So You'd Like to Host Your Own Thanksgiving 2

As much as Thanksgiving 1 is a North American holiday, I would like to think that Thanksgiving 2 has the power to cross borders, nay, oceans and become a worldwide holiday celebration. You may be saying to yourself "But it seems difficult and super time consuming to put together a Thanksgiving 2 celebration". Let me put your minds at ease. It is much easier then you may think, and it can be supremely enjoyable if done correctly. I’ll go over the few steps that are necessary and some that could be added in to fancy it up. I believe that one day I will meet or hear from someone who is throwing their own TH2.

      It may seem daunting at first, but over the years I have found that I only need 3 things to pull off a successful Thanksgiving 2 event.

1.      The willingness to put the event together.

2.      The time to prepare the food and/or decorate.

3.      A group of people who would enjoy my Thanksgiving 2 celebration.

     Your willingness is probably the hardest one to gauge. I’m going to guess that if you’re still reading this post that you have the inklings or very beginning of the want. If you enjoy having people over to your home or if you like throwing parties now then you are only a step or 2 away from throwing a TH2 event. 

     The time element is very dependent on how many people you think will be joining you for the event. I am planning on 60 people this year. I will be spreading the prep time out over a week and a half with a break for Thanksgiving 1 and Black Friday (we go Christmas shopping that day). Look at the chart below to get a rough idea of how much prep time you would need. My estimates are based on a single person working alone and time spent after a 9-5 job. If you have to clean your home I’d add a day or 2 depending on the size of your entertaining area. The very best way to figure out how much time you will need is to plan out your menu first (which is a whole other subject). If you know what dishes you are going to make then you can plan out which dishes are made on what day, or which ones need to be made the day of (the turkey for instance). Your schedule will almost build itself at this point.

# of Guests	PSMU’s needed (8-12 hours)		Food	Days to prepare food (minimum)
10-20	120-240 psmu’s		1-2 turkeys, 8 sides, 5 desserts	2
20-3020-30	240-360 psmu’s		2 turkeys, 10 sides, 8 desserts	4
30-40	360-480 psmu’s		2-3 turkeys, 12 sides, 10 desserts	7
50-60	600-720 psmu’s		3-4 turkeys, 16 sides, 12 desserts	10
		*sides refer to appetizers and side dishes combined *PSMU=Personal Single Meal Unit

     The third and most important step is the crowd finding. Without guests to share TH2 with you are just sitting alone eating a ton of turkey by yourself, and no one wants that. I can only make some suggestions here because I’m hoping you have friends already. Here are a few additional ideas to add people to your guest list. I am a big proponent of social media, and I find it to be the easiest way to tell everyone about Thanksgiving 2. Why only use word of mouth when you can “talk” to 40, 50 or 120 people at a time? You can encourage your invites to "share" the invites with friendly people to encourage more guests. Finally, the best suggestion I can make is to use a quote from the most famous cooler in the world Dalton, “Be nice.” If you meet new people during your travels then you have an opportunity to invite them to your Thanksgiving 2 celebration. 

     Now once you have had your first successful TH2 event, and you feel like a second one can be done, but you’d like to add a few extra flourishes here are some simple suggestions.

1.      Add holiday decorations

2.      Create a movie watching schedule

3.      Add a food/drink tasting

4.      Find a theme to unite the dishes

     The simplest addition is to put up decorations of some sort. I say this is the easiest because a lot of people I know already have their Thanksgiving or Christmas decorations handy when it comes to the end of the year. It depends on when you decide to hold your TH2. I prefer to have my winter holiday decorations up after Halloween, so my house is ready for Thanksgiving and Christmas  by the end of November. If you choose to hold your TH2 before you would normally have your house decorated then here is your chance to decorate early. I have always thought that if you are going to put all of the effort into making your home look nice and festive, why shouldn’t you enjoy it for a long time. 

     Since just about everyone I know has a largeish tv nowadays the addition of a movie schedule just makes sense. Why have this piece of equipment and not use it at social functions? This is an idea I have been flirting with this year. I have always had movies playing on my wall, but I haven’t ever run them on a schedule. If the guests have a favorite movie then they can plan their meal times around it, or even make sure they show up in time to watch their favorite holiday classic. The only suggestion I will make that I learned from a friend who used to do many movie marathons is to plan breaks between showings. I plan to run the Macy’sThanskgiving Day parade from 11am-2pm and then start National Lampoons Christmas Vacation next. I will put a 30-45 minute window in between them. I am currently taking a poll to see what others movies to watch, one of which will be Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas. At first having a movie on may seem anti-social at a gathering like this, but I have found that with a lively crowd it becomes a very social experience. 

     Last year I tried a drink tasting on a tiny scale and I think it went very well. I had 8 infused vodkas to taste and when a bit of a crowd gathered it gave us all something new to share together. To throw together your own tasting requires very little. Decide what you'd like to feature, then set a specific time to do it. This is a good portion of your event that you could delegate to a good friend or loved one. As long as you have a nice semi-secluded space and some adventurous guests this can add a great element that will be remembered I will go over the tasting component I am thinking of adding on a later entry. 


      My favorite embellishment that can be added is the thematic element of the last 3 Thanksgiving 2's. Finding a theme that you both like and can pull off is the key. You have to find one that unites some or all of your dishes, drinks or decorations. I would say look towards countries (like I do), regions of the globe, or where some of your favorite foods come from. Another interesting way to go is a theme based on a movie or TV show. For example: the Harry Potter book and movie series has a lot of food references in them. It would be very easy to have a Potter themed Thanksgiving 2. The only word of caution I will give you is this, remember that you are hosting a Thanksgiving event. You do not want to go too far off of the generally accepted Thanksgiving menu for your first or second time around. I have a heavy German theme this year, but I will have the traditional turkeys, mashed potatoes, corn, stuffing and pumpkin pie. The rest of the dishes will be the on-theme supplemental dishes. If you can find a theme that you are interested in, and one that you will enjoy researching then your prep work will not feel like a chore, but an interesting experience.

     If anyone out there thinks that they would like to throw their own TH2 gathering please let me know. The 60 people coming can not be wrong. Someone threw the very first New Year's Eve party hundreds of years ago. Don't you want to be a pioneer?