I was wondering where the name Black Friday came from so I did what all of us do now whenever we want to find the answers to any of life’s important questions; I Googled it.

What a tool we have at our disposal. What an amazing engine. Yes, that’s what it is referred to as, an engine. A search engine. Pretty cool I guess.

Wikipedia, an equally important tool for all of us in the know, says that the name Black Friday can be traced back to the 1960s. It apparently originated in Philadelphia and was used to describe the terrible traffic on the day after Thanksgiving. I wonder if perhaps we should go ahead and make it an official holiday. It has come to represent the insane consumerism that is so important to the survival of the American economy.

I watched President-elect Obama on TV the other night and saw how he tip-toed around Barbara Walter’s question regarding their family Christmas. He had to make sure that he did not sound as though a big Christmas was easy for his family, given the problems many Americans are facing and at the same time sound an optimistic note in an effort to inspire confidence in the whole system. I thought he did well. At least he didn’t just tell us to “go buy things”, like our current Chief Executive so crudely put it.

The good news for me and my wife is that we are not even thinking about going out to participate in the madness. The weather here is a little bleak anyway, what with winds and rain, but even if the sun was shining we have no desire to get involved. We are perfectly happy to sit this one out.

By now of course, we have all heard about the Wal-Mart employee who was trampled to death after a crowd of bloodthirsty consumers stormed the doors of the business in an effort to get the things they felt entitled to. I am trying very hard to imagine what any Wal-Mart in this country could contain that would mean that much to me. Do these people ever sit quietly and read books? Does the advertising on TV fill them with meaning and give them purpose in their never ending quest for more stuff? Pick up a Bible or almost any book, friend. Take a deep breath and come up with an alternative to crushing someone alive.

Our Thanksgiving Meal

Yesterday MP and I had a nice quiet Thanksgiving in our traditional non-traditional manner. I have included photos. We spoke with most of our family on the phone and in the evening I watched an old Alfred Hitchcock movie while my wife attempted to absorb it by osmosis as she slept on the couch. I really don’t know who enjoyed it more.

One of the other great things about the internet is that in addition to finding out all of the answers to our important questions, it is a great way to shop. Books, clothes, food, furniture, hardware supplies, and in fact, almost everything can be purchased online and shipped to your home without the messiness of crushing people to death. We think it’s a great option.

I guess I must sound rather pessimistic. All this talk of people dying and unbridled greed for stuff, but I don’t really mean to be that way. One of the fun things I did this week was get back to baking pies again. I have mentioned on this site before about my recent struggles with my recipe for pie dough. My mom got in touch and offered her usual words of encouragement and after listening to her and re-reading my Julia Child instructions I am happy to report that I seem to have reacquired my touch. Thanks Mom.

Three Pumpkin Pies

Last week I made five pumpkin and two pecan pies and I don’t mind saying that they were pretty good. Next week I am going to try some more. I also want to point out that I sent three of those pies to my wife’s office Thanksgiving lunch and gave two to our great neighbors next door. I can’t imagine what eating all of those pies by ourselves would have looked like. Actually the problem is that I really CAN imagine what that would be like and therefore I am always looking for people to give pies to. Any volunteers out there?

Two Pecan Pies

I also want to share a website I have found with all of you pie lovers out there. Check out www.pie-off.blogspot.com. This is where I got the recipe I used for my pecan pies and they were very good. You will find a lot of interesting pie stuff there and when they have their annual pie-off competition next year I hope to travel to Portland to compete.

If you must travel in the next couple of days, please be polite to those around you and be safe.

Oh, and of course since Turkey Day is past us now, Merry Christmas.

The Noble Tigger

My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving.

First of all, I am extremely thankful for all I have in life. The best family a person could ask for and when I say family I mean everyone up and down the line. My wife is my best friend. I have the greatest children a father could ask for and I came from a great family; two terrific parents and three wonderful and funny brothers. The family I inherited when I married my wife is just as fantastic in their own way and when I really stop and think about them, as I am today, I can hardly believe my good fortune. So I got that going for me, which is nice.

Secondly, I have a roof over my head and plenty to eat. I pray that this situation will remain the same but I never want to take it for granted. Things are getting rougher out there and if we have shelter and food we should be grateful. We should also be looking around us and doing what we can for those who are not as fortunate. This is no time to be particularly judgmental. Lend a hand when you can.

The third thing that I am lucky to have in my life is friends. There are folks back east who I miss a lot and there are new friends I’ve made here on the west coast. I won’t call you all out by name but I certainly hope you know who you are. I love you all.

Thanksgiving used to be a time when we tried to really roll out the red carpet and bring a crowd into our house. We were fortunate enough to live in a large home and I used to love to roast a twenty pound bird and make all the fixin’s for a large feast. We had a group of regulars who usually attended these get-togethers as well as a few new people every year. I planned for it weeks in advance and, with the help of my wife, I baked pies, bought wine and just stocked the pantry to its fullest. It was a joy to get together and laugh and tell stories and share what we had been blessed to have. My whole family has great memories of those events and some of the folks who came still call and ask what time they should come over. Since most of them would have to travel three thousand miles or so, I usually tell them to leave early so they don’t miss out on the mashed potatoes. They always seemed to go first.

Some years we had folks in who I knew did not have anywhere else to go. Some years we invited people who were new to the town and just meeting people and we always had friends and family who if they could not come for the meal, would at least stop for a drink or a piece of pie. The important thing was to make contact with friends and family old and new because that is what it’s all about. Oh, and I almost forgot the one other thing I love about Thanksgiving. NO GIFTS. At least there is no pressure to bring or worry about whether or not we should expect a gift or be expected to provide one. That is the thing about Christmas, which is a great holiday in its own right that can make things awkward.

One night last week we were invited to join the friends we have next door to us for dinner. Sara and Tim are our closest and best neighbors here in the great Northwest and we love to get together when we can and share some food and laughs. Shortly after we moved in last year, Sara brought us a pan of sweet rolls and we have been exchanging food ever since. We love them dearly.

The Feast

On this particular evening Sara had made this fantastic vegetarian lasagna. She also provided salad and some wonderful bread with goat cheese. We brought a couple of bottles of wine and we sat and ate and laughed and drank and most of all smiled the whole evening. It was nothing really fancy or elaborate because we are good enough friends that we don’t worry about whether or not everything is perfect or if the kitchen is immaculate. We get together because we like each other’s company and we try to do things for each other because we appreciate having friends that are just across the driveway.

Sara and Tim have three large cats who have taken some time in getting to know us. Most cats need to check you out before they commit to letting you touch them and I think that is a good thing but after a year, they are warming up to us and we treat them like grandchildren. So we get to enjoy the fun things with cats but not have any of the responsibility. Pretty cool.

This year we were invited to a couple of Thanksgiving get-togethers and we have declined all of the invitations. We want to just hang out in our own space and enjoy our own company. It’s not that we don’t appreciate all the friendships or that we are getting antisocial in our old age; it’s just that sometimes you want to have some quiet time. We are still grateful for all we have and we are well aware that we have plenty. Plenty of food and heat. Plenty of friends who we love dearly and plenty of family to help when we can is a blessing. Life is good.

Oh, and our dinner this year will be the traditional non-traditional meal that we have had only a couple of Thanksgivings since we got married. We will dine on pierogies, coleslaw and sausage washed down with delightful Belgian farmhouse ale. I still love turkey of course but a little change now and then does a soul good. May your holidays be joyful and don’t forget to give to someone other than yourself once in awhile. God bless you all.

Great Neighbors

If you look at the amount of space that is used in most grocery stores to display breakfast cereal you have to guess that cereal plays a large role in the store’s sales. In your neighborhood chain food store it’s all about display space. Different companies and suppliers battle for the right to stick their wares in the most advantageous places and to get as much of whatever available display space is up for grabs. Some products get very narrow slices of the shelf pie and others take up huge spaces by the door where you enter or perhaps on the end of a regular aisle.

Today I found myself standing in the middle of a fairly narrow aisle (the aisles themselves have to be passable but not too far apart or it will eat up the available merchandise space) trying to locate the Uncle Sam Breakfast Cereal that my wife and I eat. The sheer overwhelming number of cereals offered for sale made the simple search I was trying to conduct a bit of a task. Many of the boxes have similar artwork and colors. Most of the various sizes that the products come in have similar patterns and the huge selection caused my eyes to glaze. I felt a state of sleepy calm beginning to overtake me. Gradually the periphery of my vision became narrower and a Vaseline type glaze not unlike opening your eyes under water took place. After a brief effort to right myself and to fight off the deadening haze that my mind had drifted into, I felt a release and perceived an audible snap that indicated that I had crossed some line of consciousness. I drifted into a semi-spiritual state that ended in my field of vision swirling and slanting and sliding off of my sensory plane.

Then I found myself walking in a field of tall grass in my bare feet. The sun was shining and there were huge fluffy clouds drifting slowly through the sky. Most of the grasses and wild flowers that made up the field I was strolling leisurely through reached the level of my chest or at least slightly above my waist. I was moving through these plants in a slow stroll and the flowers were incredible. I recognized black eyed Susans, daisies, sunflowers and when I looked down at my bare feet I saw violets and dandelions as well as morning glories and buttercups. These were the flowers of my childhood; the flowers that I remember seeing all the time as a child growing up in the rural dairy country of northwestern Pennsylvania. I felt like a child again and I was warmed by the summer sun of late August. I moved on through the field and after a few minutes saw a fence made of wooden posts and barbed wire that separated the field from a large valley where a small stream was flowing. The noise of the water running over the stones and pebbles of the creek brought back more memories of youth. These sounds and sights were old friends.

I dropped to the ground and rolled under the lower strand of barbed wire and slid down the hillside to the short grass of a pasture that ran along the edge of the stream. I approached the abrupt dirt bank that followed the stream and I dropped to my knees, sitting down on the roots of a large maple that stretched out over the water. There was a faint fishy, moist earthy aroma that rose to my nose and I could see eight to twelve inch carp and suckers moving upstream in the shallow water. A small pool that had formed on the downstream side of the maple tree held tadpoles with legs that were almost fully developed and crayfish of various sizes. A fat water snake slid into the water on the other side of the tree and I was able to catch just the briefest glimpse of his patterned skin as he disappeared downstream. Not all of the creatures were glad that I was there.

I leaned against the tree and stared up into the pillowy clouds that were drifting at a pace that revealed their lack of ambition. They were in no hurry and I could think of no reason why I should be as I drifted off to sleep. What a gorgeous day to be alive and what a lucky fool I was to be as in this delicious world.

When I came to I discovered a large man with greasy parted hair and a ridiculously proper tie standing over me. An older woman was offering me a drink of water and she was the first person I recognized. She was the check out person in the store I shopped in. She smiled and asked me how I was in a manner that made me believe she really wanted to know. What the hell was going on?

You feeling better honey? Is there anyone we can call for you? You fell down. We don’t think you hit you head but we think you might get someone here so you don’t have to drive. I know you drove here because the bag guy knows you car.

Bag guy?

What?

Where’s the Uncle Sam Cereal? I just need to get a couple of boxes of that stuff.

Uncle Sam’s is one of those natural cereals that people hate because it tastes like you’re eating a bowl of oats or wheat berries. There is no added sugar. It has flax seed in it and there are ten, yes that’s right TEN, (10) grams of fiber in each serving.

Now we all know that you have to be careful about what constitutes a serving size. When you read the ingredients on the side of the box and you check out all of that nutritional information you must be sure to see what they list as a serving size. It might have twenty percent of the daily recommended requirements of Vitamin C or Protein or whatever, but if the serving size is half a bushel and it takes twenty boxes of the stuff to get that much, then it really doesn’t mean much if you get my point. Now that is an obvious exaggeration and I “never” like to exaggerate, but I have read the nutritional information on candy bars and thought that the fat and sugar content was not all that bad until I discovered that in their opinion one bar constituted three servings. Yeah, right. I’ll buy a candy bar and share it with two other people.

Uncle Sam Cereal comes in two versions. One version is just the cereal and the other has dried blueberries, strawberries and raspberries in it. I used to buy the one with the dried fruit but I have discovered that it cost almost a buck more than the plain version. Now I just add my own fruit. My wife likes raisins and I like bananas. I just checked out their website and it turns out they sell an instant Oatmeal in two different flavors as well as some sort of energy bar. I have not sampled them as I have not seen them in any of the fine grocery stores I shop in, but I bet they are good.

I like the flavor of the whole grain goodness and that is what Uncle Sam’s is really all about. As I stated in some of my earlier posts, I am all about colon health and whole grains. Do yourself a favor and make sure you get some good fiber in your diet. Everyone should have a colonoscopy by the time they are fifty and by eating a lot of fiber in your younger years you will help to prevent colon cancer. Colon cancer is highly curable if caught early so be sure to get the colonoscopy when you turn fifty and do what the doctor says. Alright. Enough said.

I can’t help but think that there are some parts of our lives where we just have way too many choices. Standing in front of an overwhelming array of possibilities is enough to make anyone drift into la la land. I like to sample new foods and drinks and I hope I never give up trying new things but sometimes when you find something that really works for you on whatever level, then you just need to stick to it and as we say in our family, “keep on enjoying yourself”.

I think Uncle Sam is killer. Check it out with some bananas and soy milk. Good stuff.