Our first Thanksgiving on our own....We had a great time hosting holiday festivities at our house with Mandy, Dave and Phoebe, who made the trip up again from Klamath Falls. I enjoyed setting the table with all sorts of nice things we've not had a chance to use too much until now: napkins and tablecloth given to us by Nate's Aunt Mary, to match our complete set of Stangl pottery (a Bacheler family tradition for special occasions), morning mimosas in antique champagne glasses from my Nana, and beautiful cut-glass candle holders that were given to me by my Grandma.
Nate was the "Turkey-master" and he lived up to the title. Having done lots of research and soliciting plenty of advice from his dad, Nate decided to cook the bird the way Christopher Kimball and the folks at Cooks Illustrated magazine recommended - cut up into separate pieces before roasting. He also went the entra step of brining it the night before. It turned out beautifully browned and crispy on the outside, moist and tender on the inside: rave reviews all around. Nothing got wasted, as Nate made stock out of the whole carcass. Our Thanksgiving menu was enhance by Mandy's cornbread dressing and delicious pecan pie. We also had Bing Cherry salad (a holiday tradition from my Mom), mashed potatoes, sauteed green beans, rolls, gravy, cranberry relish, and pumpkin pie.
On Saturday, Nate and I were lucky enough to get a call from our friend Todd, manager of the OSU marching band - who offered us 2 free tickets to the "Civil War" game that afternoon, the annual throw-down between OSU and U of O. A lot was riding on the game, as a win for OSU would have ensured them a spot in the Rosebowl against Penn State (which would have pitted me against my sister Rosie, who's a die-hard Nittany Lion alum and fan).
The tailgaters were in full force in our neighborhood, many having arrived at least a day early to start their celebrations. We donned all the orange we could find, enjoyed some light mid-afternoon tailgating of our own (albeit in our living room) with Todd's wife Cory and our friend Laura. Then we headed down to the stadium, amidst throngs of other fans... and proceeded to watch the Beavers get demolished by the Ducks. I think the Ducks earned some new record for total yards earned in a game - nearly 700 against the virtually non-existent Beavers defense. We spent the first half of the game up in seats with the general ticket holders (fairly mild mannered), and joined Cory and Laura in the student section for the second half (mayhem and madness!). Oh well, they probably would have gotten destroyed even worse at the Rose Bowl. Now it looks like they'll earn a Sun Bowl bid (El Paso, TX)....
