Grouponicus and Gobblepalooza are some of the fancy names we are seeing to describe the after Thanksgiving Black Friday Day sales. For about a week now I have been getting emails from Amazon.com and others announcing Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales. Some stores have jumped the gun and have already started their sales.

At one time Black Friday was the starter pistol firing, to signal the start of the Christmas shopping season. Last year we saw some stores, like Sears, who normally don’t open extra as early on Black Friday, open earlier. This year we are seeing a lot of stores having pre-Black Friday sales. Only a small number of store are not waiting for November 25th to launch their Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales.

I have read that Kmart and Wal Mart will be open of Thanksgiving Day. This is almost enough to make me stop shopping with them. Thanksgiving has always been set aside for family gathering and watching TV. In our fast pace disjointed world, Thanksgiving has become one of the few times families can come together and reconnect. Now those who have to work on Thanksgiving Day will have a harder time to connect with family members.

Traveling anytime between Thanksgiving and Christmas and even through New Year Day can be a double sided coin. It is great time reconnect with family members. On the other hand holiday travel can be worst than exploring the Brazilian rain forest with a three legged mule.

Statistics show more people travel in the time period around Thanksgiving and Christmas. Do you remember seeing on TV, every year during this time of year all those people sleeping in airport terminals? What about delayed or cancelled planes, trains, buses, and cars? Most all of those problems were caused by weather. In the United States some of the busiest travel time is while we are having some of the harshest weather of the entire year.

Traveling during these holidays is not always grim and bleak. If you must travel you may be able to side step a lot of the horrors of holiday travel and save a little money in the process. All you have to do is a few simple things.

This year for Thanksgiving I decided to have a little contest. I wanted to know what people were planning for Thanksgiving Dinner. We announced it first on the radio station KKNW during The Northwest Traveler. Then later on Facebook.  We set the radom selection of the winner to be noon Eastern Standard Time on November 17th.

The randomly selected winner was Janice from Boise Idaho. We will be sending a $20 gift card from Winco.  She said her Thanksgiving dinner will include Smoked Turkey, Twice Baked Potato Casserole, Veggies, Homemade Rolls, and Pumpkin Pie from Scratch.

After reading her email, I was very impress how the bulk of her and her families meal will be homemade from scratch as opposed to getting out of box or in some form of container where it is pre-made. For me this is the essence of having a family Thanksgiving Dinner.

If you have not noticed almost every store, is selling Halloween costumes. Some store even have started to Christmas decorations. Thanksgiving decorations are store shelves.

Next to the decoration the Holidays are memorable for the the time with family members. What makes that time with the family is the food.

One of my most memorable Christmas, was a little goat ranch in the coastal mountain range south of San Francisco. Meal planning start months in advance. Cooking of the meal was done in several kitchen from miles around. On Christmas Day dinner was assembled into a mouth watering display. To this day I remember the time together with family and friends, but the food played a big part of the time together.

This Thanksgiving Day 2009, I want to take this time and thank all the people in my life who has had a perfound influence. I may not of have listen to them when I should of have, but I can sit right here and say they have had a positive influence on my life. Because of that influence I am very thankful.

Lucile and Everett Cussins Sr. – Mom and dad weren’t very well educated or articulate about how they felt. They love my brother and I. They wanted the best for us. They wanted us to work hard and make the most out of what we have.

John C. Cussins – My brother, who was more like a older brother, in later years. He is the more stable, critical thinker.

Wally and Beverly Walrath – An older couple who opened they home up to a bunch of crazy hippies and teenagers. It was through them many lives were changed.

In less than one week everyone in the United States and quite a number around the world will be sitting down for the most important meal of the entire years. It is a meal that families together. It is a meal where we give thanks for making it through another years.

Currently, there are massive turkey drives to help people who may not have the money to buy a turkey along with all the trimmings. Then there are those smaller families that will opt for having ome restaurant fix their Thanksgiving meal. Then there are the more traditional families that will start late Wednesday night and work until the serving of the biggest meal of the year.

The American Farm Bureau reports that for the first time since 2004 the cost of the Thanksgiving meal will drop. They are base it on a meal for ten people, at cost of $42.91. Personally, I think this quite low. Below is their break down for the meal.