The Couch: 103 — The Non-Palindromic Couch

That sounds like a really utopian novel! (And not the crappy boring kind of utopian novel, but the kind that describes a world you'd like to visit...)

I don't understand the whole Thanksgiving thing, is a bigger family event than Christmas? Is it like a family conpetition?

Mast, I've had a lot of bad stuff happen to me, but a lot of good things too. This is pretty basic in my world. Even the stbx, as bad as he could be, was capable of this kind of loyalty.

"Family competition" hits the nail on the head. There could be a Thanksgiving reality TV show.

The way I see it Americans have divided Christmas into two: Thanksgiving is for food and Christmas is for gifts.

And Thanksgiving is also for shopping these days. (For the Christmas gifts.)

There is a system at work here, BPA, though it probably just seems crazy to non-Americans. (And some Americans like me.)

I put xmas food over thanksgiving - I am not a huge turkey and pie fan - turkey is not hard to make but I just don't like eating it that much. I do like rare roast beef which is what I make for xmas along with sticky toffee pudding for dessert.

And yes - for a lot of people - thanksgiving is the time for extended family gathering. I don't know why.

That's good. It's nice to hear that such things exist.

The whole thing seems nuts to me...I can't wait until Jan. 2nd!

I'm glad I'm not a Kennedy - or any kind of American. We don't have Thanksgiving in our wonderful country. And that is something truly to be thankful for.

Imagine having to see your rotten family twice a year - and on Thanksgiving you don't even get presents!

Imagine being a Kennedy.
I'm glad I'm not a Kennedy.

It doesn't seem to go well for Kennedy men, that's for sure.

Quite correct. But by discovering the moons of Jupiter, Galileo showed conclusively and directly (to anyone who dared to look through his telescope) that not everything orbits the Earth.

No philosophical argument.
No maths.
No scribbled records going back decades.

Evidence you can see.

Was Shona Laing from NZ?

That was QI just last week. Not dissing your general knowledge just observing a coincidence.

TDay is basically a day to celebrate gluttony and football, with women doing all the cooking and cleaning. Until recently, it was the only day that protected us from the onslaught of Christmas advertising and shopping hordes, but even that courtesy is now gone.

Library photos, I bet.

I am going to whinge about my neighbour now..just warning you.
He now has the masts and rigging and things strewn about the yard. I am trying to find where the real estate office has moved to.He gets up at some ungodly hour and his back door is right under my bedroom window so get woken by a crash and the just as I'm going back to sleep crash again. I have written a email to the real estate but nothing yet.

I'm sure this exists somewhere.

Yes! That's why the Americans don't get the reference.

"Glad I'm not a Kennedy" Big hit in NZ, way back when.

Yes, the world is flat.
No, we don't have thanksgiving in the UK.
Umm...BUT we have guy Fawkes night and that's my favourite, cos basically you just get to drink beer and set fire to stuff!

We used to have Guy Fawkes night in the colonies too, until people kept blowing themselves up.

My son's report card arrived today, 4 A's and 2 B's, the B's actually count as A's for his GPA because one is in AP Statistics and the other one is a college writing class! Woo! Proud mama here for sure!!!

It took me awhile to think of her name, but I remembered the lyrics.

I didn't remember her name at all. Had to look it up.

Recipe please for the sticky toffee pudding.