the editor talks with you

At the risk of sounding like a better person than I am, I thank God every morning for another day on earth.

Our dogs go out with me to take care of their early morning business.

While they are sniffing the ground for just the right place to make a deposit, God and I have a short conversation. With His indulgence, I do most of the talking.

My side of the conversation is repetitious.

I thank him for a good night’s rest, for a beautiful day ahead, even if rainy and cold, for our dogs – one of life’s true joys – our family, friends and colleagues at the Chronicle, all of the challenges and opportunities He has given me and the ones He has in store for me in the day ahead.

Opportunities are a blessing. Challenges are a way to grow, learn and use your brains for more than ordering lunch.

We don’t really appreciate our blessings until we have to do without them.

Thanksgiving is a good example.

After 15 years of taking Thanksgiving dinner with my family for granted, I went off to military school and celebrated Thanksgiving with the other boarding students.

I would rather have been at home.

A Thanksgiving spent in the 7th Infantry Division in Korea reminded me again how precious are our times with family.

Scoop, our cairn terrier, has a following for his corny jokes. Here are a few he swiped from Reader’s Digest:

After the 1st Thanksgiving dinner, the natives thanked the Pilgrims and said, “This has been fun and we hope you have a pleasant voyage home across the Atlantic.”

• What does a disappointed mama turkey tell her kids? If your father saw you now, he would be turning over in his gravy!

• How many chefs does it take to stuff a turkey? Only one but it’s a tight squeeze.

• The head turkey says to his second-in-command, “Something’s going on. The farmer just unfriended me on Facebook.”

• If the Pilgrims were alive today, what would they be celebrated for? Their age.

• What do you like to make for Thanksgiving dinner? Restaurant reservations.

• Thanksgiving is a magical time when families raise our obesity level.

Should you have your most annoying relatives for Thanksgiving dinner? No, turkey with cranberry sauce is better.

• Crazy about Thanksgiving? You’ve got nothing on turkeys. When Thanksgiving arrives, they literally lose their heads.

• What do you call a turkey that’s got no feathers? Thanksgiving dinner.

• What smells the best at a Thanksgiving dinner? Your nose.

• Why shouldn’t you look at the turkey dressing? Because it will make him blush.

• Which side of the turkey has the most feathers? The outside!

• Thanksgiving cooking tip: Carefully wrap leftovers in foil and throw them out.

Scoop’s favorite story was from one of the late Erma Bombeck’s columns.

Erma wrote; “Thanksgiving dinners take 18 hours to prepare. They are eaten in 12 minutes. Half-times take 12 minutes.

“That’s not a coincidence.”

Next: Starry nights

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