Making Tracks

By Kat Bryant

This past weekend, I procured a 20-pound turkey and a few scoops of fresh Grayland cranberries. I also reserved a couple of pies (and a dozen yummy potato rolls) from Nancy’s Bakery in Hoquiam. There’s more on the shopping list for this week, of course, but I’ve got the essentials covered for the first holiday dinner in my new(ish) house.

My kitchen will be christened on Saturday rather than Thursday, but that’s all right with me. I enjoy the big holidays, but I’ve never been much of a stickler for dates. In my household, Thanksgiving is whichever day the turkey hits the table (based on work and travel schedules); and my family always celebrates Christmas together in January (after all the hubbub dies down and the travel prices go back to normal).

My brothers are driving out from Seattle with their black Lab, Harold, to spend the weekend here. My son can’t make it because of his job, and Dad is spending the holiday with his sibs and their 103-year-old mom back East; but I’ve invited a friend to join us for the big dinner here.

So you might be wondering: Why on Earth does Kat need a 20-pound turkey for just four people? Duh: leftovers! The best part of Thanksgiving is having turkey sandwiches for days afterward.

Some of us prefer hot open-faced sandwiches slathered in gravy; others like them cold slathered in Miracle Whip. I favor a happy medium: cold, but on toast, with Miracle Whip. I eat those sandwiches for breakfast, lunch and dinner until every shred of turkey is gone — which, given that schedule, is just a few glorious days.

So I’ll have that to be thankful for this week, along with so much more:

• I have a son who makes me proud on every level, and he’s finding joy in his life now in Southern California.

• My family gathered in Virginia earlier this year to say farewell to Mom and help Dad through it, bringing us all even closer as a unit.

• I found my dream house this year in a friendly neighborhood in a great town that’s near the ocean.

• I have a job that I look forward to every day. (Well, OK, almost every day!)

• I’m surrounded by fuzzy love every day with my dog and four kitties (all rescue animals).

• I have a wide range of friends who enrich my life in myriad ways and introduce me to places and experiences I might never know otherwise.

• I find a deep sense of fulfullment being active in the local Scouting community.

• I’m able to live in reasonable comfort here on my own.

• I simply can’t imagine living anywhere else.

Kat Bryant is lifestyle editor of The Daily World. You’ll never convince her that mayonnaise tastes better than Miracle Whip, so don’t even try. Reach her at kbryant@thedailyworld.com or on Facebook at Kat Bryant-DailyWorld.