Thanksgiving in July

Photos, photos, and more photos of the festivities!

Words cannot describe what took place on Thanksgiving in July (especially not the day after TIJ, when words come a bit more slowly than usual). Luckily, we’ve got numbers:

number of chairs at the thanksgiving table: 100

approximate number of chairs filled: 80?

number of guests who flew in for the occasion:19

number of guests who biked from Portland to San Diego for the occasion: 2

number of guests in full pilgrim costumes:2

number of guests in custom TIJ t-shirts: 20

number of guests dressed like a turkey: unfortunately, 0

number of turduckens: 2

number of turkeys not cooked because of a leak in the deep fryer: 1

number of blow torches pulled out to fix the leak in the deep fryer: 1

number of electric knives used to carve turduckens: 2

approximate number of side dishes brought to accompany the turduckens: 30

pounds of bacon that were tray-passed over the course of the day: 8

hours taken to pan-fry all of the bacon: 2

number of 32-ounce gatorade bottles that could be filled to the brim with the grease generated while preparing the bacon: 1

number of cotton candy machines: 1

number of feet away from the cotton candy machine guests were standing when they realized they could  wrap bacon in cotton candy: 4

number of kegs of Ballast Point beer: 4

number of bands: 2

number of total minutes one of the bands practiced in the year leading up to the performance: 20

number of times that band played “Orthopedic Shoes“: 2

number of times the cover band, upon request, played the Darkness “I Believe in a Thing Called Love,” within a 15 minute span: 2

number of moonbounces:1

number of bikes ridden into the moonbounce: 1

number of party buses: 1

number of beaches streaked by riders on the party bus: 2

number of guests left behind by the party bus: 1

approximate number of Ramiros burritos that riders on the party bus insisted on ordering and eating before going back to look (unsuccessfully) for the guest who was left behind: 15

number of guests who managed to find their way home after being left by the party bus, barefoot and shirtless, by convincing strangers to drive him to the North Park sign, which he thankfully remembered passing earlier in the weekend: 1

number of reporters present to write up TIJ for the San Diego Reader Party Crasher column: 1

number of mentions of TIJ on the Channel 8 news: 1

I’m sure there are more–let me know if I forgot any vital statistics. Otherwise, thanks to everyone who made this year such an over-the-top success and here’s to next year…

TIJ is only as magical as the thanksgiving meal that is spread out before our hungry eyes. (Ok, it’s also magical because of the guests attending and because of the rediculous stuff that also goes on that day). But the meal itself is always something to behold.

We’ll be supplying the turducken; you’ll have to collectively supply everything else. If you haven’t already committed to the dish that you will be bringing, please visit the Official TIJ Potluck Spreadsheet and sign up for your potluck contribution.

After many weeks and much seeking of approval from the fire department, “risk management,” and the SDPD, the kind City of San Diego has just approved the block party permit for TIJ to be held in the street!  Huzzah!

At the suggestion of our faithful TIJ Treasurer, a paypal account has been set up to accept all contributions to the general over-the-topness of the day. The idea is, the larger we know our budget is, the more ridiculous we can guarantee the day will be.  So if you feel like you might be inclined at all to throw in a few dollars after you see the festivities we have in store, consider pledging that amount ahead of time, so we can put it to a good cause!

So far, it looks like the lineup may/will include:

• hot tubs
• limos
• inflatable obstacle courses
• sumo wrestling suits
• live music (and a pa system which promises to disintegrate into a quite entertaining open mic session)
• an incredibly grand, not-tacky-at-all single enormous dinner table that will seat every single one of the guests
• official signage and road barricades announcing that the half block of East Pennsylvania Avenue is blocked off in SDPD-sanctioned celebration

and obviously, of course, so much more. Please chime in if you have a request/demand/idea for the day. Go on, dig deep into those wild imaginations!

Oh, and when you’re done fantasizing, don’t forget to donate to the fund:

Iowa Meat Farms will officially be hand-crafting our turducken this year. (and, just in case we need it, they will gladly add a second turducken to our order as long as we give them a week’s notice).

Thanksgiving in July began as a humble “holiday” in 2006, with 12 friends and friends-of-friends gathered around a makeshift dining room table to feast on a traditional Thanksgiving meal in the middle of July. It has since expanded to a grandiose and extravagant celebration embracing the very essence of the capricious magic that a spectacular dinner party can hold. Brimming with ebullience, the holiday tends to inspire outbursts of generosity, over-the-topness, and all-around good cheer. (How’s that for a one-paragraph summary?)

Fond memories of good times. Here are some of our favorite picasa galleries:

Snake’s Photos

Lisa’s Photos

Lauren’s Photos

Have photos to share? Leave a link in the comments!

Inspiration, any time of the year (in three parts):

Part 1:

Part 2:

Part 3: