Thanksgiving Weekend in Oregon

There are several things that I usually try to do or have finished by Thanksgiving weekend. Two in particular are get my cards mailed out and get my tree put up. I managed to get both of those done this year. The cards get easier as the list gets shorter every year. 

This year I made the decision to take the ribbons off all of my race medals and turn them into ornaments. Even with a new four foot tree I hardly made a dent in them. If I’m going to use more I’ll have to think about a bigger tree with stronger branches next year and if I decide to get a bigger year it’ll have to be set up outside. We’ll see! Obviously that’s a long way off and who knows what changes could happen in a year?

Another possibility is to pick out a few to keep that are special because of specific races and mix them in with my other meaningful ornaments that I used to use every year. We’ll see. 

Another Thanksgiving tradition that I’ve had for several years is running a race Thanksgiving Fay. This year I did the Turkey Stuffer in Springfield with Smitty. It was cold and the roads icy and slick but I enjoyed it. I had made the decision to only walk races until something gets done about my knee. The only thing I have been doing since returning from Colorado for fitness is walking. I felt the urge to run less than a tenth of the mile into the race but forced myself to keep the pace at a fast walk. I was surprised that my time wasn’t much slower than my running times have been lately.  

I had Thanksgiving day with Smitty and Denise and Smitty’s mom. It was a fun, relaxing day with a delicious meal. The Turkey was cooked on a Weber charcoal grill. A first for me. I couldn’t believe how simple and yet how specific, right down to the number of briquettes on each side and number to add to each side each time, the process actually was.