Thanksgiving used to be a lot simpler. It was a holiday for non stop eating, hugs from grandma and watching football or Charlie Brown specials.
Now Thanksgiving can mean enduring long hours with boring relatives, meeting icy in-laws and praying that the turkey isn’t burned?again.
But there is hope for those who dread the day of thanks. Follow these simple tips for a cornucopia of fun (bad pun intended) this year:
The Day Before
The most important thing to remember is that you can’t let them catch you unawares.
If you need to travel long distances, plan it so you get there far enough in advance that you can get some sleep. If your uncle starts into one of his stories once you get there, just keep yawning and mentioning how long the plane/car/bus ride was.
If you aren’t leaving town, plan some relaxation time the night before. DON’T try partying with friends or going out. If there’s anything worse than listening to your cousin chew with his mouth open, it’s listening to it with a hangover.
The Day Of
The best way to avoid getting swept up into a family drama is to grab a kid?really, it works. Playing with small children will make you look like the wholesome, humanitarian type?and it scores big points with in-laws.
Most importantly, adults stop talking to you or making demands because you’re performing an invaluable favor by babysitting.
If there are no suitable or available kids around, take up a useless craft. Creating turkeys out of gum drops, coloring pictures of pilgrims, or making place cards out of construction paper and mints all make great diversions that are seemingly helpful.
If you are feeling more ambitious, get family members involved in a game of 20 questions, Who’s Got the Bean, or Pumpkin Bowling. Games keep the level of complaining down and prevent actual conversations.
During the dinner, cope with any stress by doing some simple relaxation techniques. For example, breathe in deeply, hold for a few seconds and then exhale completely. Repeat that three or four times.
Another good technique to physically relax you is to systematically tighten and then release each muscle of your body, starting with your face.
Perhaps the easiest method, however, is visualization. To do this, simply tune out your surroundings (you will most likely do this anyway) and picture a calm ocean or a tropical beach. Pretty soon, grandpa’s incoherent mumblings will be the sound of a soft rain shower.
The Day After
So the worst is over, but now you’re stuck with post-traumatic stress and a few extra pounds.
Start the day off with a session of yoga, running or kick-boxing. You can also check out www.shape.com for some exercise routines you can do at home. Exercising will lessen the guilt of over-eating and help fight off all that tension.
Another way to wind down is to get a massage. If you’re a college student (i.e. you’re poor), you can go to the Utah College of Massage Therapy for only $25. The Salt Lake City Campus is located at 25 S. 300 East. It’s open on Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.
The most important thing to remember is that you have to take care of yourself. Between Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s?not to mention finals and holiday jobs?there are multiple forces out to get you?not the least of which is your obnoxious, cheek-pinching aunt.