In response to Mama Kat’s Thanksgiving-themed Weekly Writing Prompt – and to remind myself – I’m going to tell you what I’m thankful for this year. Of course this will prove extremely helpful to you the next time someone stops you in the Kroger’s or Piggly Wiggly produce aisle and asks, “Say, do you happen to know what the fabulously talented proprietress of The Letter T is thankful for?”
One of the things I’m thankful for is that my immediate family and close friends survived Hurricane Sandy largely unscathed, albeit in the dark and without cable for cruel stretches of time. But a virtual moment of silence for everyone who was not as lucky. For the lives and livelihoods that were blown away in this freak superstorm. And for the fallen icons of the Jersey Shore. The boardwalks of Seaside Heights (or as we called it, “Sleazeside”) and Point Pleasant were repulsively seedy and endlessly comforting at the same time. I never understood how that was possible, but somehow the tackiness and the grit were part of the appeal – along with the smells of greasy food and Hawaiian Tropic. Slightly creepy carousel music. Saltwater taffy. Old school signs. Wife-beater tanks and giant gold crosses. Tattoos. Skee ball. Our roots. I am thankful I am from New Jersey.
Things I am also thankful for:
- Keith, Jan and Lew, Jamie, my cousins, and my family-in-law
- Being able to spend Thanksgiving with the aforementioned peeps
- Old friends and new friends, in MA, CT, NY, NJ, MD, TX and Germany (sniff sniff)
- Ollie, Howie and Lulu
- Our stuffed kids
- Surviving that freak eye infection, only having to have corneal scrapings once, wearing contacts again and freedom from amoeba
- Being able to live in New York
- The fact that in New York, anyone can get married
- Not having to live in Michigan
- Little blue pills and little white pills
- That Cavaricci’s are no longer in style
- The flat-iron
- Pinkberry
- Peanut butter
- The interweb and social media
- Not having the interweb and social media in high school
- My job, my co-workers and being allowed to wear jeans every day
- The lack of Ebola on the North American continent … so far …
- Snoopy, Charlie Brown and co.
- Cookie Monster and Grover
- Hydroquinine pads (sayonara, melasma!)
- The expression “but other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?”
- The coffee cart man on 23rd between 5th and 6th (except when he runs out of half-and-half)
- TV
- Wine
- My “Dr. Laura”
- The kind of liquid eyeliner that comes in an easy-to-apply magic marker-type pen
- The chance to meet John Taylor and realize a childhood dream
- Trader Joe’s
- Piperlime
- Books
- Hershey’s
- Wite-Out pens and the NYT crossword puzzle
- Slimy cranberry sauce that maintains the shape of the can it came in
- The blogosphere
BIG FAT HAPPY THANKSGIVING, THREE PEOPLE WHO READ THIS BLOG!
The Letter T 