This year is probably the cheapest Thanksgiving dinner I’ve ever done largely because there were only three of us having dinner. Through a series of unexpected events (recent travel, miscommunication, aging, and exhaustion), everyone in my family decided to go it alone..
Travel
We had just come back from a trip in Mexico and had warned the family that we would not be hosting Thanksgiving this year since we had a tight timeline and turnaround the holidays. Everyone agreed alternative plans would take place but the plans that were put in place fell through. The main cause was exhaustion on a family members part due to age and health.
Grocery Store
Since all the plans fell through, wife and I decided to host our own little turkey dinner so we went to the grocery store and was shocked to see it full stocked. Normally, this time of year, the shelves would be empty and people would be fighting over the last few scraps but that wasn’t the case. Plenty of turkey, stuffings and everything else on store shelves. This is a huge hint to me that this economy is in trouble but that’s a post for another day. Side note: Black Friday looks like a bust since virtually no stores were open on Thanksgiving Day this year.
Sous Vide Turkey Breast
We bought a small turkey breast, ham, corn, and mashed potatoes and probably spent about $50. I took the turkey home and cooked it in a sous vide after asking AI to give me some ideas. It cooked perfectly and tasted great, tender and moist The AI suggestion was to cook it as 145F degrees for 4 hours then sear or broil for a few minutes.
Normally, when we host Thanksgiving it ends up costing around $200 so it was a bit refreshing not having to shell out so much cash for a holiday this year.
Black Friday
While many stores were closed on Black Friday, I was busy ordering items on Amazon and other online retailers for things I expect to cost much higher when the new administration sets in and begins tariff wars.
My wife and I went to Sams Club this morning and it was empty! We were able to fill up the gas tank with no wait and shop in and out with no lines. While there were a few people there, the store was mostly empty, shelves fully stocked and no traces of the wild stampedes of yesteryear. This is yet another confirmation to move to cash in our stock portfolio, which I’ve been doing now for months.
Share The Wealth
How was your Thanksgiving, let me know in the comments below.