Thanksgiving break is arguably the climatic event of the UC quarter system. It comes at just the right time to end off the ninth week before the last week of instruction and finals. It is four short days of time to recuperate from the stress of academics and to celebrate with family and friends.

In my family, we do not have any special traditions for the Thanksgiving meal. As long as we have bottles of cider and pumpkin pie, we are happy. Actually, my favorite part of Thanksgiving break is Black Friday … so that means on Thursday, I am just waiting for Friday to come. During the wait, I make a long list of things I want to buy and stores I want to browse and any special deals or coupons I should be aware of.

I know I am missing out on the real meaning of Thanksgiving. But if Thanksgiving is the time to be with family by doing what we all love to do (even if it is shopping) and being appreciative and thankful for each other, then yes, I am achieving that.

Here are some other Bruins’ insights on how they spend Thanksgiving.

Chaleena Ukositkul: “I am looking forward to Thanksgiving dinner because this year, the meal will be a surprise. Since my mom does not want my dad to cook turkey, we will be feasting on something novel this November.”

Hanbee Oh: “I will probably chill for a day or two and then get back to work. I think the break is pretty much the same for everyone though: catch up on sleep, goof off and on the last day, start panicking and do homework.”

Joseph Truong: “I will go home and eat Thanksgiving dinner with my family. It is really the most festive and plentiful meal of the year. And then, Black Friday shopping, I guess.”

Kathleen Besas: “My family treats Thanksgiving like every other day, so we do not even eat turkey. We just eat what we usually eat, like Pilipino food. I am most excited to just relax for four days. I might shop too, but I am not going crazy with Black Friday (I will not be in line at a store at 4 a.m.).”

Kimmie Eng: “I am going back home to San Francisco to eat turkey with my parents, brother and cousins. I love the atmosphere around Thanksgiving because everyone is so happy to see one another.”

Matthew Bunnett: “Go home and eat turkey. Same old thing we do every year. Oh, football is on, too. I hope I will not have something hanging over my head like a take home test or essay due the Monday after break. Sometimes it is hard to have fun when I am worrying about schoolwork.”

Meaghan Fowlie: “Well, my second cousin – who I pretty much just met last night – has invited me to his mother’s (whom I met as a child), along with my brother and his wife, home for Thanksgiving dinner. I am Canadian though, so our Thanksgiving was nearly a month ago in which I celebrated by Skyping with my whole Canadian family!”

Sarah Zych: “I am really excited for Thanksgiving this year because I get to go back home to NorCal to celebrate with my family. The fun part is my whole family cooking dinner; everyone will be in charge of cooking one or two items for the meal. I will make mashed potatoes and bake pies. My favorite part of the meal is pecan pie – it is so delicious. I like it even more than pumpkin pie.”

It seems like everyone has the right idea about the most important part of Thanksgiving: family! And we will all be extremely well fed before we tackle finals.

Finally, one interesting fact about Thanksgiving: The night before Thanksgiving is actually the one biggest day for bar sales in the United States. The sales are higher than they are on New Year’s Eve, Super Bowl and St. Patrick’s Day. The main reason is that mostly everyone will head to their hometowns and meet up with old friends, so that presents a chance to go out to bars.

E-mail editor.chief@campuscircle.net with ideas for future Spirited Bruins.