For the first time in a year and a half, I have a working furnace.

Woot!

Yay, heat!

Yay, heat!

I keep turning it up, just to hear it kick in.

Also, I got a new thermostat out of it and it's much nicer. The other one was sort of the gaslight special where the buttons would press in without any sense that they were activating and often not. You know...bad buttons.

I have brined my bird, and it's in the garden apartment fridge for the next two days doing The Osmosis. And I'm now roasting veg and turkey bits in preparation to make some stock.

Heat!

My sister is hosting her husband's family on Thursday, so I will provide: cranberry sauce, bread for stuffing, and a pumpkin pie (possibly a pecan-pumpkin pie). On Saturday it will be Thanksgiving with my nieces and their families, so we will do prime rib and a pesto lasagna. I will make the lasagna and a Basque cheesecake.

Lots of cooking ahead. I should probably go start the cranberries, and take the butter out of the freezer so I can make pie tomorrow.

I decided I needed more turkey bits for my stock so I trotted over to Whole Foods and came back with a turkey back, neck, thigh and drumstick.

So that's currently broiling while the previous veg and neck are in the convection oven.

I think in half an hour I can combine them all into a holy PRE-stock pot. Very different in feel from the POST stockpot with the turkey carcass.

But i need stock before hand to do the gravy and the stuffing.

Anyway, the house smells great (lots of sage, lots of thyme, roasty turkey) AND it's warm and cozy.

I'm in full Bob Belcher mode now obsessing about every detail.

You went to Whole Foods, but you bought pieces of turkey? Confusing!

Ha!

Man, labels just don't mean anything, do they? My instant coffee took all kinds of time this morning, too! Mostly waiting for the water to boil, but still.

You went to Whole Foods, but you bought pieces of turkey? Confusing!

It's not called Whole Turkey!

Check out the magic thing that happened this morning.

I got out of bed, all barefoot, to head to the bathroom and as I passed the vent in my bedroom, warm air wafted cross my feet warming my entire body.

Mmmmm.

Turkey Stock Update: Frickin' Awesome. So delicious. I could quit the rest of Thanksgiving and just drink this stock from a mug and be satisfied.

There have been several years when the rationale for my mostly vegan parents to get a turkey for thanksgiving has been "so we can make soup". That stuff is goooooood

Not this year, though. I am inflicting a cheese board on them, but I doubt anyone will try to make soup out of it.