Thanksgiving has always been one of my most favorite holidays.  And why wouldn’t it be – it combines my three favorite “F’s” – family, food, and four-day weekend.

Love it as I do, there is one thing I will never understand about Thanksgiving: the turkey.

Because here’s the thing about turkey.

It’s not that great.

If it was, wouldn’t we eat it more than once a year?

Sure, people eat turkey burgers and turkey breast sandwiches once in a while.  But how often do you really eat a whole roasted turkey?  Just the last Thursday of November.

On the Fourth of July, people traditionally eat hamburgers.  But we also eat hamburgers the rest of the year, too.  Why?  Because burgers are awesome!  Why on Earth would you only eat them once a year?  That would be madness!

And think about it: what makes a good turkey dinner?  Gravy, stuffing, side dishes.  People rave about deep-fried turkeys, but anything tastes great when it’s deep fried.  Or how about turducken?  You need two other animals to make the turkey more tasty – what does that tell you?

This year, I’ll eat turkey on Thanksgiving, just like I do every year.  But the majority of my plate will be overflowing with everything else: the sweet potatoes, the stuffing (even if it’s not from White Castle), the corn bread and biscuits, and of course, the desserts.

And isn’t that the food that everyone REALLY looks forward to?  I’d gladly have a smaller portion of turkey to save room for a fourth slice of pie any day.  But definitely on Thanksgiving Day, when that is not actually frowned upon.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!