Thanksgiving, you say?

While Thanksgiving may be a holiday celebrated across America, it happens to be one of least importance to me and my family. For some reason, we have never quite gotten into the Thanksgiving spirit (it may be my immense fear of turkeys or my mom’s immense distaste for any form of cooking, who knows). This year, rather than celebrating Thanksgiving at my home in New York, we instead are in San Francisco, visiting my brother and celebrating in a rather untraditional way.

Families across the country are spending today slaving away in front of the stove, cooking a wide array of highly caloric albeit undoubtedly delicious fare, and I, instead, am working on cover letters, finessing my resume, and stretching before I take a 5-mile run.Tonight, rather than having a home cooked Thanksgiving, my family and I are going to a restaurant here in the Bay Area, and having our Thanksgiving meal pre-cooked and pre-decided for us. I don’t quite mind, but there is something rather amiss about being in a restaurant filled with strangers rather than at home with family and loved ones, eating food made by some ominous cook rather than with love by family members.

All this has gotten me seriously thinking about tradition, wondering really the place it has in my life (if any), and whether it’s of importance to have tradition. Growing up, I believe, having tradition instills a sense of familiarity and comfort. But now, as a 21-year-old about to graduate and embark on my own life, one free from the strings of my parents’ desires, what kind of traditions will I embark on, pass down to generations to come?

Tomorrow is Black Friday. Now, I love a good shop as much as any girl (my wardrobe can assuredly attest to that), but I have zero interest in standing in crowded stores, waiting in lines for dressing rooms, and trying on countless clothes that will be too snug after a far too large meal. So, I’ve devised a new tradition, one that I think will be far more fun. Rather than spending Black Friday shopping, I will be spending it art-ing (the verb I’ve coined for my aggressive days spent at museums and galleries). I’ve spent hours scouting galleries, museums, and exhibits in San Francisco so that tomorrow I can spend Black Friday nose-deep in art! Now, this is a tradition I can get used to.