Wrap It Up: It’s a Coronavirus Thanksgiving, Charlie Brown
“Thanksgiving is canceled this year.”
This was heard during a very, very long conversation I had with my mother months ago, and a conclusion we both quickly agreed upon.
The case was closed in September when, at the time, New York was (and still is, in my humble opinion) a safe zone compared to many other parts of the country. Quarantine laws are strict here, with penalties including a $10,000 fine and dad-shaming by our local Italian governor. It made absolutely zero sense for me to go home for North Carolina only to come back and follow all the rules before making the turnaround for Christmas.
And let’s be real — we knew we would see an influx in cases during the holidays. This is science. Why would anyone in their right mind go anywhere — specifically by train or plane — on the brink of wave two of a pandemic and on one of the busiest travel days of the year?
As if my quarantine pod wasn’t small enough to begin with, my friends and I have gotten to the point where we are all limiting who we come in contact with. Within the weeks leading up to Turkey Day, we kept lines of communication open, sharing who we were seeing, which consisted mostly of pods rolling three to five people deep, either dining in or out with everyone being safe. No pods were to be mixed and there were certainly no groups into the double digits.
I was one of the few who said I literally had zero plans for Thursday, and would likely be watching the parade solo from the comfort of my couch before maybe ordering takeout from my favorite neighborhood Chinese restaurant. I assure you that this is not a ‘woe is me’ moment. I had some friends ask if I wanted to venture to their apartment for an easy afternoon and evening of pizza and wine, but I was truthfully at ease with simply being at home alone.
When I found out my Quarantine Life Partner would be reading a book on his couch on Thanksgiving Day, the plan became clear: we were to spend the day together, just like every other holiday during this mother fucking pandemic.
And that’s precisely what we did.
The Wednesday prior we held a QuaranTeam Friendsgiving, with CLO and I meticulously outlining a vegetarian menu in full detail and BH bringing cheeseboard accoutrements. As I tend to do, I sourced wine from three separate independent stores on the Upper East Side to spread the #supportlocal wealth. And after all that planning and prepping, our idea of a pre-Thanksgiving Turkey Trot in Central Park flew right out the window, and we instead opted for 3:00 p.m. cocktails consisting of apple cider, vodka, and Drambuie.
Things couldn’t have gone better — our feeling of safety was further fueled by CLO’s negative Covid test which she waited four and a half hours to take. (I’ve seen the lines on the Upper East Side, so that timestamp wasn’t a huge shock.)
The next day, BH and I arose at our leisure, drank coffee, and watched the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Whether or not you watched, the parade gave — and meant — so much more to us New Yorkers as they had performances representing the Puerto Rican Day Parade, the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the Pride March, and even the famed Mermaid Parade in Coney Island, that give so much energy and life to the city and were all canceled this year.
We then ran to the Rockefeller tree (the branches finally settled, btw), ate another cheese plate and huge mushroom potpie for Thanksgiving dinner, and watched both Home Alone 2 and Patriot’s Day before calling it a night.
Thanksgiving looked a lot different this year — the common theme of all that is 2020 — but it was a good different.
I stayed home.
I cooked.
I watched the parade.
I called and FaceTimed my loved ones.
And as far as I’m concerned, it wouldn’t be a pandemic holiday without my QLP.
So let’s wrap this fucker up:
The outdoor dining setup at Khe-Yo in TriBeCa.
Number of Miles Run:
Last week? 17.52. A new milestone for this injury! I’ve successfully graduated to shock therapy, breaking up my scar tissue in my Achilles’ tendon, which is both neat and painful, but in a good way. Unfortunately, I decided to run three days in a row, which is absolutely stupid and please don’t tell my doctor.
Regardless, I’ve become attune to being the leader of sorts in the QuaranTeam long run game jumping in at the halfway mark, which I guess is the same as seeing someone jump into mile 20 of a marathon relay when you’ve been running for three hours. I’m surprised my friends haven’t yelled at and/or hate me.
What To Watch:
The Undoing. The miniseries just wrapped up on Sunday night and I watched it in virtually with both my mother and CLO. Aside from the fact that I saw it being filmed at the iconic church across the street from my old apartment — Nicole Kidman is STRIKING in person, btw — I haven’t been this excited for a finale since The Night Of.
The Happiest Holiday. It’s slightly stressful but I also sent several clips of Dan Levy and Kristen Stewart and the fish drama to BH while simultaneously watching and thus feel like this is a Christmas win.
What and Where To Eat:
Khe-Yo. I make it a point to visit this Laotian restaurant often, but because it is in TriBeCa and far from my Upper East Side apartment, I unfortunately make it there maybe once a year. We ended our long run here on Saturday and it did not disappoint. The outdoor setup is so tremendous that I would revisit even on the worst of winter days. (…Maybe don’t quote me on that.)
Four Horsemen: Nick Curtola and team are still delivering on all fronts here, both service and food-wise.
Jones Wood Foundry. Go for the salmon burger. Stay for the mulled wine.
Somtum Der. Another restaurant I visit frequently, and more so than Khe-Yo as Somtum Der is directly south from my homestead. CLO and I spent our latest Ladies Who Lunch luncheon here and I haven’t experienced spice like that in so long that it fucked my entire world up for a solid 24 hours. My mouth went completely numb and I went from high to low within a matter of hours, almost napping whilst on a date and also whilst in a Duane Reade. But this is not meant to be a discourage — go and eat all the larb.
ROKC. This is where I almost napped on a date. And because I’m purely masochistic, I ordered more spicy things including a spicy shrimp, a spicy fried chicken bun, and also curry. It was delicious and turned out just fine, intestines be damned.
Make the aforementioned mushroom pot pie recipe by Alexa Weibel, in which BH had three helpings of on Thanksgiving. (No one is judging you here, B!) I thoroughly enjoy that this is a literal one pot Thanksgiving meal minus the meat.
I also made a couple of recipes by Melissa Clark from her latest book, Dinner In French. You can order it here.
What To Read:
Aaron Hutcherson joins Features as a writer and recipe developer for Voraciously — Washington Post. Proud of you, Hutch.
Stay safe, support local, and happy holidays.
Lewis out.