Sated

I think this is the most food I've ever had in this fridge since I moved in four years ago. The occasion? My mom is coming in for Thanksgiving, and I am hosting a few friends for dinner, as well.

I'm quite thankful not to have to travel this year - the day before and weekend after are always such a nightmare. And initially, I was even more grateful to stay in town this weekend, as it gave me an excuse to miss my 15 year high school reunion, which is being held this Friday night. For months, the thought of attending filled me with dread - will everyone wonder why I am single? Will no one care that I am successful otherwise? Will I suddenly be reminded why I hated much of high school? Though the fact is, I actually really liked most of high school, if not everyone in it, which I don't think is at all unusual. It's just that in the past two years, Facebook has swirled up a storm of emotions and insecurities I had all but buried and forgotten about, and didn't feel the need to travel 2500 miles to face.

But now, of course, I see that almost ALL of my friends are going, and I am actually sad that I am going to miss it. These are the same friends I saw back in June, so it's not completely horrible; but it's hard enough to get us all in the same state these days, let alone the same room, so I have a little Fear of Missing Out.

I'm sure I'm not the only one who gets driven by immaturity and insecurities whenever family holidays come around. That's why I really appreciated this blog post, which offers some good, common-sense advice for dealing with the season. Some of my favorite advice:

“I’m eatin’ what your cookin’.”

You probably can’t change your parents, but you can change who you are about your parents.

Is the turkey a tool for torturing the children? No, it’s just turkey.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone! May you revel in the bounty of the season, enjoy your family and friends, and eat and drink til your heart's content but not gain a single pound.