The New York Turkey-Run

The New York Turkey-Run

By J. Glenn Eugster

November 30, 2009

My wife Deborah and I left for Greenvale, NY on Wednesday November 25, 2009 at 6:00 am. It was still very dark in Alexandria, VA and our plan was to coffee-up and then drive 277 miles to visit Aunt Stella.   Elm Street has long been the destination for a family gathering at Thanksgiving and this year we added a day to the visit so that we could spend some extra time with my aunt. The "Turkey-Run" isn’t as easy as it was when we were younger but it is still a very special occasion.

Our drive to Greenvale was without incident. We seemed to be ahead of traffic and our EZ-Pass made cruising the interstate highways that much easier. About half-way there we visited the Walt Whitman Rest Area on the NJ Turnpike for Starbucks coffee and a quick pee, and soon we were calling Aunt Stella advising her of our arrival time. Aunt Stella doesn’t like to be surprised or rushed, and arriving forty-five minutes earlier than we initially promised would have added to her holiday stress. Holiday stress-balls were once an accepted, almost expected, part of Thanksgiving but no more.

Once inside we talked with Aunt Stella, drank coffee and ate some turkey and Swiss cheese sandwiches, with brown mustard, on hard rolls, in her kitchen. After lunch we walked down Elm Street to Orvis and several other stores near her home. After Deborah made a few purchases I walked back to the house to get the car and pick up the shoppers to ferry them across the busy Northern Boulevard to TJ Max. Although Black Friday wasn’t for another 36 hours Deborah and Aunt Stella were into the holiday shopping mood. It was clear that my role was to serve as their caddy and chauffer during this part of our visit.

After their afternoon spree we headed to the Greenvale Townhouse Restaurant for an early evening meal. As always there was a variety of special meals to choose from complete with fluffy rolls, tossed salads--or creamy soups, a hearty main course and desert. The combination of carbohydrates, protein, and sugar gave each of us a downward boost that landed us on Aunt Stella’s couch and an early evening that night.

Deborah and I left Aunt Stella’s to check-in to our hotel, the Glen Cove Mansion Hotel located near the North Shore of Long Island. We planned to shower and get to bed as soon as we got to the hotel. Aunt Stella no doubt got a second-wind and spent the next several hours enjoying some of her favorite shows on digital cable television. Although the switch from an antenna on the roof to cable television was not without some stress-balls, eventually our aunt embraced the spirit of technology in this small but important way.

Thanksgiving morning we returned to Aunt Stella’s to have the traditional holiday brunch of coffee, sliced oranges--from California, never Florida, Polish Kielbasa, Swiss cheese, and hard rolls. Most of my life I’ve gone to my Aunt’s for Thanksgiving and almost every time I did I ate this wonderful pre-big-meal breakfast. This year Pumpkin pie was offered to top-off brunch but we passed knowing that a table of pies and cakes was waiting for us at the 1:00 dinner seating.

My aunt offered to cook a turkey this year but we wanted to treat her to a meal. She suggested the Greenvale Townhouse but we urged her to let us pick another place. With apprehension she said okay. We picked the restaurant at the Glen Cove Mansion which featured a holiday buffet that included a traditional turkey dinner. The Mansion was once the home of the Pratt Family and it had the feeling of a very large old hotel with well manicured grounds, stately old trees, and views of Long Island Sound.

Our meal at the Mansion was wonderful. We arrived early, naturally, and Aunt Stella and Deborah ordered Mimosa’s to begin. We talked easily until other guests began to serve themselves from the expansive buffet tables located in the center of the main dinning room. Each of the buffet tables was artistically designed with flowers, ice sculptures and other decorations to supplement the delicious offerings. In addition to traditional turkey, sweet potatoes, dressing, cranberries, and gravy, were tables with grilled salmon, Prime Rib, vegetables of all types, ham, three types of pasta, beef, chicken, and all their accompaniments. On a table set to one side was an array of pies, canolis, cakes, and cookies.

Each of us ate leisurely and after the first course we engaged in wonderful heartfelt conversation about Aunt Stella’s time with John and how her relationship with him influenced her life. As we sat and listened to Aunt Stella share her private thoughts we felt fortunate to be a part of this conversation.

As we moved through two more courses, including desert and coffee and tea, we continued talking about family members, past and present, almost unaware that nearly three hours had passed. We probably could have talked for hours if it wasn’t for the wait-staff pacing back-and-forth hoping that we would leave so they could ready the tables for the 4:00 pm seating.

Wandering through the hotel after our meal we joked about the last part of the Thanksgiving. In years past Aunt ZuZu would often wait for two or three hours after dinner before asking everyone, "Who wants pizza?" We all agreed, with a bit of a moan, that pizza wasn’t possible this year.

We drove away from the Mansion and decided to drive to the beach at Bayville. We sat in the car looking out across LI Sound toward Connecticut until Deborah suggested that we walk the beach as we had done in years past. The weather was cooler but not cold, as we wandered along the shore looking for unique rocks of all shapes, sizes, and colors. Deborah was hunting for smooth white granite stones that she would could carry home and arrange next to a statue she has of the Blessed Mother. Aunt Stella and I seemed to be looking for a stone or two to carry away perhaps as a keepsake.

The chill came and moved us quickly to the car as the sun set and darkness approached. We drove through the stores in Locust Valley remembering other visits we made and special clothes or carvings we purchased, wishing that the shops were open and we were more energetic.

Once back in Greenvale we took a few minutes to discuss what we would do on Friday. Secretly we may have wanted to participate in the great American tradition of Black Friday shopping but this year we had other tasks to get to. Since John’s illness and eventual death Aunt Stella hasn’t been able to get around as easily as she once did to do basic errands. Part of our proposal to Aunt Stella was that we would spend one day of our visit helping her with things she needed to do. Friday‘s menu included trips to the bank, jeweler, drug store, grocery store, and laundromat.

Friday morning started with coffee, NY Bialy’s, oranges, and scrambled eggs. After breakfast while Aunt Stella was organizing what she needed to take with us I fixed and filled her bird-feeder, replaced the battery in her smoke alarm, and caught up on my NY papers which there were many of.

Our Tour-de-Tasks was quite pleasant and filled with driving commentary about places, buildings, people and stories. As we passed the house that Aunt Stella was born in, we learned that when her father died his wake was held in the living room of their house for three days while the neighbors paid their respects. Although the room was small it wasn’t a problem until Aunt Stella had to go to the basement, on the other side of the casket, to get something for her mother. She told us that she had to crawl under her Dad’s coffin to get to the door and that was a bit unnerving.

Aunt Stella also told us about how her mother would give her father an orange, always California, never Florida, to take to eat with his lunch. She explained how he worked on an estate with other men and a normal day found their hands quite soiled by lunchtime. He would encourage grandma instead to "give the orange to the children".

As we drove around between tasks Aunt Stella also shared stories of the house my parents and I lived in within the Lewis and Valentine Nursery which at the end of Elm Street. She also shared stories about how her family’s movements in the area and how they decided to purchase the house on Elm Street to own their own home. With a memory as sharp as ever Aunt Stella shared first-time facts and folklore with Deborah and me that reflected the depth and breadth of her experience in the area.

As we concluded the tasks, as we often do, we took a brief drive around the Sea Cliff community eventually winding our way to Tapen’s Beach near Glenwood Landing. Although the wind was blowing and the temperature had dropped, we enjoyed the brief ride through the park. The area was yet another touchstone for the three of us and it brought back memories of days sunbathing on the beach, swimming with family members and friends.

As the sun began to drop we decided it was Italian Night and we would eat at the restaurant that replaced one of our dinner-out favorites--Sal’s.  Our meal that evening gave us more time to continue the discussions we never seem to have time for. All the while we worked our way through appetizers, salads, entries, and desert, we talked, listened, shared, laughed and if it wasn’t for our fatigue the wonderful evening would have lasted forever.

The last day in Greenvale included a pancake breakfast out, a trip to  St. Patrick's Cemetery to visit family members, and a stop at the Nursery and Garden Center that Aunt Stella and Deborah favor for Christmas decorations. The decorations reminded us that all though the NY Turkey-Run was at its end nearby on the horizon was Christmas and New Years. Although time has changed just about everything in our lives, we are periodically reminded at holidays like Thanksgiving that family gatherings are places were we can reconnect with the people we love and enjoy being with.