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Thanksgiving – Conversation Lesson

Kristin: Can you believe it’s less than three weeks until Thanksgiving?

Joe: Yeah, it really crept up on us this year, huh? I mean, I had read an article, I think it was last week, which kind of reminded me that Thanksgiving was getting close because it was an article that discussed what the real Thanksgiving was like, and there was actually a real Thanksgiving that occurred right around the time that, y’know, history tells us Thanksgiving Day was. And it was in Massachusetts, but it wasn’t like the Thanksgiving that they teach us about when we’re young and in school, y’know? They try and make it seem like everything was great between the Indians and the Pilgrims, but it really wasn’t as they painted it. But, y’know, that said, I think the only time you really talk about the history of Thanksgiving is when you learn about it as a kid, because, y’know, I never really spoke about it on Thanksgiving Day, especially when I was growing up. We never talked about it.

Kristin: No, we didn’t either. In fact, I, y’know, I don’t even recall having those memories from maybe like elementary school and older. That’s something you learn when you’re a child. But, mainly for me it was just a lot of memories of being with my family. When we lived in Michigan, I don’t remember that so much because I was under eight years old, but I’m sure we got together with my grandparents and had Thanksgiving. I know by the time we moved to Georgia then, we definitely were getting together with Linda and her family. Like I can remember my mom and her mom getting up really early in the morning to cook. They’d cook all day. And they’d be in their pajamas cooking, just having fun, laughing in the kitchen. They just really enjoyed it. And we would just be playing.

Joe: So did they make pretty much the standard Thanksgiving meal or did they make anything different or, y’know, what was…I mean obviously they made turkey, right?

Kristin: Yeah, they had turkey and definitely the typical Thanksgiving food, which I don’t really like.

Stuffing and cranberries and, what’s something else I don’t really like, I know there’s another one.

Pumpkin pie, I’m not a big fan of. Pecan pie, I’m not a big fan of. I didn’t even really like the turkey because my mom would overcook it. It’d be really dry.

Joe: Well, you’re saying, oh, you didn’t like the gravy or the stuffing, right?

Kristin: No, I didn’t say gravy. I said cranberries and stuffing, but yeah, I wasn’t crazy about the gravy either.

Joe: Oh, okay.

Kristin: No, I did like mashed potatoes.

Joe: Well, you like gravy now and you like stuffing when I make it. But, y’know, I’m making it from scratch so, y’know, there is a difference and I’m sure that the quality of the ingredients might be a little different as well.

Kristin: Yeah, I mean my mom didn’t make things from scratch, for sure. Everything was store-bought and just heated up in the oven or cooked on top of the stove. I liked the green beans. So basically, and salad, I liked the vegetables.

Joe: But that’s not really Thanksgiving food. I mean that’s any day of the week food.

Kristin: No, no, like green bean casserole, that’s a Thanksgiving food.

Joe: Not in my family, it wasn’t. I don’t even know what a green bean casserole is actually.

Kristin: Well, anyway, what are some memories you have of your family?

Joe: Well, y’know, when I think about Thanksgiving, be it now or be it growing up, or when I was growing up, I should say, y’know, food is the primary thing. And, y’know, of course, at that time when I was younger, it involved, y’know, turkey and stuffing and mashed potatoes and gravy, and it probably meant cranberry sauce in some way, shape or form, not necessarily from a can, but sometimes from a can. So that was like the standard stuff and I think everybody has that at Thanksgiving. But, y’know, I always loved it. I mean, first off, not only did I love to eat it at Thanksgiving, y’know, the main meal for Thanksgiving, but I loved having the leftovers, those turkey sandwiches. Oh baby. Oh, I always loved that the night of Thanksgiving. But, y’know, for me one of the things that I always loved about Thanksgiving was, y’know, you get together with family, it’s non-denominational so everybody celebrates the holiday. And, y’know, if you think about what it really is about, y’know, the word Thanksgiving, to give thanks, it just sounds like a great concept. Get together with family and friends, enjoy good food, and enjoy each other’s company and, y’know, just try and think about what it is that you’re grateful for.

Kristin: Did you guys do anything besides, well your family, besides cooking and then eating a big meal?

Was there anything else that you guys would do together?

Joe: Definitely. The men got together and watched football. That’s another thing about Thanksgiving that I always loved.

Kristin: What about the parade?

Joe: Oh yes, the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade, I presume is what you’re talking about.

Kristin: Yes.

Joe: Yeah, we always watched that when we were kids. Y’know, first off, it’s one of the main things that’s on television, or at least then when we were kids it was. And, y’know, when I was younger, I was always excited to see what floats went by, y’know?

Kristin: Yeah, me, too.

Joe: But it was only later that I realized that they used a lot of the same floats every single year. But I guess that’s one of the cool things, right? Like you always knew that there was going to be a character from the Peanuts, y’know, Charlie Brown.

Kristin: Right.

Joe: I forget if it was Snoopy or Woodstock, but I always loved Charlie Brown so, y’know, I always enjoyed watching the parade and waiting until Snoopy or Woodstock came along. But I think they’d always have a new one, as well, right?

Kristin: I don’t remember that but I just remember how big the floats would seem. Y’know, they would just seem huge. And then it looked, it always looked so cold there, because it would be. It was in New York City. And we didn’t really watch it. It would just be on. It would kind of be in the background.

Joe: Yeah.

Kristin: But it was…that’s still like a fond memory.

Joe: Yeah, I know, it was kind of the same with us. It would always be on television and whether you’re watching it or not, y’know, it was always there and you’d kind of check in. Oh, look what float’s on now!

You know what I mean?

Kristin: Right.

Joe: But, remember we watched it like a year or two ago and it seemed, I don’t know, maybe it’s because we’re not kids anymore, but the floats just seemed really cheesy now.

Kristin: Well, yes, and they’re using characters that we don’t necessarily connect with, y’know, cartoons that kids today would connect with but we don’t. That’s probably why we felt that way. But, y’know, I think I always enjoyed watching the dancing and the singing, too. I think that we thought that was a little cheesy this time around.

Joe: Yeah, we did. Yeah, we did. Y’know, one other thing that I loved about Thanksgiving was that sometimes we saw some relatives that we didn’t always get to see. Like one in particular in my family was Father Lou. Father Lou Giuliano, who was my grandmother’s brother and he was a priest. And, y’know, we never saw him on Christmas or Easter because, y’know, he was giving Mass then. But on Thanksgiving, y’know, he was pretty much free to celebrate however he wanted. And the thing I remember was he’d always be watching football and the guy smoked like a chimney. I don’t know if priests do it still, but he definitely did back then.

Kristin: Oh, really?

Joe: Yeah, it’s like my…it’s one of the memories I have of Thanksgiving as a child, watching Father Lou sit there and smoke cigarette after cigarette and yell at the game, at the TV as he was watching football.

Maybe that’s where I got it.

Kristin: Yeah, for us, we didn’t really get to see a lot of relatives that we didn’t normally see because, like I mentioned earlier, we would mostly have Thanksgiving with Linda and her family and they lived close enough that we saw them pretty regularly. So I don’t know, I’m sure there was a Thanksgiving or two where maybe family from the north came down.