One of the sites I frequent is www.snopes.com. With all the e-mails I get forwarded to me by well wishing family and friends I use Snopes to weed out the preposterous from the true.

Snopes listed some of their favorite Thanksgiving stories so I thought I would pass them along on this turkey day. Enjoy, and make sure to go outside and walk around the block, or chase the kids around to work off some of that good food today.

Turkey Mistake

Legend: Holiday turkey preparation provides set-up for humorous scenarios.

Origins: We mark the Thanksgiving Day holiday with a few simple legends of holiday meal turkey preparations gone awry.

First, a 1993 telling of an improbable legend that dates to at least 1880:

A woman who got it into her head that a fresh turkey produced a far superior meal to a frozen one made a trek out to a turkey farm to buy a live bird. But after returning home and looking square into the eyes of the living, breathing creature she'd just purchased, she just couldn't bring herself to kill it by wringing its neck or chopping off its head. Instead, she managed to put the turkey to sleep with chloroform and then began the process of dry-plucking it. Just as she finished removing the last of the feathers, however, the bird woke up.

The next-door neighbors responded to her shouts and arrived at her back door to find a woman being chased around her kitchen by an angry, naked turkey.

The next story, as told in 2006, deals with Christmas rather than Thanksgiving, but it's a turkey of a tale all the same:

Last year at Christmastime, my mom went to my sister's house for the traditional holiday feast. Knowing how gullible my sister is, my mom decided to play a trick. She told my sister that she needed something from the store and asked if my sister wouldn't mind going out to get it.

When my sister left the house, my mom took the turkey out of the oven, removed the stuffing, stuffed a Cornish hen, and inserted it into the turkey, then re-stuffed the turkey.

She then placed the bird(s) back into the oven.

When it was time for dinner, my sister pulled the turkey out of the oven and proceeded to remove the stuffing. When her serving spoon hit something, she reached in and pulled out the little bird.

With a look of total shock on her face, my mother exclaimed, 'Barbara, you've cooked a pregnant bird!'

At the reality of this horrifying news, my sister started to cry hysterically. It took the entire family almost two hours to convince her that turkeys lay eggs!

Yes, my sister is a BLONDE.

We've also found a Thanksgiving-specific version of one of our favorite legends:

A young woman is preparing her first thanksgiving dinner. As she gets everything ready for Thanksgiving day, she very sternly reminds herself to let the turkey finish thawing in the sink overnight. She puts it in and places the dishrack over the top of the bird. Her husband walks into the kitchen and sees this.

"Why are you doing that?" he asks.

"My mom always did that to help the turkey thaw," she told him.

The next day Mom calls to see how everything is going.

"Fine, Ma. I have everything ready to go in the oven. I even remembered to put the rack over the turkey last night."

This seemed to confuse her mother a bit. "What are you talking about?" she asked.

"Oh, I remember you always put the dish rack over the turkey when it was thawing in the sink," she said.

There was a pause on the end of the line. "Yes, but honey, we had cats!"

Finally, a cute little anecdote from 1934 that deals not with the preparation of a turkey, but the aftermath of its consumption:

Word has reached us of a happening on Thanksgiving in East Orange. It has long been the custom on such occasions to have the wishbone pulled by the youngest and the oldest present. This year it was Grandma and Charles, who is going on eight. Charles won, and, with a far-away look in his eyes, fell into a period of silence. One of his aunts prodded him, and asked what he'd wished for. Others at the board pressed the question persistently, and perhaps unfairly. Charles brooded for a moment and then told them. "I wished," he said, "that I could see a nekkid woman."

40 days = five years of passion

Chris Jennings/Herald Democrat

An e-mail was forwarded to me the other day that moved me to the point that I want to share it. It started out simply as “Five years ago today, November 10th, 2001, I started running. No, that’s not true. I started ‘trying’ to run. Actually, I mostly walked.”

The e-mail originated from Sherman native Al Hamm. Who said that he promised himself that for 40 days he would put on his running shoes and go out the door. The only time in those 40 days he skipped a run was during a lightning storm.

Al’s inspiration for his new-found love was seeing a group of guys that were overweight and how uncomfortable they looked in their own skin. He thought that was how he was going to end up, so he decided to go on the offense and get active.

To date Al has run 43 races, including three marathons, six half marathons and a lot of 15K, 10K and 5K races. Last year he ran 1,418 miles in 253 days. That’s not much to some people but it’s a lot to others.

It’s hard to talk to Al about running and not see the joy and enthusiasm he has for the sport.
In his e-mail Al says the reason for sending it out is simple “I wanted to tell you that running makes me happy...running has brought me closer to God...and running has expanded my friendships...even with my two dog friends.”

I asked Al if he minded if I shared some of what he said in his e-mail. His reply was that if I thought we could maybe get more seniors active he would be honored. Al is 68 years old. Which means he started running at 63. He wants the message passed along that being active and getting fit has brought so much joy to his life that it is sure to help others, no matter their age.

Of course I do need to say that anyone who is thinking about taking up any time of exercise program needs to consult their doctor.

Not everybody will be able to take up a running program like Al did, but one thing you can do to give you incentive to get out is get a dog. I often run with my Lab, but she can be a bit of a handful at times even for me, so many seniors may want to choose to get a smaller breed dog.
Some of the dogs most common are pugs, schnauzers, Scottish terriers, shih tzus, Yorkshire terriers and cocker spaniels. All of these dogs are easier to handle than some of the bigger dogs.

The other benefit to having a dog is when they look at you, or go grab their leash to go outside, it’s pretty hard to say no. And just getting out and walking one mile with your pet can produce healthy benefits.

According to www.petplace.com, some of the differences in these dogs are as follows:
Pug. For such a small dog, there’s a lot of love stuffed into the pug’s body. A clown by nature, the pug demands attention and adoration, but returns both in greater measure. They love to play, but the pug also enjoys a good lap session as much as the next dog.

Schnauzer. The standard and miniature schnauzer are wonderful pets for seniors. Eager to please and to keep his family safe, this breed usually requires regular grooming and daily exercise. They thrive on human companionship.

Scottish terrier. This working dog from the Scottish Highlands weighs around 15 to 20 pounds. Most often black, the Scottie is highly intelligent and needs daily exercise. Tough and compact, the Scottie is a loyal and protective family member.

Shih tzu. Proud and intelligent, the shih tzu is from Tibet and China, where the name means “lion dog” because of the breed’s appearance. The breed is alert, curious and gentle and thrives on human companionship.

Yorkshire terrier. The Yorkie is a tiny dog with lots of spunk. This breed is happy to spend his days lounging on the sofa, but this calm dog requires regular grooming.

Cocker spaniel. The popular cocker with his curly hair and sad eyes is a good choice for seniors. Needing basic exercise, the cocker usually spends his days lounging and waiting for his owner’s return.

Of course you can always find good dogs at your local animal shelter. You can look on-line at www.petfinder.com to search by zip code for animals available for adoption in your area.

Thanksgiving memories
By Chris Jennings/Herald Democrat

Thanksgiving memories are the kind of thing that can mold a person. Being around family that sometimes only sees each other during those couple of days a year can bring out the best in a person.

As I tried to come up with a couple of Thanksgiving memories one of the things that keeps popping into my head is that there are always people that are not family at our family gatherings. I never really thought that much about it until this assignment.

The fact that my family has always opened our doors to other people at a time that is traditionally spent with relatives has placed in me a willingness to let others in when some others might not.

There really aren’t any specific Thanksgivings that stand out, but I do have a few snap shots of some Thanksgivings over the years.

I’ll always remember doing Thanksgiving lunch at a Chinese food restaurant off Lemon Avenue in Dallas with my father for a few years. The strange part about that is that he was a professional chef at some big name restaurants during that time. I guess since he cooked day and night he didn’t want to do it on his day off.

During one of my first Thanksgivings with my wife’s family I remember bringing a pecan pie. I didn’t cook it, I just bought one somewhere and presented it. I might have claimed to have cooked it, and put it in the foil pan with a plastic lid. I’m sure they saw through that farce.
The point to this one is that from that time forward according to Heather’s grandmother, God rest her soul, pecan pie was my favorite and anytime I came over she always made one for me. I never could muster up the courage to tell her that I didn’t like Pecan pie all that much and that pumpkin was my favorite.

There was the ice storm Thanksgiving a few years ago that I’m sure many people remember here. It would not have been that big of a deal had we not been in Dallas. It took us five hours to get home.

I remember a couple of years ago when my daughter, who was five years old at the time, helping my mother cook the Thanksgiving meal.

What I can’t remember is a Thanksgiving that I wasn’t with friends and family, and that, I’m thankful for.

Hill Intervals

13 November, 2006 10:32

I wasn't real sure I was going to run this morning when I woke up. My legs were still a little stiff from Sunday's 14 mile run, so I was a little hesitant about doing hill intervals today. Turned out to be a good run. After i warmed up I was able to push it up all the hills hard. I ended up doing four good long hills with the down hills used as recovery. Two eggs and a protein shake for breakfast.

Activity

Route:	--	Elev. Avg:	713 ft
Location:	Sherman, TX	Elev. Gain:	-3 ft
Date:	11/13/06	Up/Downhill:	[+433/-436]
Time:	08:16 AM	Difficulty:	2.7 / 5.0
Weather:	Fair
	43F temp; 92% humidity
	43F heat index; winds Calm

Performance

Distance:	4.52 miles
Time:	0:48:43
Speed:	5.57 mph
Pace:	10' 46 /mi
Calories:	538

Map

Elevation (ft.)

Splits

Mile	Pace (min/mile)		Speed (mph)		Elevation Gain
	actual	+/- avg	actual	+/- avg
1	11' 37	+0' 51	5.2	-0.4	-52 ft
2	10' 53	+0' 07	5.5	-0.1	-13 ft
3	9' 55	-0' 51	6.0	+0.5	+59 ft
4	10' 30	-0' 16	5.7	+0.1	+17 ft
end	11' 00	+0' 14	5.5	-0.1	-13 ft

Run 10:44 AM

11 November, 2006 14:44

Activity

Route:	--	Elev. Avg:	737 ft
Location:	Sherman, TX	Elev. Gain:	-23 ft
Date:	11/11/06	Up/Downhill:	[+692/-715]
Time:	11:44 AM	Difficulty:	3.6 / 5.0
Weather:	Fair
	54F temp; 42% humidity
	54F heat index; winds NE 7

Performance

Distance:	14.66 miles
Time:	2:39:19
Speed:	5.53 mph
Pace:	10' 51 /mi
Calories:	1747

Notes

When I mapped out my course for today's run it dawned on me that 14 miles was a long way. I felt good through the whole run and didn't utter my first curse word until mile 13. I had one Gu before the run, two during the run, and three bottles of water.

I had two pieces of toast with peanut butter before th run so I was slightly hungry when I got home. Two eggs, two pieces of toast, half a DQ grilled cheese and half a DQ hamburger with a protein shake for lunch. My legs are sore now, so I'm going to go elevate.

Map

Elevation (ft.)

Pace (min/mile)

Splits

Mile	Pace (min/mile)		Speed (mph)		Elevation Gain
	actual	+/- avg	actual	+/- avg
1	11' 27	+0' 36	5.2	-0.3	+26 ft
2	11' 41	+0' 50	5.1	-0.4	-26 ft
3	11' 30	+0' 39	5.2	-0.3	+46 ft
4	11' 09	+0' 18	5.4	-0.1	0 ft
5	11' 28	+0' 37	5.2	-0.3	-39 ft
6	11' 23	+0' 32	5.3	-0.3	-62 ft
7	10' 53	+0' 02	5.5	-0.0	+53 ft
8	10' 49	-0' 02	5.5	+0.0	+19 ft
9	11' 00	+0' 09	5.5	-0.1	+32 ft
10	10' 23	-0' 28	5.8	+0.2	-23 ft
11	10' 29	-0' 22	5.7	+0.2	-13 ft
12	10' 58	+0' 07	5.5	-0.1	-52 ft
13	10' 29	-0' 22	5.7	+0.2	-59 ft
14	9' 08	-1' 43	6.6	+1.0	+62 ft
end	10' 20	-0' 31	5.8	+0.3	-26 ft
Versus average of 10' 51 min/mi: Slower Faster

Go, go gadget runner go
Chris Jennings/Herald Democrat

Pick up any run magazine or book and take a look at a photo of the finish or start line of just about any run and you'll see all kinds gadgets people carry. It used to be you would lace up your shoes and go run, then you could get a high tech watch to keep track of how fast, or slow, you ran your laps.

Then comes the Sony Walkman, which changed the face of running, and many other sports almost instantly.

There is nothing like having a good song going to motivate you to run faster. For people that run alone, music can make the runs more enjoyable. It almost seems to make the run go by faster.

My wife thinks I’m strange with my music choice when running. I usually listen to classic rock in the car, but when I’m shooting basketball or volleyball it’s either rap or punk that I use to keep me in rhythm with the game. Not when I’m running though. My favorite run artists is Mozart. It’s a little bit different than what I normally listen to, but it works for me.

Nike has come out with a new tool that integrates your run with your music. With certain Nike + shoes you can get a sensor that fits in the bottom of the shoe. Then you hook a special attachment to your ipod Nano mp3 player and as your running a voice will come on and tell you how fast, or slow your going, among other things.

There are a whole slew of mp3 players out there to pick from. They all operate under the same principle with each one having it’s own particular catch.

Times have changed even more with the introduction of the GPS. Now you can wear a GPS watch that will tell you how fast your going, how fast you went, and you fast you need to go. Some of them even put a little dot either ahead of you or behind you as a virtual training partner.

Say for example you run a route at a certain time that makes you proud. With one of these fancy GPS watches you can load that same run into your watch then race yourself as your past time is displayed as a little figure with you chasing or leading, depending on your time. Now that's motivation.

Training has always been kind of scientific, but it was the domain of coaches and people who are a lot smarter than me. Now with the heart rate monitors so easy to get and use you can develop your training plan structured around you and what kind of shape you and your heart are in.

You put in your heart rate zones, which are pretty easy to figure out with charts, and the monitor will beep at you if your not working hard enough.

It will also alert you if your heart is about to blow up, I know this for a fact. There is even a combination heart rate monitor and GPS that will tell you how hard you were working at specific points in a course.

Now with the GPS technology in cell phones there is software available that will track your run and then upload it automatically to a web site to share with your friends and family. Having your mother call you and say you didn’t work hard enough today is a whole other kind of motivation.

My gadgets of choice are the cell phone to record my route, on old fashion Timex watch for intervals, and a Sony Minidisc player for music. Now if they would only come up with some way for the mileage to automatically double without any extra work.

Run 07:07 AM

09 November, 2006 10:22

Activity Route: -- Elev. Avg: 706 ft Location: Sherman, TX Elev. Gain: -7 ft Date: 11/09/06 Up/Downhill: [+278/-285] Time: 08:07 AM Difficulty: 2.7 / 5.0 Weather: Fog/Mist 63F temp; 100% humidity 63F heat index; winds S 14 G 20 Performance Distance: 6.03 miles Goal: None Time: 1:09:07 Speed: 5.24 mph Attained: -- Pace: 11' 27 /mi Heart Rate: -- (Avg) Calories: 716 -- (Peak) Notes I wasn't real sure I was going to run last night. I woke up this morning and wasn't real sure I was going to run. It wasn't until I got the kids on the bus that I decided to run. I didn't really hurt, my legs were just sore. I was 2 miles into my scheduled six mile run when I decided that a 4 or 5 mile run would be ok so I started making my way home. When I got home I was at 5.11 miles so I went ahead and finished it out and felt great the whole last mile. Whoda thunk? The new Mizuno Wave Control 6's are doing a great job. The knee pain that I did have is pretty much gone. Did I mention I paid 19.99 for these shoes? Two eggs, toast, and a protein shake for breakfast. Map Elevation (ft.) Pace (min/mile) Splits Mile Pace (min/mile) Speed (mph) Elevation Gain actual +/- avg actual +/- avg 1 12' 23 +0' 56 4.8 -0.4 -46 ft 2 12' 17 +0' 50 4.9 -0.4 -3 ft 3 11' 23 -0' 04 5.3 +0.0 +7 ft 4 11' 16 -0' 11 5.3 +0.1 -40 ft 5 11' 29 +0' 02 5.2 -0.0 +59 ft 6 10' 00 -1' 27 6.0 +0.8 +10 ft end 8' 53 -2' 34 6.8 +1.5 +6 ft Versus average of 11' 27 min/mi: Slower Faster

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RUN
08 November, 2006 10:22

Activity

Route:	--	Elev. Avg:	699 ft
Location:	Sherman, TX	Elev. Gain:	-4 ft
Date:	11/08/06	Up/Downhill:	[+291/-295]
Time:	08:12 AM	Difficulty:	2.6 / 5.0
Weather:	Fair
	61F temp; 67% humidity
	61F heat index; winds SW 8

Performance

Distance:	5.97 miles	Goal:	None
Time:	1:02:52
Speed:	5.71 mph	Attained:	--
Pace:	10' 31 /mi	Heart Rate:	-- (Avg)
Calories:	708		-- (Peak)

Notes

Monday i did 1/2 mile intervals, Tuesday I did four miles at a fairly easy pace, but it was a pretty hilly course. I still felt the effects of those runs today. I did four miles of tempo with one mile warm up and cool down just as I was supposed to, but I probably could have pushed a little harder. Protein shake for breakfast, I'm tired of eggs.

Map

Elevation (ft.)

Pace (min/mile)

Splits

Mile	Pace (min/mile)		Speed (mph)		Elevation Gain
	actual	+/- avg	actual	+/- avg
1	11' 37	+1' 06	5.2	-0.5	+13 ft
2	10' 34	+0' 03	5.7	-0.0	-92 ft
3	10' 29	-0' 02	5.7	+0.0	+29 ft
4	9' 45	-0' 46	6.2	+0.4	0 ft
5	10' 00	-0' 31	6.0	+0.3	-4 ft
end	10' 49	+0' 18	5.5	-0.2	+52 ft
Versus average of 10' 31 min/mi: Slower Faster

What doesn't kill you, makes you stronger
Chris Jennings/Herald Democrat

My training plan has me down to do a six-mile run Saturday. The weeks before all of my long runs increased in mileage up to the 12 miles I did last weekend. So I’m treating this week as a rest week.

My runs are a little shorter than prescribed and I may take a day or two off in general. This seems like a good idea to me since I really jumped in feet first with some pretty big mileage for someone with little running experience.

Since this week was going to be a rest week, I decided that my last long run before my self prescribed rest would be a little test.

I woke up early Sunday morning and headed to Cross Timbers for my 12-mile run. I figured the distance was long enough to give me a good idea about how I was progressing and since Cross Timbers was the site of the planned marathon, it would also give me a good idea on what I was in store for.

As I’ve said before, I’ve spent a lot of time on the trails out there but none of it has been running until recently and I don’t ever recall running 12 miles before. I’m convinced if I had done the run on the road or an easier trail it would have been no big deal.

Not this time though. The trail is just plain hard — there is no other word to describe it. In the 12 miles that I ran, there was 3,200 feet of elevation change. To put that in perspective, the trail around Waterloo Lake in Denison has about 1,300 feet of elevation change in the same distance.

At 9 a.m. I hit the trail at Juniper Point on Lake Texoma. As I passed boy scouts who were hiking out from a weekend of camping, I made a point to smile and make sure they could see I was having fun.

Most of them looked like they were suffering. I thought that if maybe they could see how much fun I was having running they would realize that they were just walking and that had to be easier than running.

I felt good at the start and took it real easy the whole day, making sure I had enough fuel in me so I wouldn’t hit the wall and get myself in trouble out there by myself.

Over the course of the day I had a Buzz gel, a Gu gel, a Ciff bar, Power Gel, Sport jelly beans, and another Buzz gel. I had pasta for dinner and eggs for breakfast. I also made a point to hydrate well on Saturday in preparation for a run that I was a little nervous about.

For those that are unfamiliar with the gels and beans, basically they consist of carbohydrate-based calories that are easily absorbed by your body when they are eaten in gel form. Some of them have caffeine to give you a little kick. The beans are pretty much the same but contain extra electrolytes to help you replenish what you lose while sweating.

I was able to run all the uphills until the last mile and even then I was able to run them but was pretty tired. I did make a point to run the last hill, which is BIG and LONG.

I finished the run in right at three-and-a-half hours, which was a little slower than I would have liked but I’ll take it.

After all I’m only two months into training and have almost four months to go before the marathon. What worried more was the condition my legs were in after the run. For the rest of the day on Sunday I was sore. Monday I was sore and it still hurt to walk to the kitchen.

I tried to run Tuesday and got just under two miles before I decided to call it quits before I hurt myself even worse.
Now for the good news. By Wednesday my legs felt normal and I was able to take the dog for a three-mile run and felt pretty good doing it.

It seems to me that the recovery time was not that bad. I was starting to fear the worst. I made sure to eat food that would help my body recover from the hard workout and still stretched every day.

All in all it wasn’t that bad. I got the hardest and longest run in I’ve ever done. It hurt but it didn’t kill me, and if it doesn’t kill you it makes you stronger, or so I’ve heard.