A Drama-Free Thanksgiving (Almost)!

Yesterday, I stepped on the bathroom scale and squinted at the number staring back at me—a bit larger than the one last Wednesday. The holidays have begun!

This year’s annual, gut-busting holiday of excess and family neurosis commenced last Tuesday evening on a flight from Birmingham, Alabama, to Washington, DC. I thought that by traveling on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, I would avoid the travel rush. I was wrong. 

American Airlines loaded us up timely, but as the minutes ticked away, I suspected something was amiss. I was near the front of the plane and I could see a lot of people congregating around the cockpit, talking in hushed tones.  The captain would frequently send the gate agent scurrying back up the jetway as if he were on a scavenger hunt. In fact, he was. The log book had gone missing and without it, the FAA would not let us takeoff. Of course, this being 2018, the FAA requires that the log book be kept in paper format and in a three-ring binder. And so the captain ran off the plane to find a printer in the airport with which to print the 116-page log book. An hour later, we took off. 

When we landed in at Regan-National, at first I thought I was at the airport in Lagos, Nigeria, it was so chaotic. After several false starts and traffic jams, we finally headed down I-95 to Williamsburg, Virginia, our final destination. 

When we arrived around 1:00 a.m., we were tired but wired and didn’t go to bed right away like we should have. We all stayed up too late eating several bowls of cereal: Cocoa Krispies, Froot Loops, and Apple Jacks. But eventually we ambled off to bed for some much-needed sleep.

* * *

For me, Thanksgiving is food’s high holy day. Forget family; it's all about the food. Unlike year's past, however, I was willing to delegate this year's preparation. My friend Andrew made the turkey, dressing, and gravy. His oldest daughter made a delightful cheesecake. In fact, everyone helped out this year, which greatly reduced my stress and increased the joy for my guests (all 15!). Kitchen staff consisted of my wife Laura; Rob, my brother-in-law; and my sons, Forrest and Hampton.  

We all worked well together and there was little drama—maybe the cocktails helped. Most importantly, I only went into Gordon Ramsey mode once. We stayed on schedule and sat down to enjoy a delicious Thanksgiving meal around 6:30PM. 

Here’s the menu:

Appetizers

Assorted cheeses and charcuterie

Blackberry Farms Pimento Cheese

Pickled Shrimp

Main

Roast Turkey with Dressing & Gravy

Sides

Collard Greens

Creamed Corn with Tarragon

Mashed Potatoes

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Southern Style Green Beans

Cranberry Sauce

Rolls

Pumpkin Muffins

Desserts

Blackberry Jam Cake

Walnut Tart with Chantilly Cream

Cheesecake

And unlike past Thanksgiving dinners, we didn’t scarf down our food, something I really appreciated. Instead, we had a nice leisurely meal with good conversation. As Jimmy Stewart once said, "I was the richest man in town."