to be jealous that Americans get Thanksgiving AND Christmas?

[FeuDeRussie]

Thanksgiving sounds really good. Like Christmas, but no presents to worry about (AFAIK?), just FOOD!

Are there any Americans around who can tell me what Thanksgiving is like? Do you prefer it to Christmas?

[charlmarascoxo]

I'd love to eat a thanksgiving dinner.

There seems to be so many holidays over there - Labor Day, Independence Day, Columbus Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving.

I'd move over there in a second :)

[FeuDeRussie]

I do want to have Xmas in New York one day, in a posh hotel with an ice rink outside and a huge Xmas tree. Also need to have Xmas in Germany, have wanted to ever since doing German GCSE and reading about their very Xmassy Xmases with real candles on their real trees. (But they do open their presents on Xmas eve, the fools.)

[MissCellania]

There won't be twinkies for long, the company has gone bust!

[MitsoTsukahara]

Well done AndiMac, I was wondering when a fellow Canadian was going to jump in! Yes Canadian Thanksgiving is lovely, we don't go OTT like the Americans, plus our (well mine, at least) pumpkin pie is Chiffon and therefore better than any pumpkin pie anywhere else!

[grovel]

Butterball turkeys.

Sizzle'n Lean Bacon.

Peter Pan peanut butter.

Budweiser.

[FeuDeRussie]

(Sorry about not being arsed to write Christmas in full.)

[LadyBeagle]

No roast potatoes
Now that's just wrong.
Though it's a nice thought, that you can have one day a year to be thankful for what you have, and celebrate only that.

[lljkk]

"Yes America has far more public holidays than we do."

UNTRUE.

We get
MLK day, President's day, NOTHING for Easter, Memorial Day, 4th of July, Labour Day, Colombus Day (generally swapped for day after TGiving), TGiving (one day only), Vetereran's day (new one on me), Christmas, NYD. That'sTEN.

Brits typically get
2 days at easter, 2 days in May, 1 day in August, 2 days at Christmas, NYD.
That is EIGHT.

Not a big difference, and a lot of Americans will only get a day off if it falls on a weekday: ie, you only get Christmas off it your workplace is closed that day. Oh, and there is NO legal right to any annual paid leave in many, maybe most US jobs.

[Tee2072]

Oh please, do not judge us by our mass produced beer, I beg you.

[FeuDeRussie]

Chiffon Dustbin turkey Butterball turkey

[CombustionEngine]

Don't forget green jelly, actual jelly, with olives and lettuce set in it!

It was hideous.

However, American gravy is delish. My mil taught me how to make gravy, I grew up with Bisto

[valiumredhead]

Don't be jealous - they have ONE day off for Thanksgiving and back to work Boxing Day!

[FeuDeRussie]

Exactly LadyBeagle - just food, friends and family all together. Sounds lovely.

[MrsTerryPratchett]

They get a lot of holidays but next to no annual leave. And only 6 weeks unpaid mat leave. And, no healthcare. Really, don't be jealous of the stat holidays. Black Friday (when all the shops go mental) is starting on the Thanksgiving evening this year so the workers have to leave their families and go into work.

[HellothisisJoanie]

Oh these are über foodies. Make margaritas from scratch , ribs marinade for days etc in summer.

I'm wearing Meat Pants.

[grovel]

Tee2072, I love your country which gives me the right to be all judgemental about it.

[Tee2072]

Okay grovel.

[FeuDeRussie]

Olives, lettuce and green jelly? These foods all sound very weird but I survived a Twinkie once so am up for trying them if it means I get a Thanksgiving!

[FeuDeRussie]

I didn't realise your post was judgemental grovel I though you were just informing me of Thanksgiving foods! What is butterball turkey anyway?

[zeeboo]

I loved thanksgiving growing up in the US and really miss it now. It really heralded the start of the holiday season.

[grovel]

Butterball turkey is (or was) a pre-basted, frozen turkey sold by Swift Foods.

[Molepomandmistletoe]

We NEEEEEED Thanksgiving. Just for the extra excuse to pig out and watch American Football.

[ConfusedPixie]

We have bonfire night! I'd rather that than Thanksgiving, too much hassle wrt work and holiday too close together imo.

[FairPhyllis]

No American I have ever met does gravy. I went to what I thought was going to be a fancy NYE dinner party last year and was served dry boiled ham, green beans and dry boiled potatoes ffs. And people say British cooking is bad.

The usual accompaniments to Thanksgiving dinner are a green bean casserole with mushrooms that is made with condensed mushroom soup , cornbread, which is utterly blah, potatoes in ANY form other than roasted, and sweet potato (which I will admit is quite nice). I think it's mostly that people don't really do roasts so they don't have a lot of experience of how to do them well.

And the television for Thanksgiving is crap - it just means that the schedules get loaded up with college football.