△ ▲ Become a Seattleite: 2013-11-24

● There we go, first Thanksgiving, meet a thousand new people, have to talk about your life (repeat at least ten times the same story xD), have to learn about everybody, should better memorize their all names and where they come from, better know what each meal is . . .

All right, Thanksgiving, it's also to share, to be grateful, to cheer, to congratulate and to support. It's time to remember best moments, to confess mistakes, to listen to other's suffering, to tell what is new, good in your life!

It's a moment of intimacy and kindness.

So is a family moment.

We all made speeches.

They all said that they loved me and that I was part of the family now.

I felt part of their family, and I felt great and at ease with them.

It's like in those moments when you feel part of another area than home, so you feel part of the world.

Yep, I and my host-sibling were at the head of the table. Frightening uh?

Ladies & gentlemen, let me introduce The Magic Tablecloth! Looool, I think Thanksgiving is such a big deal for american people, they are such in a hurry and freaking out, they want to be on time, the food to be ready and perfect and good-looking and the table to be clean and good-looking too. I understand, in some way. It's an essential part of the celebration, when you feel than everything is in his right place, and in its own right state!

Gggaaaaaaa waiting for the food!!! So we had cranberries sauce, mashed sweet potates, wallnuts-veggies-cheese salad, carrots, little home-made lovely breads, pumpkin cheesecake, pumpkin pie, apple pie, apple tarte, berries clafoutis, cheese, crackers, fresh raw celeri and leek as an entrée and others appetizers, and the stuffing in a cheese-topped dish because some people, okay, well, ONLY THREE PEOPLE were vegetarian (what is not a lot compared to those we have at school), and didn't eat turkey, so they ate the stufing apart.

● Then, save the food that remains (extra left food) and bring it home! For more food the next day! Don't have any space anymore? Doesn't matter, you will eat anyway ^ - ^'

Guess what? Thanksgiving is a dinner. A DINNER. I didn't know that I though it was a lunch! Or, kind of . . . A late lunch, an afternoon-lunch! Actually, I didn't really no what it was exactly . . . But certainly not a dinner, which starts at 4:00, when it's not earlier . . . Anyway, it's a whole-day-meal. It was AWESOME.

[See Mom? I had the "e" in "awesome" (:O]

● Next day: Black Fridaaaaaaay!!!!

Don't get me wrong: I didn't wake up at 4:00am to go shopping and find the best deals (and my size . . .), nope. As far as I went to bed by 2am, I'd better sleep at least six hours before to start another day (;

But we went shopping though. My host-sibling and I went to University village, a lovely little stores place, it's like a village, where you can find EVERYTING: food place, QFC, banks, shops, parks, sport stores and equipment, frozen yogurt places, vegetarian food places, body care shops, and so on and so forth.

It is pretty beautiful, with lights and the ornaments/embelishments . . . It looked like a little village with cabins that you can see downtown during holidays with all the hustle and bustle and the activities proposed by the stores and the boothes. It reminded me Christmas, but it was Thanksgiving, and when I think about it, it was more in harmony with Fall colours and spirit (and Thanksgiving values too).

The thing is in the US, everything is made available for everybody. Like stuff are public, because we can trust them, because they will MOST OF THE TIME give it back. So, yep, these umbrellas are free and you can borrow them. Unfortunately, some people may be eager to use this system too in France, but other people MOSTLY do not respect that. That's so bad, because not everybody is like that!