We've become so accustomed to joking about the sedentary nature of Thanksgiving — the hours spent at the table, the naps on the couch, the lingering next to the pan of stuffing on the stove — that we haven't even noticed the physical activities of the holiday, pursuits that are becoming as symbolic of the day as a plate of hot yams.
True, tossing a ball around in the yard is a classic, as is throwing fallen leaves, if you have fallen leaves to throw. But somewhere along the way the Turkey Trot trotted into the fourth Thursday of Thanksgiving, bringing with it a host of jogging 5kers and 10kers, many in costume.
If running on the morning of Thanksgiving, though, doesn't quite appeal — you do, after all, have to carefully guard that pan of stuffing on the stove from prying fingers (especially your own) -- then take heart: There's another Thanksgiving Day activity on the rise.
It's an hour or two spent at a seasonal ice rink. They do stay open on Thanksgiving — well, several of them do, at least, for several hours — and they're an everybody-in, family-wide, whimsy-cute happening with strong ties to holiday nostalgia.
So what's open on Nov. 26, 2015? The Holiday Ice Rink at Pershing Square, ICE at Santa Monica, and Woodland Hills Ice have all posted special holiday hours. Do check before you go, though; just because you've wrapped dinner and washed all the dishes doesn't mean the rink still has its lights on.
(Also, if you really wash all of the dishes right away, you deserve a hearty hooray.)
Note that the ice rink at Irvine Spectrum Center is closed Thanksgiving Day, and the LA Kings seasonal rink at LA Live opens on Saturday, Nov. 28.
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Will ice skating ever replace the Turkey Trot or the pickup game in the yard or the leaf fight? There's room for lots of recreation come Thanksgiving. It can't be all eating all the time right?
Seriously, you're not fooling anyone by "guarding" the stuffing on the stove, with a little taste here and there. Thanksgiving rules the school as far as people "eating from the edges" goes, before a dish reaches the table, and that's the truth.
Nibbling around the edge of a casserole is a holiday hallmark, as much as a nap on the couch later in the day.
