Sierra Mountain Times

It’s nearing that wonderful anticipated time of year again when people partake in the greatest feast of the year. It’s a time of turkey, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie and football…but most of all it’s about the gathering of family and friends and being thankful for our many blessings. This year we decided to share with our readers how the members of the Sierra Mountain Times family celebrate during this special time of year. Made up of over thirty people ranging in age from 11 to 85, we decided to let a number of our family members share with you a little bit of what their Thanksgiving Day involves, their favorite foods, their favorite memories and what they are thankful for. Collectively we are most thankful for you, the readers! We hope this will allow you to get to know our family a little bit better and inspire you to reflect on your favorite memories and what you are thankful for during this holiday. From our family to yours, Happy Thanksgiving!  

Dorothy Edwards, (85), Distribution: “I used to do the cooking and everybody came, but now someone else does the cooking and I travel. I’ve gone to San Jose, Clovis, Jamestown, Manteca…and this year I will be going to Clovis again. There will probably be 8-10 people. We have the same thing every year: turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, sweet potatoes, green beans, shrimp salad, fruit salad, pumpkin pie and apple pie. It’s hard to have a favorite food…I like it all! One of my favorite memories was after World War II and there were two Thanksgivings that year. My brother just came home from the war in 1945 and we had the first Thanksgiving at my mother’s house and the next Thursday we had a can of raviolis…I remember that very clear. And then we went to work the midnight shift for the railroad. I was 21. Also, when I think of Thanksgiving I have one that always comes to mind of lots of family sitting around a big table with a turkey. It was always so much fun because my mother made it special for us. I am so thankful for so many things that are too numerous to count. Every little thing…every meal, every crumb, every dollar…I just really appreciate it all!”

Michael McCaffrey, (76), Quality Assurance: “Since our inn is so busy on Thanksgiving we celebrate the weekend before with some very close family: my children and grandkids, my brother and sisters and my favorite cousin and his wife and family, my brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Mike and Louise Gibson and often their children. My older sister, my cousin and I grew up together and share a lot of memories from early childhood. There are a lot of Cal grads in the family so my cousin Ralph (a Cal grad) and I watch the big game on Saturday. No one has to travel more than a couple hours except my older son, Casey who comes up from San Clemente with my two grandchildren. My favorite food has to be the turkey – not just for dinner, but the turkey sandwiches the next day goes great with football. Plus my wife makes a delicious turkey soup with the carcass. Some of my favorite Thanksgiving memories are from my childhood. Growing up my Thanksgiving holidays were spent on my great grandfather’s cattle ranch near San Martin. It was a big annual family reunion with at least four generations from all over Northern California – maybe 35-40 people. We all moved into the big bunkhouse because the cowhands had gone home for the holidays. We would bundle up three and four to a bed and tell ghost stories at night. Our dinner was very traditional with turkey and mashed potatoes cooked on an old wood burning iron stove by my grandmother. Everyone helped cook, serve and clean up. It was an event filled three or four days we always looked forward to sharing. I’m thankful for having such a wonderful family both past and present. I’m grateful that we can find the time to come together and share our lives with each other and to give each other love and support. My children Casey and Tim make me proud and my grandchildren are wonders to behold. I am a very fortunate man.”

Pie: Pumpkin pie is an SMT family favorite! According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the largest pumpkin pie ever baked weighed 2,020 pounds and measured just over 12 feet long. It was baked on October 8, 2005 by the New Bremen Giant Pumpkin Growers in Ohio, and included 900 pounds of pumpkin, 62 gallons of evaporated milk, 155 dozen eggs, 300 pounds of sugar, 3.5 pounds of salt, 7 pounds of cinnamon, 2 pounds of pumpkin spice and 250 pounds of crust.

Ron Parris, (72 years young), Distribution: “This Thanksgiving my wife Karen and I will be getting an early start to Santa Monica, CA to spend time with my daughter and her husband, Michon and Rich, and two of my grandchildren, Livia and Juliete. They are a sweet family and I can’t see enough of them. Then, on Thanksgiving Day, we will all go to Los Angeles to meet at Rich’s brother’s house to have Thanksgiving dinner with the rest of the gang. That will include my son, Brandon, and his wife, Timea, and our other two grandchildren, Hayden and Chloe, as well as various other in-laws of Rich’s side of the family. It will be great fun! Food served will be the traditional turkey, wavy gravy, mashed potatoes and the rest of what you would expect for this occasion. One of my favorite Thanksgiving remembrances had to be when I was between 12 and 16 years old. My family, mother, dad and sister and I would travel from Denison, TX across the Red River into Oklahoma, where I was born, to go to my Aunt Jean’s home in Oklahoma City for the weekend. In those, older, more ancient times, the University Of Oklahoma and the University of Texas would play the Saturday before Thanksgiving. It was a wonderful, very exciting and happy time to be together with each other. It always involved storytelling about what had happened during the last year, who did what, which team was the best and which team would win!  So there would be many friendly, loving arguments about what would transpire. But, it would always end with a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner the next day! I will always remember those days and my loving family who have all since passed away. They were probably the most quintessential American Thanksgiving experiences that one could possibly have. I am so thankful for those wonderful days, weekends, that I had in the past, and those that I will have this Thanksgiving with my children and grandchildren and friends that I have now in my advanced years.”

Karen Parris (Over 21) Distribution: “We will be driving to the Santa Monica/L.A. areas to stay with our children and grandchildren for a few days. Then, on THE BIG DAY, all of us will drive down south and spend the day with more family members. I’m guessing that there will be around 18 to 25 very hungry folk devouring the bird. My favorite part of the meal is turkey, gravy, and mashed potatoes! Then bring on the pumpkin pie!! A funny Thanksgiving memory that I will always remember happened to my little brother, Paulie. He was around five years old and we were all gathered around the table stuffing our faces, when my older brother, Jimmy, told a very funny story. Paulie had just taken a swallow of milk at the punch line and we all started laughing so hard. Poor Paulie sucked the milk up his nose, which caused us all to laugh even harder, and Paulie started crying milk!”

Stephanie McCaffrey, (can’t believe I’m 67), Accountant:  “We now celebrate Thanksgiving twice – once the weekend prior to Thanksgiving and then again on Thanksgiving Day. The weekend before Thanksgiving our inn is filled with family.  The traditional Thanksgiving dinner is prepared and enjoyed by all. We’ve had up to 30 people there for dinner. Quite often on Thanksgiving Day, if it’s just my brother, Louise, my husband, Michael, and me, and we will have turkey soup, a salad and dessert. If the children and grandchildren are here we have a second Thanksgiving dinner! I have been preparing Thanksgiving dinners for the past 35 years and it seems the same foods must be served or it’s just not Thanksgiving. Every year I look for new and wonderful dishes to prepare and every year the vote is for the same traditional foods. My favorite food of the meal is the stuffing. The first time I prepared stuffing for a turkey my mother was out of the country and I had no idea what all went in the stuffing. I called my mother’s friends, got all of their recipes and put everything they all put into their stuffing into mine. It’s yummy and loved by all – if I do say so myself. I have a few favorite Thanksgiving memories as it is my favorite holiday. Thanksgiving at my grandparent’s home was very special as my grandmother set a beautiful, formal table with lovely linens, china, sterling silver, and crystal and prepared an elegant dinner which was served to us. As my mother was an only child there were only six for dinner. Dinner at my parent’s home was not as formal and lots of family came as my dad had five brothers and one sister. So it was lots of family, lots of food, lots of fun and lots of noise! We also had wonderful Thanksgivings at our cabin, which sat where our inn now stands. Michael and the children would go skiing for the day with other ski friends and the women would stay home and cook and then all come together for dinner at our cabin. It was great fun. Just before dinner the kids would gather greens and pinecones and decorate the tables for dinner. I am most thankful for my family and friends – especially Michael as he has loved me and put up with me for 45 years. I love living in Twain Harte, and am thankful and blessed that Tim, Olivia and Jaden live here and that my brother Mike and sister-in-law Louise live only a few minutes away. One of the happiest days of my life was the day they moved here. I am thankful for Casey, Ally and Jack and wish they all lived closer. I am thankful for Patt and her family and for the many friends I have in Soroptimist and Twain Harte. I thank God everyday for my family, my friends and the blessings in my life.” 

Wayne Kirkbride (67) Contributor/Copy Editor: “Generally, we travel to the Bay Area to share Thanksgiving with my father (96) who can’t travel any longer. My family is spread out with their own families, so we share with my sister, niece, and nephew and sometimes combine two visits in one day to other family members not too distant from each other. We enjoy the usual Thanksgiving menu: turkey, dressing, yams, potatoes, etc. and two kinds of pies for dessert. One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories was from my youth when my high school alma mater beat its arch rival on turkey day and then went home to enjoy mom and dad’s Thanksgiving dinner. I am thankful for one, that there are term limits and Bush couldn’t run again – not that he would have had much of a chance. On a more serious note, I am thankful for my family and extended family of aunts and uncles in other states, and our grandchildren who are young adults and babies.”

BJ Sibley, (66), Columnist – Musings: “When we have dinner in Twain Harte I usually I put the turkey in the oven and my sons cook the rest of the meal! What a treat because they and their wives also insist on cleaning up! Sometimes we travel to the East Bay to be with family. Wherever we go it seems the men do most of the cooking. We eat a pretty traditional fare. One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories is from my youth. As my father was in the Army, we spent many Thanksgiving holidays eating in Army mess halls where the holiday fare was bountiful. We were in Germany in 1951, when I was 8 years old, and on Thanksgiving Day we went to see an Army parade. My father explained we were going because an important general would be there. It was cold and rainy and I just wanted the parade to be over with so we could go to the warm mess hall and eat. Just as the parade was finished, a very distinguished looking man in a uniform walked by and reporters started snapping pictures. The distinguished man walked over to where a group of us were standing and asked if I wanted to have my picture taken with him. He turned to the cameras, placed a couple of us kids next to him and told the reporters to take pictures of “something cute”. He had his arm resting on my shoulder. He was a nice man and asked us a few questions. My father was impressed. We later got a copy of the picture from the Public Information Office. The distinguished man was Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). When Eisenhower became President, I mailed him a copy of the picture which he kindly autographed. I am thankful for my family and friends.”

BJ: An 8-year-old BJ Sibley (second from the left) standing next to Dwight D. Eisenhower, Supreme Commander of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on Thanksgiving Day in Germany, 1951. When Eisenhower became president BJ mailed a copy of the picture to him and he sent it back with his autograph.

Patt Koral, (a young 63), Copy Editor: “Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday of the year. We always have Thanksgiving at our home in Twain Harte and we usually have around 20 friends and family. Over the past six to seven years we have housed actors for SRT, and each Thanksgiving several of them come from all over to share Thanksgiving. Our farthest travelers this year are coming from PA and several from LA. We have basically the same dinner every year. One year I had pumpkin-pecan pie instead of just plain pumpkin, and almost had a mutiny on my hands. I never tried that again!  My favorite food of the meal is GOOD mashed potatoes. My favorite memory is Thanksgiving 1985. My whole family came and had a wonderful day of food, fun and love. It was the last Thanksgiving where my entire family was together as my father passed away in June of 1986. When each person around our table says for what they are thankful, I say, having the most wonderful father for 39 years! There isn’t room for all the things for which I am thankful. I am most thankful for my wonderful family. My husband, Ken, who has loved me and been there for me for over 45 years (and sometimes that has not been easy!). My children, Deena and Ben, of who I am so proud. They make each day an adventure! My son-in-law, Matt, who shows all of us his love and devotion to family. To my beautiful granddaughter, Madison, who completes all of us. To my many friends, I treasure and love them dearly. I am thankful each and everyday for these gifts of family and friends.”

Betty Hensley, (between 60 and 65), Columnist – Mountain Gardener: “When I think of Thanksgiving, I reflect on many, many wonderful family times together. I have been thinking a lot these days of how much I have to be thankful for: a wonderful family, good health, a great job, and a comfortable home. It is easy in the hustle and bustle of everyday living to forget about these things and to take what is truly special and meaningful for granted. The Thanksgiving dinners that were most special to our family always seem to be the ones when everyone, no matter how far they had to travel, would join together for a warm, very loud, but loving time, eating way too much of a variety of the family’s favorite holiday dishes. Ortega rice, Very-Berry Jell-O salad, loads of buttery mashed potatoes, the slightly-golden-oversized turkey with wild rice stuffing, homemade bread, calorie-rich cheesecake, and lots of homemade pumpkin pies, were just some of the many tempting dishes that were requested year after year. It always puts a big smile on my face as I remember sitting around the dining table after Thanksgiving dinner and listening to my children. I learned about mischievous events in their past, that until that moment were tales that mother was not to be made aware of. Each child would try and outdo the other with stories that would hopefully surprise, maybe even shock mom. Mission accomplished, as we laughed together, with our bellies full to the brim, with happy children and grandchildren on our laps. However you spend the holiday, I hope you are able to share the day with those who matter the most and take a moment or two to give thanks for all of the things that are good in your lives. I know I plan to.”

Marv Dealy, (58), Columnist – Byte Me: “I’ve not been one to “go home” for holidays for many years. That meansI find something local to do. There is any number of places to go, not counting restaurants, so the problem is making a choice. Some years ago I stumbled across the most incredible cranberry relish/preserve recipe. It takes a year to mature and is welcome at every meal it’s been to. Makes you want to never use “regular” cranberry sauce again. I’ve been to any number of vegetarian Thanksgiving meals, and to someone who wasn’t a vegetarian many of the dishes would be considered uncommon. My favorite food is probably the pies. One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories is the year I made stuffing from the “best recipe” as noted by the San Francisco Chronicle. It really was the best stuffing of all time…and naturally, I lost the recipe. I am thankful for bad health – if it wasn’t for that, I wouldn’t have any health at all.”

Chuck Garcia (55), Columnist – Herbs Past and Present:  “For the last several years we’ve had Thanksgiving at home and invited anywhere from 10 to 20 family and friends to join us. My wife takes over the kitchen on this day and tends towards traditional Thanksgiving fare. But over the years I’ve added a baked squash dish: zucchini and yellow squash with garlic olive oil, red onion, baked with grated cheddar and Monterey Jack on top. One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories was the drives to my parents home in Riverbank and bringing them half a turkey with all the goodies and Dad’s favorite treat…homemade fruit cake. It was a hundred mile drive, often in tule fog, but we always made it before dark. Mom always had flour tortillas ready for us. For the kids it wasn’t Thanksgiving without grandma’s tortillas. I am thankful for my marriage – 31 years next month. I am a very thankful man. I am thankful for being able to do a job I love…including the SMT column. And I am thankful for the love of my daughters, biological and adopted.” 

Morton “Pep” McAdoo, (54) Columnist – Over the Hill: “I am traveling up to Northern Idaho near Montana to eat wild turkey and drink cheap white wine with the James Winterset Family. There will be traditional music in a 100-year-old cabin, horseback rides on thin mining trails and my daughter Cait from the University of California will be there as well. I am always called upon to carve no matter where I go…it’s a gift I’ve got. I like currants and boar sausage in my dressing, Texas pecan pie, and fried okra. And I always volunteer to do the dishes…that’s why I am always so popular with the ladies. One of my favorite thanksgiving memories involves my grandmother Winnie May Butts, the best cook in Texas. She came out West to visit a couple times for the holidays. Extra leaves were added to the table for the food. I can still smell the caramel sweet potatoes, butter beans with ham hock, and the corn bread dressing made from scratch. A turkey the size of a steam boiler. I am thankful that: 1. My two daughters C and C are pretty, smart and healthy. 2. I paid off all my debts this year. 3. I still don’t take any medication except Mexican beer. 4. I’m planning a trip to Argentina next year.  5. I swore off women forever… but then fell for brown eyed Di who owns a saloon in a northern county…and her pies rival my Granny’s. Life is absolutely wonderful.”

Greg Kristapovich, (54), Columnist/Photographer/Distributor: “My Thanksgiving Day is strange by some peoples’ standards. First of all, I CAN NOT miss the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. One year I missed it, and I was depressed for an entire month. I mean, Thanksgiving Day without the Macy’s parade is like Christmas without Santa – I mean without gift-giving! Thanksgiving also means a feast with the family with good grub: turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, gravy and pumpkin pie. That’s another thing: if I don’t get my pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving, I’m not a happy camper. GOT TO HAVE my parade AND my pumpkin pie! No traveling for me. Statistically, it’s much too dangerous driving that week. So I prefer to stay at home, sitting by the wood burning stove, perusing all the “after Thanksgiving sales ads”! I also use Thanksgiving Day to prepare for the day after – and that day can be quite a challenging balancing act: I’ve got to get some half-way decent photos of the Black Friday chaos (for the next SMT), and at the same time, I’VE got to try to grab up some of the deals, myself, before they run out of ‘em! It can be a very nerve-racking day! So, what am I thankful for on Thanksgiving? I’m thankful I live in such a great county, that I have a nice family that puts up with me, that I work alongside such a groovy bunch of people at SMT, and that I have a groovy cat (a tabby) named “Lerroy”. I’m thankful  for awesome nieghbors and a groovy landlord, and that rock and roll is here to stay! And, I’m thankful to the great “Publisher/Editor in The Sky,” for everything.” 

Macy’s Parade: Today, some 3 million people attend the annual Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and another 44 million watch it on television. Greg will be one of them! Originally known as Macy’s Christmas Parade – to signify the launch of the Christmas shopping season – the first parade took place in New York City in 1924. It was launched by Macy’s employees and featured animals from the Central Park Zoo. Snoopy has appeared as a giant balloon in the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade more times than any other character in history. 

Nancy Hoyt, (49…ackkkk!!!), Columnist – Nan at Night: “We’re a very small family and have always been that way. I’m an only child and Dave is one of two kids…our son Wylie’s an only child too! We are celebrating Turkey Day at our house with just four of us, me, Dave, Wylie and my Mom, “GaGa!” We pre-order our Diestel Turkey and Alicia’s Pies (Sugar Shack) making a day out of the pick-ups on Wednesday.  We cook the turkey bird on our outdoor super Bar-be-que “Galore” and set the table with memento’s from our past: my Grandmother’s tablecloth, special china, silver, crystal…etc.  My favorite dish is the cornbread stuffing with Diestel Turkey sausage, shitake mushrooms, onions, walnuts and other “secret” ingredients!  Always served with some excellent varietals of wine!  Sometimes, in especially snowy years, we even head up to Dodge for a few runs as no one else is usually there and it’s a great day!  We give thanks for our health, our family and our love and remember loved ones not with us.  Thanksgiving is truly one of my favorite holidays!”

Mark Lewis, (47), Design and Layout: “Only on the occasional year do I travel for the holidays. Before I moved from the Bay Area, it was an annual pilgrimage up to my sister’s house. Now that we live in the same area getting to the family dinner is less of an expedition. This year my sister’s celebration will include roughly 20 guests. I look forward to seeing everyone and catching up with those who I don’t see often. My sister, Linda, always does a great traditional spread, her gravy is beyond compare. My mom does really great cranberries with orange zest, a favorite. I will never forget the Thanksgiving when our cat ate a big hole in the turkey while it was left out to thaw. Since my father was never too fond of that cat, my mother sprang into action to cover up the situation. She instructed my brother to bury the turkey in our backyard, while she and I quickly went to the market to replace it. Our efforts paid off and none were the wiser. I am grateful for so much. Just to awaken each day is a gift. I am blessed with a very kind and loving family, and friends that I can call true.”

Tim McCaffrey, (36), Publisher: “For the last 12 or so years Thanksgiving has been celebrated the weekend before the traditional Thursday. My mom came up with the idea so that everyone could enjoy Thanksgiving together and not have to go from one house to another like we did before. My brother and I both have kids of our own, and we used to go from one grandparents house to another making sure everyone got their fix of the grandchildren. This made for a very filling day and by 6 or 7-o’clock at night the kids were on the verge of a mental breakdown. This then transferred to the parents and Thanksgiving Day would often become “Thank Goodness It’s Over Day”. Usually cousins, uncles and aunts, even close family friends would never be seen on Thanksgiving. But since the switch to the weekend prior, everyone makes the effort to show up to my parents’ house. We have a whole weekend (which, for some, is more than enough for the entire year) and we are all then free to have another full Thanksgiving on the following Thursday. We have a totally traditional Thanksgiving: turkey, mashed potatoes, my mom’s self proclaimed world famous stuffing, candied yams, rolls, and of course, pumpkin pie. My favorite food of the meal actually doesn’t appear until the following day – sliced turkey with cranberry sauce and mayo on Wonder Bread. I know, Wonder Bread, but it’s so good…and it’s a tradition. Plus, a few days after that, my mom makes the most incredible turkey soup. One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories is when one year my second cousin Jim Hitchcock, from Alaska showed up with his kids and their kids. He’s an amazing man, a real scientist with collections in the Smithsonian. He’s a real character who’s every other word is a foul, four letter curse. My mom turned bright red, my dad just grinned, and my brother and I couldn’t stop laughing. I had to continually tell my children to “cover their ears… their cousin Jim is about to speak!” This year, answering the question what are you thankful for is an easy one. I am thankful to be alive, thankful for my friends and family who really stepped up for me in my time of need, and thankful to this amazing community. I am still getting calls with offers of genuine help. I live a blessed life.”

CJ Schaffer, (33 going on 78), Columnist – Bartender’s Tips:  “The only place I travel on Thanksgiving is to the compost pile and back. My family gets together and there are usually about twelve to thirteen people. I love to make pie, so it is tradition for me to bake something. My favorite food is the gravy. I would be happy with just a bowl of gravy and a large ladle. Unfortunately, I would have to fight off half of my family, and since I don’t see them too often, I have to share. The strangest thing I ever ate at Thanksgiving was when I lived in North Carolina – we had boiled crawfish, mac and cheese, turkey, greens, and sweet potatoes. One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories is the first Thanksgiving I cooked by myself… my mom even said it was good! I am so thankful for all the people in my life. I love each and every one of them, and I think they like me to.”

Thomas Atkins, (28 going on infinity), Editor/Writer: “I LOVE Thanksgiving. Not just because I love to eat, but because I love my family and my relatives so much. There is no better time than gathering everyone together and sharing stories and memories of times past. Adding food to the gathering is a bonus…a big bonus, because the food is always amazing! We have had Thanksgiving meals with just our family (6) to massive gatherings of family and friends, sometimes over 30 people. With my two younger brothers married it has been fun watching the family grow…I love all the new additions. Our Thanksgiving meal is pretty standard: turkey, mashed potatoes and gravy…but my favorite part is my mom’s homemade rolls…and pumpkin pie (with REAL whipping cream). One of my favorite Thanksgiving memories happened back in high school when my friend Chris Garlington and I drove in his Bronco way out to Paper Cabin Ridge behind Tuolumne to go for a hike. We dropped into the North Fork of the Tuolumne River canyon and spent most of the day hiking and exploring old abandoned mines. When we returned to the Bronco it wouldn’t start! We were WAY out in the middle of nowhere and had to get back for Thanksgiving! There was no way we’d get back by dark by walking the road back, and we decided that our best bet was to drop back down into the canyon and hike up the other side until we hit Apple Colony Road in Tuolumne. It was a tiring, steep hike out, but we had the thought of a Thanksgiving meal to motivate us. Once reaching the road we knocked on the door of the first house we came to and called my mom. She picked us up and we arrived just in time for a Thanksgiving meal at the Gerber’s house. Needless to say, I ate a lot! I also will never forget the elementary school days of running around the Memorial Hall block in Tuolumne for the annual Turkey Trot – a bunch of kids running like turkeys with their heads cut off. I never got first, but I always placed in the top five (which I thought offered better prizes than a turkey…like apple pies and pizza!). I am thankful for so much! I have been blessed with such amazing family and friends. I am thankful for all the memories we have together and for the adventures the future holds. I am thankful that every day offers a new and clean start. And I am thankful for living in the Sierra. It is such an amazing place, and I am always surrounded by God’s beautiful creation! He is so good!” 

Paul Krismanits, (26), Columnist – SMT Weekly Flick: “Almost all of my Thanksgiving days have entailed a big Thanksgiving dinner at my parent’s house. Company usually consisted of my parents, brother, sisters and I, with the occasional family friends joining in. But for the most part we have always kept it close knit. Being big on tradition, our family’s meal usually included turkey, my mom’s stuffing, mashed potatoes, my mom’s yams, green bean casserole, pumpkin pie (and other various desserts), and my father’s famous homemade cranberry sauce, of which the recipe evolves a bit every year. After eating we usually watch some football, then enjoy a few hours of board games, followed by a yearly viewing of one of our favorite Holiday movies. As far as anything uncommon goes, no such thing exists at our Thanksgivings, which is fine by me. I mean, why mess with perfection? This is one of my favorite days of the year!I have plenty of wonderful Thanksgiving memories. Every year we laugh as my mom runs to the microwave after her first bite because “the food is just not hot enough!” Every year we grow frustrated as the sluggishness incurred from the turkey prevents us from being as alert as usual during the games. Every year at least one of us falls asleep during the movie, and every year my mom roots vigorously for the Cowboys while the rest of us root against our beloved 49ers’ rivals. Things should prove to be even more fun this year, as my sister and I both added family members in the last year through marriage, and we will all be together, both new and old family, for the first time ever. All I can say is, at least my wife married me before she saw how crazy we get about the Holiday Season! This year I am thankful for my wife, for my new son (and another on the way!), my family, my friends, my job, and for living in the greatest country the world has ever known, where we are free to celebrate as diversely or traditionally as we want to, and where most of us are privileged to know what it is like to celebrate with abundance. God bless America, and Happy Thanksgiving to all!”

Turkey: In a survey conducted by the National Turkey Federation, nearly 88 percent of Americans said they eat turkey at Thanksgiving…and our SMT family is no exception. Here are some interesting turkey facts: According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Minnesota is the top turkey-producing state in America, with a planned production total of 49 million in 2008. Just six states – Minnesota, North Carolina, Arkansas, Virginia, Missouri and Indiana – will probably produce two-thirds of the estimated 271 million birds that will be raised in the U.S. this year. The National Turkey Federation estimated that 46 million turkeys – one fifth of the annual total of 235 million consumed in the United States in 2007 – were eaten at Thanksgiving. The average weight of turkeys purchased for Thanksgiving is 15 pounds, which means some 690 million pounds of turkey were consumed in the U.S. during Thanksgiving in 2007!

Samantha Otts, (24), Sales Associate: “Thanksgiving Day at the Otts house is pretty typical, except for a little traditional role reversal. By that I mean, that instead of having the mom in the kitchen cooking all day and the dad in front of the TV yelling at the football score, the roles are reversed in my house. My mother is an avid football fanatic, dressed in team colors, standing ovations for a ‘good play,’ yelling at the refs for a bad call…the whole deal. My father on the other hand is an AMAZING chef. He will spend months planning the menu, for what will sometimes just be for five people. With that said, this is why most people will come to our home for the holiday. It is not a TRUE Thanksgiving without the cooking of Bill Otts. This year there are going to be more people than usual dining at the “Otts Restaurant”, and I think the total number is about 17. As people who know my family understand, food is a BIG deal in the Otts’ house. The thing about my dad is that he cooks for the people he loves. I think he thinks that the more he can feed us, the more we know how much he loves us. On Thanksgiving the food starts to make an appearance pretty early in the day. There has to be appetizers to munch on during the football game, and things to really get our taste buds excited about the main course. These items usually consist of: my mom’s famous chili dip, a big block of cheese wrapped in a pizza crust and baked until delicious, can’t forget the spinach and jalapeno dip with pita chips, and lastly a veggie bird’s nests to be dipped in an Asian inspired sauce. The Thanksgiving feast itself is all the traditional courses: a turkey, usually coming in at about 30 lbs., Bill’s famous gravy and stuffing, my personal favorite, the mashed potatoes, homemade cranberry sauce, homemade biscuits, and the meal would not be complete without a few homemade pies (apple and pumpkin made by me). My favorite Thanksgiving memory so far is when I was in college in Santa Barbara, and I decided to cook my first full Thanksgiving meal. I called my dad to get all of the recipes for his famous courses, and he told me exactly what I needed to make a successful meal for two of my friends and myself. Now, remember the menu that my dad puts together every Thanksgiving? That is exactly what he told me to do. I ended up with a 25 lb. turkey, and leftover stuffing, gravy, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, and pie for about a month. After that point I decided it was time to start putting things in the freezer to bring out at a later date. I will always remember my first Thanksgiving without my family physically surrounding me, but with all the food I cooked… it felt like they were right there with me the whole time. There are so many things that I am thankful for, and I try to share them with my family often. Last year for part of their Christmas presents I wrote out exactly what I am thankful for in each person and had them laminated and framed. I am thankful for the little things in life, the fact that the people I love are healthy and we are so close to each other. The fact that I am blessed to have people surrounding me that believe in me, and show me everyday how much they love me. I am thankful to have a roof over my head and a job, when many people today are not so lucky. I am thankful most of all that I am happy and optimistic about what my future entails.”

May this holiday season be a time to reflect, laugh and give! May the spirit of thankfulness and giving carry far beyond this holiday weekend into the lives of those you love! Happy Thanksgiving!