"Michael Odom" > wrote in message
...
> I have two skylights in my kitchen, and one of them doesn't leak!
>
> That's pretty much how Thanksgiving went this year. Ups and downs
> mixed in a weird blur.
>
> It began Wednesday night when I set the thawed turkey into a cooler
> with ice. I'd made a brine according to Stephan Pyles' recipe, but it
> was still hot, so we went out to eat dinner while it cooled.
>
> An hour or two later, I opened the cooler only to discover that the
> dog had begun the holiday feast a day early. She'd eaten about 1/4 of
> the bird. Bad. Bad dog. Bad and ugly turkey. Modom's mood was't
> very pretty either.
>
> I hacked off the dog-fouled bits -- both wings, part of a thigh, most
> of the back on one side. I considered, but decided against hacking up
> the dog, as well. (She spent the night in doggy jail, though.) I
> poured the brine over the bird and set it outside in an elevated
> position to deter further mammalian incursions. A freeze was forecast
> for the night, so further spoilage was out unless a possum or some
> such got hold of it.. We had a houseful coming for the feast, so D
> ran out and bought a turkey breast and I made a rub for two slabs of
> baby back ribs.
>
> Next day I fired up my smoker pit and set the ribs on about 11 a.m.
> The turkey went out an hour later. I'd stuffed sliced lemons and
> fresh sage leaves under the skin.
>
> Guests began to arrive at 5. Snacks and relish trays and cheese and
> such for a time. Dressing (bread and cornbread), potatoes in several
> forms, dark roux gravy, broccoli salad, and, cranberry/orange relish,
> whatnot in the kitchen. Brussels sprouts and asparagus on the gas
> grill out back.
>
> Then it was time to serve it up. A friend carved the bird. I cut up
> the ribs.
>
> And then, cutting a lemon for a garnish I got my thumb. I really got
> it. Bad. Flashing on Dan Akroyd's Julia Child skit, I rushed to the
> bathroom and tried to staunch the bleeding. It took some time. Bad.
> Ugly and bad.
>
> A friend made a plate for me and I ate one-handed. It was good food.
> Very good. Everybody liked the bird and especially the ribs. The
> dressings were nicely seasoned and moist. We ate very well.
>
> Time to clean up the mess. It was a big one, too, of course. During
> cleanup the sink backed up. Bad. Ugly and bad. The good part was
> that my injury got me off the hook for both cleaning and plumbing.
> Two guests pulled the trap off the sink and snaked the drain till it
> worked again. Bless, them. Good friends.
>
> Good food, good, people, good atmosphere, good wine. On the whole it
> was a good time. Except when it got ugly.
>
> modom
>
> "Dallas is a rich man with a death wish in his eyes."
> -- Jimmie Dale Gilmore

If it makes you feel any better, last Thanksgiving our drains stopped
working. All of them. In fact, not only would nothing (toilets, sinks,
showers) drain, what had already drained came back. Flooded the tub in one
bathroom, and the floor and shower in another with black murky stinky muck.
To top it off, we had 11 people in the house and no one could use the
bathroom. I was in a car at midnight with my daughter trying to find some
place that was open that would let us use the restroom. I finally caved and
woke some friends down the street, what fun. Despite all of this, though,
the preceding dinner and enjoyable company left us with more good memories
of the holiday than bad.

kimberly