White Thanksgiving

Hi, everyone! Happy Thanksgiving! Everything here is ready to head down to Erma in Cape May County at noon. I packed a basket with the two bread loaves, a card, and the blueberry butter from the farm market. I'm dressed and ready to go...and since I am ready to go, I had some extra time on my hands before Rose picks me up at noon and decided to drop a line here and get my WebKinz World Thanksgiving prize.

(If you're a WebKinz customer, don't forget to drop in there today to get your virtual "basket" for your pets!)

I awoke to a pearly-gray morning. We're supposed to get light rain, I thought as I read Plum Pudding Murder and wrote in my journal, but it really looks more like snow. But it never snows in Southern New Jersey in November!

After I finished with my daily journal writing, I got dressed and headed into the kitchen for breakfast. I ran Garfield's Thanksgiving, A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving, and The Mayflower Voyagers as I made oatmeal with apples, peanut butter, and cinnamon for a nice, filling meal. I noticed that I was almost out of milk. I wanted to get a walk in anyway, so I figured I'd just go to WaWa and pick up some.

I pulled on my big black winter coat and headed out when The Mayflower Voyagers ended. As I made my way across the leaf-strewn front lawn, I felt something soft and feathery brushing my cheeks and coat. It's finally raining, I decided. That was when I realized something rather important.

Rain doesn't feel feathery! It feels...wet!

Nope, it wasn't rain. It was snow. Not even flurries. Big, fat snowflakes were falling all around Manor Avenue. It was really pretty against the red, yellow, and gold leaves and the bright Thanksgiving banners hanging on poles outside of many houses.

Surprisingly, despite the weather (or maybe because of it), I saw many people out and about this morning. WaWa was bustling as I picked up the milk and a Pumpkin Spice Cappuchino. Kids strolled in groups, avoiding their parents. An older woman waited for her family under an umbrella at the apartment buildings a few doors down from WaWa. An older man raked his yard, ignoring the snow. A father taught his sons how to properly throw and aim a football.

The snow was just starting to change to rain as I rounded the corner to Hillcrest Avenue. Since I was in the neighborhood, I thought I'd say "Happy Thanksgiving" to Dad, Jodie, Uncle Ken, and Dolores. Dad was cooking. Jodie was playing solitare on her laptop. Dolores was watching Jaws on Encore!Mystery. Uncle Ken was in the shower. Dad, Jodie, and Jessa are having Jodie's family over for dinner. Uncle Ken and Dolores are going to Dolores' daughter's house for their meal.

I realized there was something funny about the "rain" as I strolled down to the train tracks. It sounded kind of...noisy. Not at all like rain. It was beading on my porch, too, and looked crunchy. Nope, the weather man was wrong again. It wasn't rain. It was sleet...and at this writing, it's still coming down.

I hope your Thanksgiving is equally filled with wonderful surprises!