Have an Indie Thanksgiving!

I don't know about you, but I think Thanksgiving is getting way too humorless. Seriously, a holiday that celebrates a venison roast shared by a nation about to be conquered and their colonizers contains more than a hint of humor. It could be because I am a PBR-drinking, internet-start-up-working irony magnet that I sneeze at the idea of earnestly making paper turkeys and gold-spray-painted cornucopias. Or it could be because getting one's extended family together for a fun-filled meal might just call for some comic relief.

I have collected a few alternative Thanksgiving table ideas from some of my favorite blogs with the hopes of lightening up your holiday. Do tell me what you think.

• Mustache Mugs: I found these on Badder Homes and Gardens, which is sort of the surly and boozed up alternative to Martha Stewart. Each mug in the set is painted with a different mustache. Instead of bringing up the old family fued, you can arm-wrestle each other for who gets the "Fu-Magnum." The loser has to take "the Mussolini."

• Alice's Restaurant: Thank you to Ready Made Magazine's blog for reminding me to listen to the rambling Thanksgiving ballad by Arlo Guthrie. I grew up with hippie parents, and we listened to "Alice's Restaurant" on Thanksgiving. We still do. If you have never heard Arlo Guthrie tell the story of the "Thanksgiving massac-ree," I highly recommend it. We always listen to it after dinner, while washing the dishes. My dad always gets to say, "Remember Alice?" Thanksgiving in my family's house is not complete without a rousing chorus of "You can get anything you want in Alice's Restaurant." Seriously, it's a piece of Americana worth treasuring.

• Light Up Squirrel: What's a large meal without the illusion of small animals foraging it? The original Thanksgiving meal was held outside on hand-hewn picnic benches (or so the illustrations depict), which means that there were probably a few little animals scampering about. Invoke the Colonial age with a few fake animals on the table, like this one featured on one of my absolute favorite design blogs, Whorange.

• Tofurky & Gravy Soda: Have you ever seen something so unusual that you wanted to try it? That's exactly how I feel about Tofurky & Gravy Soda, the most bizarre flavor ever created by Jones Soda. Incredible Things, a fantastic blog featuring home and tech items that are even too funky for me, featured it recently, and I have to say, I am intrigued. If I had this at my Thanksgiving table, I would have a contest with my cousin to see how much of it we each could drink.

• Happy Thanksgiving!

Photo credit: Jonessoda.com.

Posted by: Chaya Goodman