I'm Bound to Thank You for It...

Thanksgiving is by far my very most favorite holiday in the history of the world...I am sorry, Christmas lovers...Jesus' birth is momentous and all...you know, I love getting lots of clothes and shoes and jewels and books all wrapped up in His honor, not to mention all the fun and festivity. And His death was even more momentous, for sure...you know, Jesus, was a central figure in my growth and education and the communities in which I have come of age...and I mean, who doesn't love celebrating His torture and execution and eventual resurrection with a few extra drinks at a scuzzy dive bar on Holy Thursday? Guilty! But let's not kid ourselves...Thanksgiving is heads and shoulders above all the rest...four full days dedicated to gluttony -- my favorite of the seven deadly sins as a matter of fact (anyone care to guess my second favorite....?). Thanksgiving gives us all those delicious seasonal foods and endless varieties of pies and appetizers, all greasy and fat-laden...and let's not forget the bottles and bottles and bottles of booze... And the celebration of slothfulness doesn't end at dinner...there are the hours on end of hanging on the couch, picking up your weary bod only to do some Christmas shopping online or to make one of those turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy sandwiches before you fall asleep again. Oh, ok...there may be some football watching and golf playing of coffee-breaking if you are feeling antsy...but that is IT. And that is why Thanksgiving is so unimaginably awesome.

Ok...ok, I admit that there is another part of this holiday that I look forward to every year...I can be sappy and emotional too, I think you all know that....so an annual reminder of how very blessed I am is an amazing and welcome gift. And to know that I should thank god everyday for giving me a beautiful family...healthy, spry parents and growing, active children...a lovely home and an endless selection of terrific neighbors in a warm, safe, happy community. And then, on top of all that, here I stand with friends in every corner of my life whom I love and adore so deeply, regardless of where we are, how much time passes, or what might occur between us...you know that I could not live

without you.

Of course I know that we are all thankful for family and friends and home and happiness this time of year....but as I was writing all this down and in thinking about the fun and excitement of this upcoming holiday season, my perfect middle child and my jealous and possessive youngest were both completing the obligatory lower elementary grade Thanksgiving assignment of collecting items they might be inclined to bring along should they be a passenger on The Mayflower....and while they stood gaping at me as I suggested they grab a bottle of water and some peanut butter and a good book and an extra blanket, I began wondering what else, aside from water and air and sustenance and shelter, I could absolutely not live without... You know, comforts, non-essentials...because aren't those things also worthy of being cherished this time of year? Aren't those the the things that make our lives with our families and friends and in our homes all the more beautiful and livable...damn straight, they are! So...this year I give a special thanks to and for the following essential non-essentials...hey, and don't judge just because they

all have to do with food, clothes or entertainment (shocker, right?)...I'll save the depth and feeling for the "essential essentials" post... Ok, here goes:

Personal grooming services -- It is no secret, even with my absolute love of food and eating and cooking, that I would rather starve than allow my hair and skin upkeep to languish....my fingernails to be unpolished...my teeny tootsies to become unbuffed and calloused. To me, weekly grooming is second only to showering and hair washing when it comes to looking and feeling refreshed and alive and ready to face the world, not to mention able to drop everything and hit a dinner party or cocktail hour. I have found that my desire for glossiness has become synonymous with cleanliness in my mind...and nothing bums me out more than looking down and seeing a dull, chipped manicure or pedicure. So I don't know if these little treatments are even a luxury to me anymore...in fact, I believe this beauty and grooming schedule is more likely an addiction...maybe even my own little secret adrenaline high...a little oxytocin via OPI polish. So ok, maybe I am a salon junkie...and it is quite likely that I would beg, borrow, steal...bring my family to ruination and damnation before I would forgo my quite large monthly salon bill...but at least I will be the smoothest and shiniest trick on the soup lines this winter....

Iced venti non-fat latte -- Starbucks, D&D's or the local Greek diner...it's what's forbreakfast.

CoverGirl Wet Slicks Lip Gloss -- a bona fide pick me up all packaged in a little tube with a wand, and available in a rainbow of colors. When it comes to lip gloss, there is nothing better than a well-priced, mass market goodie like WetSlicks...

Tivo -- by far the greatest invention of all time for those of us who are stubborn, self-important pop culture fanatics...yes, we want to indulge in as much mindless programming as possible, but dammit, we want to do it on our own time. Just this past Sunday morning I woke 90 minutes before my alarm...and what did I do? Not laundry...didn't go to church...hit the gym? please! Instead I caught up on this week's episodes of The Soup and Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives (Triple D!) and The Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins...(what about boozy, big talking Brad trying to take on brick sh*thouse Darrell...what in holy hell was that utter f**kery??? Loved his juicy, bulbous black eye after the fact though...wait, I am the only one over 22 who watches this sh*t, aren't I?). And you know, even though Tivo and I spend more time together than I'd like to admit, a nice, unexpected side effect is that my social life has expanded exponentially now that I can skip out on Thursday nights without worrying about missing Project Runway or Survivor or, god forbid The First 48...I can't let a week pass without my fill of Tim Gunn, hidden immunity idols, or human suffering and gore via the Memphis PD. Thanks, Tivo!

The J. Crew "Jackie" cardigan -- fitted lightweight cotton, I have 7 of these little wardrobe essentials in a variety of colors...black and navy getting the biggest workout of the bunch though you have certainly seen the green as well... I top almost every outfit with one of these...a sartorial lifesaver of sorts...

The Farmer's Market -- I love to cook...and I love food...and I love fresh ingredients....and farm markets just do it for me. I don't know, those baskets overflowing with red tomatoes and green peppers and orange squash and purple eggplant and an endless selection of fresh herbs and...well, it's like live food porn...a foodie peep show, if you will. We are lucky to have one of the few working farms in the state right here in Wyckoff...and at any given moment (except Sundays, welcome to Bergen County...) we can just run right over to Abma's and check out the daily stock and create menus around their home-grown produce, farmed chickens and pigs. I am there almost every single day, planning our family dinners as I go...I could not live without that experience...so mark my words, if and when Abma's leaves town, so too will I...

Bravo's "Reality" and "Reality Competition" programming -- Bravo's entire

line-up completely sucks me in for many reasons, but mainly because it seems less smarmy and vomit-inducing as, say, E! does with their lock on the insipid celebutante (Keeping Up with the Kardashians...) and cracked out Vegas stripper (Rock of Love Bus...) market. Truly, I could go on forever about Flipping Out!, Real Housewives...you name it...but my first loves are Top Chef and past seasons of Project Runway, those addictive professional competitions filled with great works of culinary art and fashion design created under extraordinary circumstances week after week...and it's like I am being educated via "reality"...introduced to new terms and techniques and products and concepts as I loaf and snuggle with my snugglebunnies...and so, you know, I don't feel so loafy and lame. In fact, now after watching every season of both shows, I have convinced myself that I am fully qualified to be a professional fashion or food critic ("The components of that dish just weren't cohesive..." or "That garment was so poorly constructed..."). A degree by Bravo...if only they had offered that at Stonehill I would have graduated summa cum laude for sure...

My glass "fish" earrings from The Island Shop in Bermuda -- I am a Pisces...I am drawn to "fish" and coastal themed items, always have been...and on a visit to The Island Shop in Hamilton, Bermuda a few years back, I walked right over to the display counter with the multi-colored hand-made glass beaded jewelry, saw the fish earrings dangling there, calling to me...so, I made them mine....and we've been a happy couple ever since.

Cupcakes -- hand-held heaven, stacked high with buttercream... I cannot be the only one who is immediately transported to my 6th birthday party when I catch sight of a tray of cupcakes. I don't care if they are the classic Duncan Hines variety with the pre-fab icing or one of those pillowy concoctions from Magnolia Bakery with their pastel candy toppings...my mood is lightened with one bite...

Girls' Nights/Weekends -- Really, after over a year of covering in this very blog why I love time with my girlfriends so very much, do I need to elaborate?...I don't think so either...

The "Cheese Plate" -- If there was one food on which I had to agree to subsist for the remainder of my time on earth, I would have no problem choosing...not a moment's hesitation. It would be, of course, cheese. And you know me well enough to know that I don't mean any old Kraft singles or Laughing Cow cr*p...I am talking artisanal offerings and farmstead products made with the milk of grass-fed sheep and goats and cows. I never pass up the cheese course on a menu...I never pass the cheese counter or walk by the cheese shop...I linger all afternoon at tastings. I could not even begin to name my favorites, because each visit to the cheese shop brings me a new one to love (though I suggest La Tur and Germain Langres for your holiday table...). I could be bribed into just about anything with a great cheese. Add a crusty baguette and a great bottle of Cabernet and I am yours for good...as simple as that...

But you know, my friends, even as I look back and am thankful for these many comforts, it is clear to me that without all of you to experience these delights with, they would certainly lose their luster. You know, manicures are much more fun with chit chat on the side...and a latte is always more tasty when enjoyed socially...and what good is a new lip gloss without being able to share a juicy kiss on top of it...and all the Tivo-ing of BravoTV shows and fondling of farm

market food porn could never excite me more than the snuggling with the snugglebunnies...and who needs a cute sweater or pretty earrings without a room full of

besties to tell you how

great you look in them....and there is nothing on earth better than that cheese plate and crusty baguette and delicious wine when they are, in fact, shared by (at least) two...

So...it really is all of you that I cannot live without...and I am beyond thankful to have you...

With all my love this Thanksgiving...Suz

Photos:

1. My perfect middle child one Thanksgiving past making an attempt to drop his vegetarianism by snagging the last drumstick...it didn't stick...but notice his placemat says he is thankful for Mommy & Daddy...told you he was perfect...

2. My three perfect little darlings, snugglebunnies and greatest blessings of all, bar none...

3. Having my "smoky eyes" applied (professionally) under the watchful eye of Patrick's portrait...in his mother's dining room...

4. That iced latte looks so luscious and satisfying...I am dying to lick the screen...

5. (left to right) Colleen, Pina, Mary and me...looking bright and shiny and pulled together in my bright green "Jackie" cardigan...

6. My future colleagues at the Top Chef judges table...I belong right there between Tom and Padma, no?

7. This shot has it all....a tray of cupcakes in hand, glass fish earrings dangling, a little Wetslicks glistening on my lips and great lighting...I am making this my next passport shot too...

8. The cheese plate I happily scarfed a mere 36 hours before my tornado ride through Connecticut...thankfully not my last one (not by a long shot...)

9. & 10. An selection of my regular cronies, looking hot as always...all of you make the day-to-day and these essential non-essentials all the more enjoyable...so Thank You!!!