My buckeye memories

It’s that time of the year again!

It snows. The holiday feeling’s in the air. People have smiles on their faces.

Thanksgiving is American version of Chinese New Year.

Let me describe Thanksgiving in six words : A lot of food + family + shopping 

Who wouldn’t fall in love with this holiday spirit?

The best time of the year hands down!

So…to live my Thanksgiving fully and eat to my heart’s content,

I started to get myself prepared close to two weeks in advance.

I figured…a lot of gym classes and library time could buy me three days of not doing anything but eating, sleeping and being a pig basically.

I squeezed 18 hours of working into three days (yes, it’s still important to make some money even if everyone’s head has not been at work already.)and left for Cleveland the day before Thanksgiving. Because of schedule conflicts, I couldn’t ride with Karen this time. I planned a Greyhound trip. I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone since Greyhound has the most horrible customer services ever. If you are willing to risk your holiday, then, go for it. I was actually surprised they are still in the business.  

Fortunately, everything went well this time. Except for the fact that the guy sat next to me picked his nose like I was not there. It was not bad. The gift I bought this time was two kinds of rice--sushi and basmati. It might not seem normal, saying…look at what Thanksgiving gift I brought you…tada…rice!!! But I based on what I knew about Karen’s family, they would want rice every now and then. They just needed someone to buy them some, which is…me! in this case.      

Here is the thanksgiving feast I had:

Turkey, gravy, stuffing and cranberry sauce of course.

Stir-fired green beans, sweet potato casserole with marshmallows on the top, pumpkin pie and cherry pie (with a lattice top!)

Just like年菜服務, Whole Food and some other stores offer catering. But hey, preparing a lot of food for family and friends are part of the Thanksgiving tradition.

It can be quite a task… Plan and delegate! It wouldn’t be as bad but a lot of fun!

Anyone who should be sad is probably turkeys. My heart goes to them. May you be the turkey that would be spared by Obama in your next life. Oh…maybe not. Try to be human so that you could know how good to have turkey in Thanksgiving.

We watched MACY’S parade on TV in the morning while preparing for the food.

Karen’s ex came to join as in the last minute. At 6 p.m. sharp, we started by sharing what you were thankful for this year.

And…

We just sat there, ate much more than usual, talked random stuff, laughed, seemed have nothing to say, and talked again.

It sucked to be alone in Thanksgiving. I really appreciated Karen to have me at her parents’ house. I am grateful for all life has offered me—good or bad. It’s gonna be a tough year ahead, keep my fingers crossed…

Hope all of my friends in Taiwan have been doing great as we anticipating another year to come. Special thanks to my Mom and Dad who has been extremely supportive over the past year. For my friends who handpicked great postcards for me, thank you all. Those cards made my day every single time I received them. Hope you cherish every moment of your life on your end—good or bad.

Until next year…!

Erica. 2014 Thanksgiving.