Thanksgiving traditions, and other interpretations

Thanksgiving is a day of tradition. This, of course, means everyone does it a little differently, and the differences make it interesting.

The first year I really enjoyed Thanksgiving was when my sister and I told both our sets of divorced parents that we'd attend the other family's festivities. Then, with all parents out of town, we went for thanksgiving Phad Thai (very exotic, in our early teenage years), then home to watch TV in our pajamas.

A few years later, I was studying in Berlin and all my friends went away for the weekend. So I retreated to the place that reminded me most of home: Starbucks. A very long evening with snow outside, my laptop and homework, and lattes with their slightly-off taste from the German milch. It sounds a little lonely, but I loved it.

While my Thanksgiving 2009 followed a more traditional pattern, I was still very interested to hear where friends found their turkey. Some highlights:

• In the grand spirit of avoiding family, a friend took her Australian boyfriend to Leavenworth. Presumably he cares more for faux Bavarian history than for pilgrims. To this Thanksgiving getaway idea, I raise my stein and say, "Prost!"
  
• A more traditionally-spirited co-worker flew to her family farm in Virgina, for a Thanksgiving feast with 60+ relatives. Facebook photos confirm that the farm is ridiculously picturesque: a perfect white house surrounded by orange trees and rolling hills. One more Normal Rockwell touch: despite the huge crowd, every table is covered in a pristine tablecloth and set with fine china and silver.
• A friend in NYC hosted a small party, but still purchased a 22-pound turkey -- that's 3 to 4 pounds of turkey per person. I was doubly shocked that her Manhattan kitchen would fit a bird this big. Her plan: lots of home-made stock and turkey in the freezer, for "delicious soup all winter!" (This, of course, made my 13-pound turkey feel like paltry rations for winter, so Brian and I went back to the store for another turkey -- purely for soup purposes. Thanks for the soup-inspiration, Kelsey.)
• Jill, always an enthusiastic dinner participant, was not to be outdone by Kelsey (note: this turkey competition is purely in my head, not intentional), and so hosted thanksgiving at home. For just her + boyfriend. The table for two had everything at my table for six, including all sides and the turkey. That's like 6 pounds of turkey per person, plus god-knows-how-many pounds of holiday starch and carbs. Congrats, Jill, for being the hostest with the mostest gluttonous, glutinous thanksgiving feast!