Can you believe that there are just 33 shopping days remaining before Christmas. Next Friday is the traditional start of the Christmas season and considered by retail merchants the busiest shopping day of the year. Also the shotgun season for deer starts soon so wear bright colored clothing if you walk in or near the woods. All town buildings will be closed Thursday and Friday creating a long weekend. The Thanksgiving holiday will find quite a few families gathering in town and a fair amount of us going off-Island. Boat and air traffic will be getting busier than normal starting tomorrow and through next week in both directions. Linda Alley, aka the jelly queen, reports that the Farmer’s Market tomorrow at the Agricultural Hall they will be selling items you can use for Thanksgiving including Linda’s famous homemade jelly.

Antone Rezendes and his wife of Edgartown Road will have 14 people at their Thanksgiving table for dinner.

Sig Van Raan is recovering from hip surgery and was at his Music street home for the long weekend to attend to some professional matters and catch up with son, Jackson, who is living at the house and working here for the winter. They had a raucous dinner party last Saturday, inviting various extended family-nieces and nephews pus grandnieces and grandnephews. Other than various meetings and social events, Sig spent the weekend winterizing the house and putting on the storm doors. The whole family is planning to be there for the holidays.

Walter Smith and his wife Lisa returned to Evans, Ga. after a fun filled week with us. They got to make a side trip to Boston, a place where they have only been as far as the airport. Walter recently received three first prizes in a national competition for his exhibit of old and rare bottles made in his home town of Augusta, Ga. As they were about to leave all the passengers in the plane wished him a happy 75th birthday.

On a personal note I was reappointed by the Governors Council as Justice of the Peace. I thanked everyone for their confidence in me and I now begin my seventh term serving the public.

A few people with friends in this town pass on their Thanksgiving wishes to all. Chrisa Mayhew of Huron, Ohio, Jen Wool of Burlington, Vt., Shannon Burke of Dripping Springs, Tex., Marian Irving of Hingham, Toni Kurash, Simi Horwitz, Joan Siffert, Sig Van Raan and Susan Dickler and Vicki Bijur of New York city, Peter Ochs and his wife Gudrun of Vienna, Austria, Millie Fodor of Ladenburg, Ohio, Walter and Lisa Smith of Evans, Ga. and Ed and Jane Konicki of Webster.

History note: Mrs. Bradlee Martin, of Tiah’s Cove, set out to bake a custard pie on the morning before Thanksgiving Day in 1939. The ingredients were 18 turkey eggs from the nest out in the barn, fresh milk and cream from the famous Martin Jersey cows, granulated sugar, Sumatra spices the finest that SM Mayhew Co. had in stock. The mixture was beaten, whipped and blended. Mrs. Martin placed the dish in the oven and in due time it would emerge a beautiful browned custard pie. At the appointed time she went back to the oven opened the door and removed her culinary delight but to her amazement the crust was on top and the custard was on the bottom of the pie. Her husband Bradlee immediately suspected it was the pure vanilla extract that she had used to flavor it with. Why that stuff is 40 per cent alcohol and s’nough to turn anything upside down.

Happy birthday to Dan Cabot, Nancy Dole and Matt Merry Nov. 22; Paddy Moore, Annie Reekie, Richard Greene and Robert Julier Nov. 23; Ken Belain, Ted Karalekas and Nick Bayer Nov. 24; Dan Waters, Robin Lynch, Helen Green, Jill Delahunt, Chris Lyons and Reeve Moreau Nov. 25; Owen White, Renee Stempien and Timothy Ruzzo Nov. 26; Cindy Barrett, Gaby Small and Micheline Sonia Nov. 27; Valerie Becker, Gary Montrowl and Emily Lowe Nov. 28. Belated Birthday wishes to Diane Smith, Carlos Montoya, Peter Ochs and Arsen Hambardzumian.

Well, that is all of the news for this week’s social column. If you have any news please call or email me. Trivia fact: the number one song in America during the Thanksgiving season of 1941 was Glenn Miller’s Orchestra’s recording of Chattanooga Choo Choo with Tex Beneke and the four Modernaires.

Happy Thanksgiving and have a great week.