US Thanks Giving 2023..

Holidays can vary quite a bit depending on where you live here. Diwali has become quite popular in larger cities like Melbourne and Sydney because of the immigrant population. It's good fun. It's an Indian celebration of light, and the triumph of light over darkness. As you can probably imagine, if you're anywhere near a large Indian population you're going to suffer from artificial dawn during that time haha. Great food, lots of fun music and colours. I'm not Indian but I'm certainly not adverse to celebrating with friends and colleagues.

Some people celebrate Halloween although there's the rampant anti-american attitude among some that basically grinch the heck out of it. It's almost impossible to explain that the yanks didn't come up with it and that we're even more entitled to it than ya'll are purely because we're closer to our colonial roots where the pagan celebration of Samhain is still prevalent than america is, but of course someone that just wants others to not have fun doesn't care. They just want you to be miserable like them . Our neighbourhood gets super busy with families and kids on Halloween and it's heaps of fun. Very much a community vibe. It's becoming more and more popular every year and I'm always up for anything that gets communities out and chatting with each other. 

I also love me a good Eid al-fitr. It's the Muslim celebration at the end of Ramadan and while I haven't had a lot to do with the celebrations themselves (I'm not Muslim after all heh) I've spent time working with folks who are and the fun that comes along with sharing sweet treats with each other and sending home delicious snacks for their families to enjoy is pretty great. The community building aspect obviously is something that I really enjoy. I don't have much of a social battery but individual celebrations provide a really great opportunity to learn and understand each other. For example, I learned that I really REALLY like kahk which is an egyptian stuffed cookie. I love dates so that one was pretty fated hahaha. I also love the look on someone's face when you realise that you enjoy their favourite childhood treat just as much as they do, and the shared happiness that comes from the discovery. Hearing about how they used to watch their grandmother making them while they sat up on the kitchen counter sneaking dates from the bowl before they could be ground up for the kahk is supremely relatable and fun.

But honestly if you're not a part of a larger more multi-cultural population in Australia, you're probably not going to have exposure to any non-Christian based celebrations. For example if I asked someone around where we live if there was going to be a Diwali parade, they'd look at me like I'd grown a second head. Christmas, Easter, NYE and a few minor public holidays like Northern Territory day or Australia Day that have specific celebration themes are about your lot. 

My cattle dog was all super keen to go piss on his grave but then she up and died on us a few years back! 

You can't forget Australia Day. In which you watch boozed-up bogans wearing flags as capes try and pick fights with kith Kiwis and Islanders having a peaceful BBQ in the park with their families.

I’d be happy to move Australia Day and turn it into a multi-cultural celebration, where we all celebrate our diverse backgrounds, feast on diverse cuisine, and try to respect each other.

Oh, and Wet T-shirt competitions to celebrate our bogan heritage as well.

Fuggen awesome,  I'm up for that and my Leb Gangster Son In Law says he is good to go, but can he and his bro's do street burnouts or no?  

He says bummer on the drive by action, like that's their forte, however in the interest of fully celebrating our cultural diversity and Australian homegrown multiculturalism they'll just stick to a goat orgy and a few beers!

Being a prepper means you don’t need anyone to come to your aid. You can handle $h1t yourself.

?? What is the difference between ..turkey hash and turkey soup.. ??
3 more days of left overs... Bwahahahahha...
A real groaner of a joke, but it cracks me up every fall...
==
This recipe sounds good.. I would try it.. However I do have to say I don't care for using box stuffing in ground beef meat loaf.. It is OK, but not as good as bread crumbs or oat meal..
==
Turkey And Stuffing Meatloaf
Presented by McCormick October 05, 2020
Ingredients for 6 servings
MEATLOAF
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
1 ½ cups unseasoned stuffing mix
¾ cup chicken stock
1 cup yellow onion, finely diced
½ cup celery, finely diced
½ cup carrot, finely diced
1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt, divided
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 ¼ teaspoons Sage, divided
1 ½ lb ground turkey
1 large egg, beaten

CRANBERRY GLAZE
½ cup jellied whole-berry cranberry sauce
¼ cup ketchup
2 teaspoons dijon mustard
½ teaspoon kosher salt

Preparation
1 Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C). Grease a 9 x 5-inch (22 x 12 cm) loaf pan with butter and line the pan with a piece of parchment paper, leaving overhang on the 2 long sides.

2 Melt the butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, carrots, ½ teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, and ½ teaspoon ground sage. Cook for 4–5 minutes, or until the vegetables are tender. Transfer to a large bowl and let cool for 15 minutes.

3 While the vegetables cool, stir together the stuffing mix and chicken stock in a medium bowl.. Let sit for 15 minutes, until the stuffing mix is soggy and has absorbed all of the liquid

4 Once the vegetables have cooled, add the soaked stuffing mix, ground turkey, remaining teaspoon salt, remaining ¼ teaspoon pepper, remaining ¾ teaspoon ground sage, and the egg. Mix until well combined. Transfer to the prepared loaf pan, pressing down to smooth the top.

5 Bake the turkey and stuffing loaf for 25 minutes.

6 While the meatloaf loaf bakes, make the glaze:

In a medium bowl, mix together the cranberry sauce, ketchup, and mustard.

7 Pour the glaze over the meatloaf, then return to the oven and bake for another 20 minutes or until the internal temperature 165°F (75°C).

8 Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then use the parchment to carefully lift out the meatloaf and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 1-inch-thick slices and serve immediately.