Believe it or not the holiday season has crept up on us and is only weeks away. Turkey, presents, the ball dropping — is there a better time of the year? Absolutely not.
Life can be exhausting and Thanksgiving is always welcomed as the much-anticipated time of the year to slow things down and catch up on what others have been doing this fall.
In celebration of 22 Jump Street’s release on Digital HD and Blu-ray Combo Pack release on 11/18/2014, here are 22 things to look forward during your Thanksgiving Break this year:
Reliving the glory days with your best bros
Whenever you decide to go out and relive the glory days, it’s guaranteed to be a cyclone of excessive drinking and hilarious memories. The next morning is certain to be one of your most hungover mornings of the year and that’s OK because you have nowhere to be and nothing to do (plus, a majority of people around the country are sharing your pain). Your agenda is a blank slate; clean of all real world responsibility other than stuffing your face.
Football
If reconnecting with friends wasn’t enough of a selling point, then there’s football —lots of it.
Seriously, if you’re a fan of the game, it doesn’t get much better than the fourth week in November. There are high school games (more on that in a bit), college games (with incredibly high stakes like last year’s Alabama-Auburn game) and pro games (Lions, Cowboys and a rotational night game). You can easily — I’ll say it again: EASILY — spend the whole week doing nothing but talking about and watching football.
Family
It probably says a lot about where my priorities are that I have family ranked after football (I guess I really am a savage after all), but sometimes you get overloaded with family stuff during the holiday season and you have to take a step back and give yourself some space. After all, you can only play board games and talk about current events for so long.
Food
Where to begin? A good home-cooked Thanksgiving meal complete with all the fixings is comparable to any national treasure (yes, even the Declaration of Independence). It is a hallmark of our country (more on this in a bit) and it is the quintessential meal of the year.
Leftovers
Leftover food definitely deserves it’s own headline here because it’s an integral part of the holiday.
Is there anything better than stuffing your face in the afternoon and entering a complete food comatose before waking up around 8pm or 9pm and then indulging again in more food? Yep, didn’t think so.
Seeing your old girlfriend
Some bros hate this totally awkward experience, but it does come with a preordained set of perks — you’re both a lot more mature now, you’re both likely seeing other people and you both can laugh about how foolish you were in high school and how you’ve changed. And, oh yeah, you can still have sex.
Catching up on sleep
Even if you’re crashing on the couch or, worse, an air mattress, you’re definitely getting a lot more sleep than you’d be getting on a typical Thursday at the office or in the classroom (see: aforementioned food coma). In fact, the whole weekend is one giant excuse to be as lazy as possible.
Celebrating America
Sure, there are more American holidays — Independence Day, Memorial Day, and Veterans Day all come to mind, but there is something inherently American about Thanksgiving.
I mean, no other country in the world is celebrating it. More importantly though, it’s a celebration of all things that make this nation great — family, food, football, lounging, etc.
Going back to your high school
I actually don’t know if this is still a thing or not (I know I haven’t done it since graduating high school), but when I was a kid I remember college kids coming back to school and having a breakfast with all the teachers the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. It serves as a quasi high school reunion blended with a “look at me now, Mr. Johnson!” type of experience.
Seasonal chores
Depending on where you live in the country — and how much time home you’re allotted from work or school, this one might seem very out of place on the list. However, it does bring with it a large dose of sentimentality similar to seeing old friends, watching your high school play football against its rival, or even just eating Turkey.
I can remember ten-plus years ago raking leaves into bags and bringing up firewood to our house on Thanksgiving weekend. And guess what? I’m still doing it ten years later. I can’t say it’s my favorite tradition from the weekend (I prefer drinking, eating and watching football), but it does carry some weight and importance.
In short, it’s something I will make sure to pass on to my kids one day.
Giving back
Thanksgiving is a celebration of all things that make our country a great place, including giving back to those who are less fortunate. The poor are always provided with food during the holiday season, which serves as an affirmation of the power of not only celebrating and giving thanks, but also the good nature of the human spirit.
Parades
Not exactly my favorite part of the holiday (hence why they’re buried here at No. 12 behind chores and charity), but I respect the tradition and always make sure to watch them. It’s like a duty — one that you don’t mind though, unlike some of the duties that come attached with working or going to school.
Forgetting about life for a while
While we’re on the subject of freeing yourself from all work or school duties, Thanksgiving gives us the opportunity to forget about all of life’s stressors – finances, relationships, international crisis’, national crisis’, etc. It’s like you can escape into this perfect bubble and not come out until the weekend is over, which is really ideal considering how much shit is going on the world these days.
Minimum travel
Part of Thanksgiving is traveling somewhere, whether it’s back home or to a relative’s house. The inevitable fate of the holiday is that you will be stepping on a train or a plane, or riding in someone’s car. However, the real key to enjoying the holiday is making just one journey and staying in that place for the entirety of the break once you’ve arrived.
Movies & TV
Whether you’re going out to the theater or staying in and watching Netflix, the break does provide you ample time to catch up on a wide array of entertainment options (especially if you’re not into that whole football thing).
Blackout Wednesday
Shocking that it took this long to get to this one (again, I’m partial to doing the heavy drinking on the Friday after Thanksgiving), but it definitely belongs on the list of things to look forward to during your break — especially if you’re denied the ability to go home and connect with old friends.
Avoid shopping
Seriously, avoid malls or, any shopping center for that matter, at all costs.
At. All. Costs.
Walk around your hometown
Similar to revisiting your old high school and your old flame, walking around your hometown will be a much different experience then it was for you 5 or 10 years ago. You will have a lot better perspective and may actually find a newfound appreciation for the place you grew up in.
Other sports
While football takes up 97% of the sports watching during Thanksgiving, the holiday does mark the start of the college basketball season and does feature a primetime hockey game on Black Friday.
People watching
The Super Bowl of people watching happens the very day after Thanksgiving on Black Friday. Now, I advise all bros to stay away from malls, but if you are dragged to one then get ready for some great fun. You’ll get to watch moms wrestle over stupid gifts their sons will never play with and you’ll watch others sprint into department stores to take advantage of the “sales.”
Subsequent holidays
The ripple effect Thanksgiving has on our economy never seizes to amaze me. The train no longer stops at Black Friday. There is Small Business Saturday, Cyber Monday and Giving Tuesday to look forward to. It’s official: Thanksgiving has surpassed Christmas when it comes to subsequent holidays.
The true power of commercialism in full effect: we always want more even when more is more than enough.
Prepare for Christmas and other religious holidays
Yep, Thanksgiving break is one-long week to help us prepare and look forward to Christmas break, where we will do it all again in less than a month.
Thanks for reading and don’t forget to pick up 22 Jump Street, available now on Digital HD and Blu-ray Combo Pack on 11/18/2014.