Unless you rented some banquet hall, most of us don’t have tables or chairs to accommodate 30 or more people for a dinner. And as we all are borrowing, this becomes a challenge.
No sweat – King of the Table and Queen of the Chairs step forward and solve this challenge with good humor and a bit of cussing! Oh yes, cussing is definitely heard – and what’s a Thanksgiving meal prep without a few damns, hell, sumbitch, or you dirty, low down piece of sheet! The King finds a suitable piece of plywood that not only fits over and on the current table but one that will not slip, flip or dip once food, dishes and arms rest upon it.
AND because this creation will not work in the normal dining area, Queen of Chairs quickly rearranges the living room and now the table fits. Plus the Queen has solved the chair issue – more lumber is needed and soon we have benches – what the hell, you don’t need anything to lean back on – sit up straight and eat your food like a normal person!
Okay, we got all the minor stuff solved, right? I mean, with this many guests it’s not uncommon or unheard of to have assigned seating. A good host remembers who is left-handed and gives them extra space. Being elderly is wonderful because you get a real chair but ya gotta be almost 110 to qualify! And once seated don’t even think about getting up because you forgot or need to use the bathroom – that rude nonsense just ruins a perfectly good meal! Go before you sit, dummy!
Now the fun part begins. We have said “grace” and everyone has been asked to state something they are grateful for [usually someone, guess who says, "I'm grateful I got a real chair."] and then, the show begins. Oh yes, it is a show and how in hell it is accomplished remains a mystery to this day and every Thanksgiving Day.
Dishes begin this slow movement; usually the host announces which direction they shall move – to your RIGHT ONLY. And as the dishes come along, you put “something” on your plate and you keep piling on food until you can’t see your plate anymore and still the dishes keep coming!
After a bit the dishes seem to slow down and you notice folks beginning to eat and wham, you hear OH HELL, we forgot the rolls. So we stop, wait, take a roll and pass the basket along. Amazingly the basket never empties and has plenty of rolls! Again, we attempt to tackle this mound of food and again, a damn dish is under our nose and needs to be passed. This dish will never stop moving, it has no place to rest, so it must move constantly. If someone should ask for something else, then and only then does that dish stop moving and the next dish begins its circuit.
By all means enjoy your Thanksgiving Dinner, keep those dishes moving and create some fond memories for everyone!
P.S. The blog photo today is a shot of the top of the ole Norwood Post Office -- ya, many years ago. But I bet you never looked up and saw these lions, did you?
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