Canadian Thanksgiving 2020

Last Monday was Canadian Thanksgiving. It was a little different this year due to the second wave of the pandemic. We were told to forget our social circles and just to celebrate within our own households. I was a good boy and stayed home.

My boss sent us a "Thanksgiving Turkey For One" recipe for people celebrating alone. I won't post it to Gryphood since I couldn't find turkey breast and since opted for two chicken breasts, but here's a recipe and a photo of what I accomplished:

Recipe:

1. Set crockpot to slow
2. In a bowl, mix together 1/2 cup orange juice, 1 packet onion soup mix, and 1 can cranberries
3. Put 1 turkey breast in crockpot, drizzle on mixed topping
4. Let cook for six hours

If you want to know what all else is happening in that image, it's just stovetop stuffing (follow the instructions on the package), easysprouts (turns out it was just Brussels sprouts in a ziplock bag, they don't even provide seasoning. I just added oil, salt and pepper), mashed potatoes (I used mayo as a base instead of butter and milk, so it was kind of like warm potato salad), canned gravy, and pumpkin tarts from my recipe on Gryphood.

You can look down on me, but when was the last time you put that much effort on a meal that was just for yourself?

Since Thanksgiving was canceled, it begs the question of what will happen to Halloween. Logic dictates that it isn't happening either, but don't tell that to the stores. Costume sales and bulk candy packs everywhere. Tell the Christmas people too, since the first rendition of egg nog (low fat version) is hitting shelves for the first time this year.

I realize I used a few phrases that I haven't used before on this blog. Here, I'll do a quick Pandemic Phrase Guide. It's three phrases, but they all mean basically the same thing.

Social Circle/Bubble Quarantine/Cohorts: This concept has been being pitched by scientists for awhile. As infection rates were easing and restrictions were being phased out, we were told we could exit our "lockdown" period (meaning you can only interact in close proximity with people in your immediate household), and proceed to develop a "social circle" or "quarantine bubble" of up to ten people. This means that you could create a group of up to ten, including people outside of your household, and if these people all agree not to socialize physically outside this group, it's possible to limit the spread of the infection and ensure that contact tracing is possible (don't think I've covered "Contact Tracing" in a Pandemic Phrase Guide, I'll keep a note of it).

People were really enthusiastic to jump on this concept, and most people didn't have difficulty narrowing their bubble to ten people. Even I developed one. Here, I'll share mine:

1. My girlfriend
2. My mom
3. My brother
4. My roommate
5. My best friend
6. My girlfriend's mom
7. My girlfriend's dad
8. My roommate's son

Look at that! Only eight people! I could even add two more! How socially frugal I am.

The problem is, nobody is doing this in the way the scientists intended. People are coming up with their list of ten, but they aren't ensuring that everyone in that group has the same list of ten.

I really don't want to do this to my own bubble, but for example:

• My girlfriend's three brothers and their significant others would be in her bubble
• My mom's best friend and her spouse would be in her bubble
• My best friend has at least one other friend he interacts with
• My roommate's son interacts with his mother

That's ten people I don't interact with who have access to people in my bubble and are potential viral entryways, and I'm sure they have their own bubbles. So it's not so much a "social circle" as it is a "social chain" or even "social web".

I usually only hear "social circle" by the media, and "cohorts" is a phrase usually used in a professional environment. It's "social bubble" that seems to get abused. "It's okay, you're in my bubble" "I spent the weekend in my bubble" etc.

I added Pumpkin Tarts and Pumpkin Bread to Gryphood:

https://gryphood.blogspot.com/