While you and your family are eating turkey and dressing this Thanksgiving, stump everyone with your these holiday facts.

·       The oldest Mayflower passenger was 64 years old.

·       Contrary to popular belief, the Pilgrims did not have big buckles on their clothing, shoes or hats.

·       Congress did not declare Thanksgiving a national holiday until 1941.

·       There are eight places in the U-S named “Cranberry.”

·       Canada celebrates their Thanksgiving on October 2^nd.

FOOD:

·       Americans feast on an estimated 535-million pounds of turkey on Thanksgiving.

·       Domesticated turkeys cannot fly, however wild turkeys can fly up to 55 miles-per-hour over short distances.

·       The heaviest turkey ever raised weighed in at 86 pounds; about the size of a German Shepherd.

·       The U-S Department of Agriculture says that 45-million turkeys are cooked and eaten in the United States on Thanksgiving.

·       The famous turkey gobble is actually a seasonal mating call.

·       Turkey has less calories per serving than chicken or beef.

·       A turkey under 16-weeks of age is called a “fryer.”

·       In a few areas on the West Coast, Dungeness crab is a common alternative to turkey as a main dish.

·       Vegetarians may choose to dine on Tofurkey this season. It’s a loaf of vegetarian protein usually made from seitan or tofu.

·       Good quality cranberries will always bounce.

·       In the United States, well over 12-million gallons of apple cider are pressed each year.

·       In 2007, there were an estimated 272-million turkeys raised in the U-S.

·       In 2006, 1.6-billion pounds of sweet potatoes were produced in the U-S.

FOOTBALL:

·       Beginning in 1966, the Dallas Cowboys have missed playing on Thanksgiving only twice; once in 1975 and again in 1977.

·       The Detroit Lions have hosted a Thanksgiving Day game every year since 1934.

·       From 2001 to 2004, teams playing on Thanksgiving wore throwback uniforms to celebrate the teams’ heritage.

·       In 1989, John Madden, then with CBS, awarded Reggie White of the Philadelphia Eagles the first “Turkey Leg Award” for being the game’s Most Valuable Player.

·       The series of games played during the Thanksgiving holiday weekend are known as the Thanksgiving Classic.

·       Many high school and college football games are played during the Thanksgiving weekend, usually between historic rival schools. Some match-ups include Ole Miss Rebels vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs, LSU Tigers vs. Arkansas Razorbacks and Texas Longhorns vs. Texas A&M Aggies.

SHOPPING:

·       Adbusters magazine has organized Buy Nothing Day, which falls on Black Friday, one of the busiest shopping days of the holiday season. The magazine urges people to buy nothing on that day.

·       The National Retail Federation has invented the term “Cyber Monday,” which refers to the Monday immediately following Black Friday.  Black Friday is the unofficial start of the online shopping season.

·       About 460-billion dollars are spent by consumers during the holiday season.

·       Most Internet shopping takes place in the office.