We're Tacky at Thanksgiving As Well

You already know that we have some tacky Halloween decorations.  Actually I don't think there is such a thing as a Halloween decoration that isn't tacky.  We are a bit more tasteful at Thanksgiving but we still have plenty of tacky.  Now if only I could find a fiber optic turkey...

Our very large Tacky Turkey greets guests in the foyer.

 Our flag looks as if it came from a child's coloring book.  It will surely wave furiously today and tomorrow since we are having some really strong wind.

 On the other hand, I don't think our Thanksgiving wreath is tacky at all.

I am brining the turkey this year.  I had no idea it was this time-consuming.  Mix the brine, boil it, let it cool then refrigerate.  When it's cold add ice water and apple juice and pour over the fresh turkey and let it brine for 24-36 hours.  We'll have the usual side dishes and dessert.  I'm looking forward to finding out for myself if the brined turkey is better.

Whatever you are doing and wherever you are going:

HAVE A WONDERFUL THANKSGIVING, EVERYONE!!!



These Turkeys are Already Thankful

Wild turkeys live amongst us in our community.  And this year seems to have been a very successful breeding year for them.  In the late summer we saw large flocks of hens and poults together wandering through our woods.  Now that the poults have grown up, we see fewer large flocks but still a lot of turkeys.  They are pretty much indifferent to our cars and it is not uncommon to find a car stopped in the road waiting for the turkeys to cross.

One of the turkeys prepares to cross the road in front of us.

 The other one soon follows.

 This one does a turkey trot on the way.

These turkeys will not be Thanksgiving dinner for anyone and I think they are already thankful for that.  A vegan friend visited us and remarked on the beautiful turkeys we saw.  I knew she was silently thinking, "How can she eat such a beautiful intelligent bird?"  I have a confession to make.  I have been in the midst of Thanksgiving dinner only to look out and see a wild turkey or two.  I was doubly thankful for the turkey in the yard and the one on my table.  We buy a fresh organic turkey every year, from a local farmer who raises them with compassion.  They live a comfortable life.  (Well, up until the time they are slaughtered.)  Thanksgiving dinner is without a doubt my favorite meal of the year.  And I am thankful for the turkey that makes it possible. 

Can you stand another couple of photographs of the Bass Pond?  The day was so calm and beautiful that the pond was like a mirror reflecting the opposite shore.

Turkeys in the Grass

I am fascinated by wild turkeys and we are lucky to have many of them in our community.  Yesterday I started out our driveway and saw two turkey hens and at least a dozen or so poults.  They walked across the road.  I ran inside for my camera and got back in time to shoot a couple of rather poor photographs of a few of them before they disappeared into the woods on the other side of the road.

The wild turkey was thriving before America was explored.  Early in the sixteenth century explorers took wild turkeys from Mexico to Europe where they were successfully domesticated.  The domestic turkeys did so well that early English settlers brought them back to America.

In the nineteenth century turkeys were over-hunted and their habitat lost to settlers.  In the early twentieth century turkeys were eradicated in the north-eastern United States.  In the 1940s large re-stocking efforts put wild turkeys back.  Turkeys were captured in one area and re-introduced in another.  The turkeys thrived and are now found in every state except Alaska.

The females raise the poults with no help from the males.  Several females might live together and share the raising of the poults.

How lucky we are to see so many turkeys around our house.  they are fascinating to watch and delightful to listen to.