Perspectives of a Canadian in the Old/Deep/New/Geographic South: This is where I ramble on about nothing in particular and post a few nice pictures.
My wife has developed a recent and inexplicable fascination with the rodeo. I think it must be related to her current obsession with horses. So tomorrow, we’re off to see the PBR Challenge at the North Charleston Coliseum for a rip-roaring boot stomping good time. Or at least to see some guys get tossed up in the air.
I wonder what would happen if I started rooting for the bulls…
Getting stuff ready to load up into the car so we can head off to the in-laws for the holidays. Holidays are always an interesting time at the in-laws. There’s usually some kind of silliness or drama going on. Our role is mostly as the family caterer, which is just fine by us because it keeps us out of the way, and we can boss people around in the kitchen. Mostly we’re telling people to get out of the kitchen though (at least while we’re working in it).
A few years ago, the annual family gatherings (Thanksgiving and Christmas) kept growing and growing, until one year we were confronted with cooking for 40 people, when we only expected 25. 40 pounds of turkey disappeared with no leftovers in sight. After that, we drew the line and told the family we weren’t cooking for that many people anymore. The next Thanksgiving they were on their own while we took in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade in New York City (a very fun event, but many many people to deal with). Since then, the family gatherings have been much smaller and much more enjoyable.
So, I wonder what will happen this year…we’re only expecting 14 or so for Christmas dinner.
Monday is Canadian Thanksgiving Day! Not quite as big a holiday as it is in the US, nor does it mark the start of the holiday season. But it is a big holiday, with lots of food and family.
My mom usually baked a ham for Thanksgiving, instead of turkey. Once in a while, we’d do a turkey, but we usually preferred ham. For me, it was mostly a day off from school. It was one of the last holidays we could spend outside before breaking out the heavy coats. As I got older, I tended to spend most of my Thanksgivings on my bike cruising through the bike trails back home enjoying the spectacle of fall. Most of the trees turn colour by this time, and there are lots of nice crunchy leaves that are fun to go stomping through. Of course I’d be back home in time for dinner. Usually it was just me, my parents and brother and sister. Sometimes my aunt and uncle would have a big dinner at their place with even more family.
CBC would air It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown! in the evening, which was always fun to watch. There was always a football game to watch in the afternoon.
So now that I live in the US, I get to celebrate 2 Thanksgivings. My regular Thanksgiving in October, and the US Thanksgiving in November. Double the fun and best of all, double the food 🙂
And while writing this, I also learned that Martin Frobisher, an English navigator, celebrated the first Thanksgiving in Canada back in 1578, 43 years before the colonists at Plymouth Rock did. Betcha didn’t know that Canadians celebrated Thanksgiving first!
Hey, coming up in 2005 is the World Year of Physics! 2005 marks the 100 year anniversary of Einstein’s publications on Brownian motion, general relativity and quantum mechanics. An auspicious year in the world of physics, as any physics geek will tell you. And in 2005, you can join physicists worldwide celebrating the event. Start your preparations today!