moment and take stock. Be thankful if you have a roof over your head, warm clothes and a full stomach. And now for the part that makes me a hypocrite, be thankful if you have a job that pays your bills. Be thankful for family and friends and be thankful that this sappiness is done.

And don't forget to show some appreciation for the gift that is MinnPics. I do the work to find you amazing photos from across Minnesota and all you ahve to do is pause to look at them. What a deal!

The ultimate Thanksgiving food guide

The best ideas are stolen but if you combine a whole bunch of ideas you are aggregating them and that's totally cool. SO without further ado it's time for the ultimate Thanksgiving food guide.

Pumpkin pie:

the canned pumpkin was more charismatic in flavor and hue

I can attest to this. I grew up in a frugal (cheap) home and my mom grew one of everything in her expansive garden on the farm. The most intriguing (to her, anyway) was her bumper crop one year of pie pumpkins. They're relatively dainty next to their Jack-o-Lantern counterparts and are bred for baking. (Trust me, the pumpkin from your typical Jack-o-Lantern tastes as close to shit as I are to venture). My bakin'-fool mom cooked up a few of the round pumpkins and scooped out the good stuff and made a couple pies. Now if you've read my Twitter bio you know I claim to be a lover of pies. Well these home-brewed creations nearly ruined me. They were simply disappointing and at the ripe old age of eight I swore off home-grown pie pumpkins as did my mom. Really, what's easier - baking up a pumpkin which you've scooped free of seeds or opening a can? Winner: can.

Vegetables:

the green bean casserole was a mushy, revolting mess

As far as Thanksgiving vegetables go, they tend to get the short end of the stick. When was the last time somebody jumped out of their chair and shouted "Damn, that sweet corn was so good I almost pissed myself"? It's because vegetables, while tasty, are largely just a side dish. They don't get the pre- or post-preparation attention that the turkey gets. And some people do horrible things to their vegetables. They scallop the corn, they casserole the green beans and they put - gasp - marshmallows on the candied sweet potatoes. Now as far as vegetables go I am a huge fan of candied sweet potatoes. We have them probably once a month and they're so good that you'd mess yourself but sorry, you can't have my recipe. Stick with the tried and true veggies: sweet corn and sweet potatoes.

Gravy:

don't put it on everything, it smells like it's burned

That was the warning uttered plenty loud for everyone in the room to hear a couple years ago at my in-laws' Thanksgiving dinner but my brother-in-law still went ahead with covering every inch of his plate with the obviously burnt gravy. The problem was that it was homemade and in the rush to prepare everything else the gravy got neglected. It happens but it doens't need to. The simpler options include powder puuch mixes, canned gravy and jarred gravy. Sure, it doesn't always taste like homemade but when homemade tastes like a tire fire homemade may not be the best standard by which to judge.

I won't venture in to turkey territory because I have yet to perfect the poultry side of the meal. My turkey typically turns out a bit on the dry side even with stuffing half of a stick of margarine under the breast skin of the bird and basting the Jennie-O every thirty minutes. It also needs more salt than I typically shake on. But in the end it's still more than edible. Now if anyone has a killer pie crust recipe and secrets for rolling it out to perfection, drop it in the comments.

I know that basically nobody besides myself will be near a computer for the next few days but that doesn't mean you can't take a break and check out MinnPics. This long weekend should be interesting.

Christmas comes AFTER Thanksgiving

It's apparently Christmas. I found this out yesterday as I sprinted through the local Target store for a bag of cat food. I realized it was Christmas yesterday, November 2nd, because Christmas had relentlessly vomited across from the general area of the pet supplies. Christmas had vomited so much, in fact, that it was running in to the area where the Halloween candy and remaining costumes had been relegated to. I knew it was coming because after the back-to-school supplies disappeared in the second week of September a back-wall aisle popped up entirely full of Christmas goods.

Yes, Christmas had in fact been lurking inside the walls of Target since early September and I hate that.

It's not that I hate Christmas. Entirely the opposite, in fact. I love Christmas. My house is that house during the month of December. I deck it out classily in white Christmas lights and a Santa's Village scene because it makes kids smile and I don't mind freezing my ass off dragging all of that stuff out from the basement each year. I just don't display all of my Santa-riffic goodnes suntil an appropriate time. The day after Thanksgiving. In case retailers and shoppers everywhere have forgotten, Thanksgiving celebrates the day that the pilgrims and Native Americans sat down and shared a bountiful meal in celebration of the year's harvest. We celebrate it on the final Thursday of November. Then the next day we feverishly plow full-on in to Christmas mere hours later but at least Thanksgiving gets its moment in the spotlight.

Well, at least it used to. I can understand and even tolerate retailers having Christmas displays up shortly after Halloween. It's big business and those advertising dollars that retailers spend keep my bills paid. But if we can find time to recognize such stupid crap as Administrative Professionals Day then Thanksgiving deserves its own space and time without being whored up by the commercialism that is Christmas.

That means no Christmas music - no matter what - before Thanksgiving dinner is over.
Don't turn your Christmas lights on until the day after Thanksgiving.
Decorate the inside of your house whenever you damn well please but be aware that others will ridicule you for having garland and tinsel adorning your home on November 10th.
Keep indoor Christmas decor away from windows visible from outdoors until after Thanksgiving.
Turn off outdoor and dismantle indoor Christmas displays by January 2nd. A grace period of three days is available if you partied like it was 1999 on New Year's Eve.

All I'm saying is that holidays don't overlap. Keep them separate and if KOOL 108 or Lite FM start spinning Christmas music this year before Thanksgiving is over I am going to drive to their respective studios (closets with a computer inside) and smash that Christmas computer into tiny bits fit for decorating the station's Christmas tree.

I also promise to keep MinnPics seasonally appropriate. The photos of Minnesota will always be pleasant and compelling and rarely induce anger.