Thanksgiving

DANETTE GOULET Happy Thanksgiving, Huntington Beach. It's that time of year again, when the crunch of the holiday season is upon us. And it is a whole season. Once Halloween hits and the Christmas decorations go up, you know it has begun. Time to cook, time to shop, time to buy cards, put off writing them and forget to mail them out. Or is that just me? To top it off, this year, I've also misplaced my address book. But before the stress of Christmas closes in, today is Thanksgiving -- a stress unto itself.

SOUL FOOD In this column on Nov. 7, I wrote about the Angels winning the World Series. I wrote about my doubts that God had tipped the playoffs in the Angels' favor, that God had heard the fervent prayers of their fans and had answered them with the win. And I wrote about a story a friend had sent to me in an e-mail a couple weeks before the World Series. To make a short story shorter, my friend sent me a story, "unofficial evidence," she said, that our country is, indeed, a Christian nation.

Christine Carrillo Adorned in "authentic" paper bag vests, colorful headdresses made from construction paper and noodle necklaces, kindergartners at Star View Elementary School simulated the everyday lives of Native Americans last week to bring their nearly four-week lesson to life. Groups of students gathered at four different stations learning such skills as weaving, pottery, fishing and gathering while simultaneously -- and quite conspicuously -- learning to implement their recent knowledge of measuring, graphing, writing and social studies.

SOUL FOOD It's now just 34 days until Christmas and one week since the start of Advent -- a 40-day period of abstinence, fasting, prayer, charity and reflection practiced by many Christians worldwide. Advent is a time of anticipation and preparation for the Feast of the Nativity -- the annual Christian celebration of the Incarnation, the coming of God in the flesh, in the person of Jesus. The fast arrives for Christians in the U.S. just as our national day of Thanksgiving comes into calendar view, meaning that, where the paths and practices of both traditions cross, something has to give.

DINING REVIEW If you want to show off Surf City to visiting friends and relatives this Thanksgiving, there's no better place than Duke's, the 1940s colonial island restaurant at the base of the pier where Main Street meets Pacific Coast Highway. A friendly casualness pervades Duke's with servers in Hawaiian style shirts and diners in informal "SoCal" attire -- but its cuisine is far from casual. According to Executive Chef David Baumann, Thanksgiving food service will run from 2 to 8 p.m. with additions to the regular menu.

Michele Marr, For the Independent Love is patient and kind; it is not jealous or conceited or proud; love is not ill-mannered or selfish or irritable; love does not keep a record of wrongs, love is eternal. -- 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8 Sooner or later, as Valentine's Day approaches each year, someone is bound to ask me the question: How did Michael propose to you? Then I have to tell them that I'm not exactly sure he did. He did of course. But not in the way people mean when they ask that question.

o7 The Independent went to Village View Elementary School in Huntington Beach and asked the children, "What is your favorite fall-time activity?" f7 "Go to Knott's Scary Farm with my family and get chased." Josh Moon, 10 "Every Thanksgiving when family comes to my house. This year I'm looking forward to seeing my cousin that I haven't seen in years." Megan Grint, 9 "Decorating the house with pumpkins, candles and cobwebs." Diane Tamondong, 10 "Carving pumpkins with my family."

A few weeks ago, I got one of those unpleasant, though not unexpected, shocks when I walked into a let's-not-name-it department store. Everywhere I looked there were paper turkeys, Pilgrim hats and clothing in colors the leaves turn in other parts of our country. Thanksgiving, according to them, was here. And it was still September. Worse still, tucked behind the Thanksgiving displays were fake Christmas trees, strands of holiday lights and more than a few 3-foot-tall Santas.

Clem Dominguez If you want to see a fast-paced thriller that totally entertains this is it. The beginning is a bit confusing as there is one plot and two subplots unfolding, but once all the characters are in place and the story reveals how everything is intertwined it's nail-biting time. Michael Douglas plays an upper west-side psychiatrist who gets an urgent call from one of his colleagues. He wants Douglas to see a patient named Elizabeth (Brittany Murphy)

After reflecting upon the meaning of Thanksgiving and how I can celebrate the holiday in a way that is compassionate, healthful and environmentally sensitive, I've come to a conclusion. Thanksgiving is about life and liberty, but the 330 million turkeys killed in the United States each year experience neither. Thanksgiving is also about good health and bountiful harvest. Consequently, I will join other Americans who will celebrate this Thanksgiving holiday with a guilt-free, wholesome, delicious feast that may include tofu "turkey," lentil or nut roast, stuffed squash, corn chowder or chestnut soup, candied yams, cranberry sauce, pumpkin or pecan pie and carrot cake.