In honor of American Thanksgiving this past thursday, I invited nine friends over for a big traditional turkey feast on saturday night. The magnitude of cooking such a giant bird with all the trimmings for such a large group, singlehandedly, meant I spent weeks leading up to it procuring all the perfect ingredients and plotting like a woman possessed.

Friday night, got a haircut after work, then went and had a drink with some colleagues. One drink turned into two… and it was only the fact that I had to get home and bake pies that kept me (relatively) sober. Got home, and sliced, diced, stirred and seasoned late into the night, until two unorthodox-looking, yet otherwise traditional pies were produced.

Saturday was more preparation. I undertook this event with all the strategy and planning of a general leading his troops into battle. Everything was pre-peeled, pre-cubed, ready to pop into the oven at pre-ordained times, to be ready at precisely seven. Surprisingly, it all came together (that *never* happens!), and as everyone began to arrive and nibble, everything went off without any major glitches, save fighting with the smoke detector next door (british ovens being too small for an 8 kilo turkey) and spilling some wine.

Then, in finest american tradition, we stuffed ourselves silly – turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes *and* yams, beans, squash, rolls, gravy and pie. and as usual, like clockwork, once the triptophans hit the system a few hours later, everyone was ready to nod off, and filtered home full-to-bursting.

Sunday was all about picking at leftovers, drinking wine, watching movies, more wine, more movies, and playing a rousing hard-fought game of chess.

I have a lot to give thanks for this year – being able to share it with so many friends was just the ice cream on the pumpkin pie.

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hardee’s hamburger porn. because hot girls eat hamburgers.

i may not have understood how this naked knife fight ad was supposed to make you buy lingerie, but at least i understood it was an *ad*

this just baffles me: bikini babes and breakfast

it’s not an ad for porn, but it could be

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Bummed. Monday night i missed what is likely my only chance to see the patriots on telly (superbowl excepted, of course!) as i patiently programmed the antique VCR to record the game (1am to 5 am), eagerly sat on the couch to spend four hours of pure gridiron-watching bliss, and got… nothing. bah!

i don’t miss much about the states, but following my beloved sports teams is definitely one of them.

for shits and giggles:

anal constricting malarkey sold at target.com

the boy done been hit in the head with a basketball a few too many times saw a clip, and he’s clueless. several fans left a *basketball game* on stretchers. the original story

on the positive side, it’s distracting people from the latest dumbass furor over “indecency”. americans are fucking repressed as hell.

“The World Toilet Summit was held in China, and Americans were celebrating National Bible Week”the ever-worthy harper’s weekly review

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more dorky photos of the race:

(and yes, I stole them off the website!)

anywhoo, not too much to brag about this weekend, unless being a sloth counts for anything. rugby, beer, pool, dinner with friends, falling asleep during “shaun of the dead”. shopping for a big american thanksgiving day dinner this weekend, going waaaay overboard on food. but that’s just “how I do”.

it’s monday, so that’s all you get from me today. oh yeah, i updated the music. still haven’t figured dout how to make it *less* annoying, but at least it’s *differently* annoying now.

squishes and kisses, toodles!

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never quite got around to writing about jonno’s family visit (hectic work week and other news to keep me preoccupied), but here are some pics to keep you happy

in the absence of my beloved ice hockey, I have taken to learning the ins and outs of rugby. south africa play england in rugby today. after losing to england in the last world cup, the springboks are ready to kick ass and take names. given that the weather outside is cold and dreary, we’ll be cosily huddled round the telly, drinking beer and eating crisps from the comfort of the couch.

climbing tomorrow, and a pretty lazy weekend all around – bliss!

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my friends back home are all liberals who voted for kerry. And since the election, they’ve felt raw with frustration, sadness and helplessness.

these are the people who are part of sorryeverybody.com, the ones who want to stand up and be counted as saying “he’s not *my* president”. They’re pouring out of the woodwork.

and then there are those of us on the other side – who stand with you in solidarity for the next four years. apologiesaccepted.com

mark morford poignantly summarises a wellspring of feeling

take a look:

(photos courtesy of sorryeverybody.com)

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loads to blog about the in-laws visit and half-marathon, but it’ll have to wait, as any energy I had has been diverted into stopping two 5 year olds from killing each other. in the meantime here’s a pic from the race (personal best time, 2:11:08 for 13.1 miles)

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hmm, what to say about the weekend? friday was bonfire night here in the uk, to celebrate guy fawkes day. which basically means everyone and their brother runs around shooting off fireworks for two weeks prior and one week after. i adore fireworks, so we went to watch the display in wimbledon. got there late, and there was a huge queue to get into the park, and we thought we’d missed it, so we were headed to the tube station, when suddenly music starts blaring and big blooms of fire start lighting up the sky. we wandered down a tiny side street and had a wonderful view of everything. fairly impressive, considering it was just a local show.

after the fireworks, we headed out for drinks til late. ugh – too much for my newly healthy immune system to handle!

saturday was a chilled day, doing errands in preparation for j’s family’s arrival. sunday was more of the same, buying pillows and such. did a nice long run though – 10 miles. hopefully we’ll be well enough prepared for this half marathon next weekend! only time (and knees) will tell…

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If you’re as disheartened and disillusioned as I am about the election, please read this.
Mark Morford gets it right again

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safety in numbers in a terrifying terrorist world

jobs and prosperity at home

environmental safeguards for the earth

education which teaches thought, not rote

very probably, a woman’s right to choose

separation of church and state

right to privacy and free speech

unknown number of civilian and military lives

respect

…shall I go on?

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Looks like i will not be moving back home to the States for at least another 4 years. Not that I was going to, but I would’ve liked to have had the option.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again – Americans are dumb-as-a-box-o-rocks stupid. Once again, pandering to the lowest common denominator wins the day. Forget about co-operation. Forget about leading by example. Forget about peace and prosperity.

Instead, we have once again allowed ourselves to be ruled by fear, mass hysteria, a sheeplike mentality.

We will never be the truly great nation we have the power to become. We decline our opportunity to be a massive force for good in the world. We sneer at alliances and friendly nations. We are determined to cut off our nose to spite our face.

Eventually, we will pay for this arrogance. I shudder to think.

And who will be on our side then?

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in the past few days since the red sox won the world series, john kerry has mentioned their unlikely comeback victory in several of his speeches. the cynical among us would call that blatant opportunism from a senator who just happens to have the fortune of being from the same state as the winning team. and perhaps it is. but john kerry, and all of us, could learn a lesson from the hometown heroes.

this was a team on the brink of disaster. moments away from being swept out of the playoffs by the new york yankees, there was little to be optimistic about. with the weight of a heavy history hanging over their heads, the outcome seemed a foregone conclusion. many fans, sensing the inevitable doom, wrote off another wasted season. no sane person would’ve bet money on a sox win.

there’s just one thing: the sox never got the memo. no one informed them they were supposed to lay down and die. and lo and behold, they dug deep and won an exhausting game four. they tapped into unknown reserves and somehow did it again in game 5. they put on a brave face, sutured up the ankles, and gutted out an astounding game 6. and suddenly, unexpectedly, anything was possible. suddenly, the door was wide open. and they walked right through.

they knew it all along. when the fenway faithful dimmed, when the odds were a bazillion-to-one, they continued to do what they do best – play their hearts out. like the little steam engine that could, they continue to chug along. there is honor in winning. but there is more honor in trying your best when everything is stacked against you and the whole world expects you to fail. you can do the impossible, no matter who says you can’t. your parents taught you that same lesson – just try your best and believe in yourself, and you can be whatever you want. they were not wrong.

never give up, because anything is possible for those who believe. it’s cliched, but true. the underdog sometimes does win. the call does sometimes go your way. sometimes you do get a second chance. and the fairytale ending *can* happen. sometimes it doesn’t…

but sometimes it does.

here’s hoping a little faith, a lot of optimism, and a touch of baseball magic can go a long way. go kerry!

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