"The difference between this place and the Titanic is that the Titanic had a band."

This was my first Thanksgiving in New York and my first Thanksgiving away from my family . . . which is a good thing.

It's nice to spend at least one holiday with a family not your own because it allows a welcome break from the politics and the strife and the banalities of the norm. Not that this Thanksgiving was without a touch of stress.

I found myself invited to my mom's good friend's Thanksgiving in Connecticut--to the posh confines of Fairfield County. This meant a) making sure I didn't look like a slob b) making sure I had a suitable thank you gift and c) navigating Grand Central Station in order to find the correct Metro North train.

Trust me. It was hard.