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This site is a member of WebRing. To browse visit here. Thursday, November 27, 2003 Happy Thanksgiving, all. It's the best one for me in a while. Holidays are far more fun with a child in the household. I'm over the worst of the labor--the pies are done and cooling on top of the refrigerator where the kitties can't check them out, the turkey is in the oven, the cranberry relish is in the fridge, sausage is cooking for a late breakfast. We'll be lucky to have dinner before three, but all that's left to be done is a salad, a batch of rolls and the sweet potatoes. I decided to forgo mashed potatoes, additional vegetables and the ubiquitous Bonnie's Pink Stuff (our family's version of jello salad, fruit cocktail, Cool Whip, etc.), with just three of us to feed. But I did make a pretty tablecloth out of a remnant I found at Walmart, and there's enough food to feed ten people, so I suppose we'll celebrate in traditional style.Shelley is driving in rain through northern Kentucky, on the way to Minneapolis. I began our conversation this morning with details of what I had been cooking, the ingredients of the turkey dressing, and so forth, but she invited me politely to please shut up, as all she could look forward to was institutional turkey with canned gravy at a truck stop somewhere, and that only if she made good enough time through the rain to be able to take a real dinner break. When she gets to Minneapolis, however, she will be completely out of driving time and will have to be off the road for at least eight hours. So she will take some time off, she said, and visit the Mall of America, which happens to be conveniently near the receiver she's going to.I've worried about her driving an 18-wheeler in foul weather, but she told me that she has opted "not to use chains," which means the company can't deliberately send her into conditions where chains would be necessary. I didn't realize she had that choice, and of course, it doesn't prevent her from getting caught in unexpected snow and ice, as has already happened. But without the chains, she can get off the road, telling her dispatcher that the conditions aren't safe. I suppose that at some point, she could do that anyway, but she can do it in much less severe weather if she doesn't have chains on the truck. She didn't want to push her luck, she said, in her first winter on the road, with no more experience than she has so far.Kate is celebrating Thanksgiving with a crowd of old friends, gay guys she has known for twenty years or more. I envy her the houseful of people, the jangle of multiple conversations, the Macy's parade on television in the background, the smiling faces around the table. But I think I'll have enough to do this year with just Nick and Clarence to feed, and perhaps it won't be long before Kate and I can host that crowd in our own home.Back to basting the turkey, and it's time to start the rolls.Hope everyone is having as nice a day as I. posted by Liz @ 10:24 AM | The template is set to display 10 posts. To see all the posts for this month, click on the month name in the Archive section RSS Feed PERSONAL Send email toliz at life-as-a-spectator-sport.com Home I'm a mother, grandmother, a computer professional, Democrat, Christian. I welcome politely worded comments and email, my spam filter throws the rest away, so don't bother to flame me WHY 'LIFE AS A SPECTATOR SPORT' "If you're lucky not to live in the gutters of a slum, but still can't afford to take vacations in the Alps, you're part of that enormous middle class who lives life through the medium of the television, further separated from "real" life by air conditioner, by automobile, by dishwasher, microwave and ice-in-the-door refrigerator, by automatic washer and dryer, and all the other appliances and conveniences that make it possible for America to live life at second hand. I'm not sure why Americans decided that televised drama was better than the real thing, that cardboard microwave food containers were an adequate substitute for real dishes, and their contents for real food, or that cooking, dishwashing and face-to-face conversation wasn't worth the effort and time it required. Someone fed this nation a plastic crate of out-of-season tomatoes and told us it was life and we took them at their word, and we're so much the poorer for it that it's hard to know where to start to list the shortcomings." I wrote this a couple of years ago, but I have to admit it's much less amusing than I thought it would be to see the artifical construct falling apart. THE NON-ELECTRIC HOME Cleaning, 1 Cleaning, 2 Cleaning, 3 KNITTING BLOGS Extravayarnza Knitting Heretic Mind of Winter Pie Knits Persistent Illusion See Eunny Knit The Keyboard Biologist Taleweaver's Ramblings TECHnitting Wendy Knits FINISHED PROJECTS -------FINISHED IN 2006------- Peruvian Cap Tutti-Frutti Socks Shelley's Socks Carol's Socks -------FINISHED IN 2007------- Chain Link Socks Baby Surprise Jacket Valerie & Friend Baby Bonnet Rainbow Baby Socks Girls Pixie Hood Mitred Square Heart Red & White Socks Coffee Cup Pot Holder Nubbins Dishcloth Garterlac Dishcloth Suede Booties Kate's Socks Norwegian Sweet Baby Cap Half Thumbless Mittens Red Mittens for Akkol -------FINISHED IN 2008------- SELF-RELIANCE AND THE FUTURE -- Blogs and websites -- Causubon's Book Club Orlov Food Storage Made Easy From the Wilderness In the Wake Listening to Katrina Survival Topics The Modern Homestead The Oil Drum Notes from a Hillside Farm -- Mailing Lists -- 12vdc Power Living on the Land Rainwater Refrigeration Alternatives Old Ways of Living POLITICAL BLOGS and SITES The political sites have moved BOOKS I'M READING How to Grow More Vegetables, etc. Small Scale Grain Raising ARCHIVES February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 August 2008 July 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003 December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002 February 2002 Feedjit Live Blog Stats
Happy Thanksgiving, all. It's the best one for me in a while. Holidays are far more fun with a child in the household. I'm over the worst of the labor--the pies are done and cooling on top of the refrigerator where the kitties can't check them out, the turkey is in the oven, the cranberry relish is in the fridge, sausage is cooking for a late breakfast. We'll be lucky to have dinner before three, but all that's left to be done is a salad, a batch of rolls and the sweet potatoes. I decided to forgo mashed potatoes, additional vegetables and the ubiquitous Bonnie's Pink Stuff (our family's version of jello salad, fruit cocktail, Cool Whip, etc.), with just three of us to feed. But I did make a pretty tablecloth out of a remnant I found at Walmart, and there's enough food to feed ten people, so I suppose we'll celebrate in traditional style.Shelley is driving in rain through northern Kentucky, on the way to Minneapolis. I began our conversation this morning with details of what I had been cooking, the ingredients of the turkey dressing, and so forth, but she invited me politely to please shut up, as all she could look forward to was institutional turkey with canned gravy at a truck stop somewhere, and that only if she made good enough time through the rain to be able to take a real dinner break. When she gets to Minneapolis, however, she will be completely out of driving time and will have to be off the road for at least eight hours. So she will take some time off, she said, and visit the Mall of America, which happens to be conveniently near the receiver she's going to.I've worried about her driving an 18-wheeler in foul weather, but she told me that she has opted "not to use chains," which means the company can't deliberately send her into conditions where chains would be necessary. I didn't realize she had that choice, and of course, it doesn't prevent her from getting caught in unexpected snow and ice, as has already happened. But without the chains, she can get off the road, telling her dispatcher that the conditions aren't safe. I suppose that at some point, she could do that anyway, but she can do it in much less severe weather if she doesn't have chains on the truck. She didn't want to push her luck, she said, in her first winter on the road, with no more experience than she has so far.Kate is celebrating Thanksgiving with a crowd of old friends, gay guys she has known for twenty years or more. I envy her the houseful of people, the jangle of multiple conversations, the Macy's parade on television in the background, the smiling faces around the table. But I think I'll have enough to do this year with just Nick and Clarence to feed, and perhaps it won't be long before Kate and I can host that crowd in our own home.Back to basting the turkey, and it's time to start the rolls.Hope everyone is having as nice a day as I.
The template is set to display 10 posts. To see all the posts for this month, click on the month name in the Archive section
RSS Feed
PERSONAL
WHY 'LIFE AS A SPECTATOR SPORT'
"If you're lucky not to live in the gutters of a slum, but still can't afford to take vacations in the Alps, you're part of that enormous middle class who lives life through the medium of the television, further separated from "real" life by air conditioner, by automobile, by dishwasher, microwave and ice-in-the-door refrigerator, by automatic washer and dryer, and all the other appliances and conveniences that make it possible for America to live life at second hand. I'm not sure why Americans decided that televised drama was better than the real thing, that cardboard microwave food containers were an adequate substitute for real dishes, and their contents for real food, or that cooking, dishwashing and face-to-face conversation wasn't worth the effort and time it required. Someone fed this nation a plastic crate of out-of-season tomatoes and told us it was life and we took them at their word, and we're so much the poorer for it that it's hard to know where to start to list the shortcomings." I wrote this a couple of years ago, but I have to admit it's much less amusing than I thought it would be to see the artifical construct falling apart.
THE NON-ELECTRIC HOME
Cleaning, 1 Cleaning, 2 Cleaning, 3
KNITTING BLOGS
Extravayarnza Knitting Heretic Mind of Winter Pie Knits Persistent Illusion See Eunny Knit The Keyboard Biologist Taleweaver's Ramblings TECHnitting Wendy Knits
FINISHED PROJECTS
SELF-RELIANCE AND THE FUTURE
POLITICAL BLOGS and SITES
BOOKS I'M READING
How to Grow More Vegetables, etc. Small Scale Grain Raising
ARCHIVES
February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 August 2008 July 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 May 2007 April 2007 March 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2006 November 2006 October 2006 September 2006 August 2006 July 2006 June 2006 May 2006 April 2006 March 2006 February 2006 January 2006 December 2005 November 2005 October 2005 September 2005 August 2005 July 2005 June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 October 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003 December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002 February 2002
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