RadarLove

I looked out the window this morning and saw the sheep following single file behind Misty the Belgian horse as she went out to the pasture field. At first I thought they were just sticking close because they saw a coyote yesterday. Then I realized they had their noses to the ground. They were nibbling at the fresh green shoots that sprung from where Misty’s huge hooves had melted the frost. Opportunists.

Sheila the barncat-turned-housecat got fixed yesterday. Today I found her resting in the dollhouse, in the room with the felt carpeting. I think she was hiding on her kittens, who are still nursing at 8 weeks of age. Enough already.

Our turkeys turned out to be a lot heavier than we thought they would be. The females were 18 to 22 pounds, while the males were 28 to 35 pounds. There are going to be a lot of leftover turkey sandwiches eaten in North Grenville this week.

I did some research and discovered that the tryptophan in turkeys doesn’t really put us to sleep. That’s a myth. It’s the deadly combination of fats (gravy, stuffing, cheesy mashed potatoes, butter, PIE), alcohol and overeating that causes drowsiness. If we ate turkey on its own, without the trimmings and in moderate amounts, it wouldn’t have the same effect. Apparently a chunk of cheddar cheese has more tryptophan than a single serving of turkey. Interesting. But maybe only to me. I have learned that I am attracted to and a retainer of trivia. Many days I can’t remember my debit card PIN but I can remember the most obscure items of trivia. My dear old Dad used to say, “Diana, you’re smart in ways that’ll get you nowhere in the world.” Hmm. Well it does make me a valuable team member in a trivia contest, if nothing else.

We do tend to overeat at Thanksgiving but with our huge family dinners each Sunday, it’s like Thanksgiving every single week. This is why I have gained 25 pounds since my wedding day four years ago. And yes, I realize it’s more important to be healthy than thin, so you can stop writing me that email. But come on. That’s more than 5 pounds a year. At this rate I’ll be 200 pounds by my 50^th birthday.

I am thankful to be big and healthy. I’m happy to be able to work at home, and blessed to be fed so well by my loving husband the Farmer and Head Cook, even when the contracts are not flowing in.

I am grateful for children who, after having moved out of the house, now consider me their friend. I’m the one they call on their day off, when they want to ‘just hang out’.

Did you take time to consider your blessings this Thanksgiving? There’s a new trend, I noticed, where some people are doing away with the annual Thanksgiving dinner and all of its overabundance. They argue that we should be thankful every day of the year, and not just the second Monday in October. Well, I agree with that concept, but I think that most of us need a reminder to give thanks for all our blessings. The stat holiday helps us to do that, and to get together with family and friends for the occasion.

The cornucopia of food doesn’t have to be wasteful either. Not much goes to waste in this house. We have college students, hungry yuppies, barn kitties and farm dogs who will gladly take any leftovers (and usually in that order too).

We also live in the best country in the world, and arguably the best province in that country. Those of us who have lived elsewhere can testify to that truth. And for those who insist on raining our Thanksgiving parade, they can just stick a drumstick in it. I’m not listening.