Photo Credits: Jed Owen NPBnWE1o07I via Unsplash
Making new friends in college means making new memories. With the holiday season upon us, what better time to create memories with your friends that will last a lifetime? Friendsgiving is a new tradition that people do either a couple of days before or after Thanksgiving. It has the same basis as regular Thanksgiving, but Thanksgiving is centered more around family. Friendsgiving, as the name implies, is centered on your friends. So here’s a step-by-step guide to making the best Friendsgiving this year.
The Friends:
For this occasion, we want to choose the closest friends we have to celebrate life and the ones that are going to have the most fun. We also need to pick friends who are going to play the roles that are going to make this Friendsgiving a success. We need a friend that loves to cook, a friend who likes to decorate, a friend that chooses the dress code, a friend who is a comedian, a friend that’s in charge of the music and a friend that wouldn’t mind hosting. Having these roles fulfilled with the people you call friends will ensure this Friendsgiving will go off without a hitch (hopefully).
The Food:
Now, this one may be a little tricky depending on everyone’s dietary wants and needs. But what is most important is that anything we decide to eat is good! Also, Friendsgiving is a more laid back version of the traditional one, so we don’t want to be doing too much. Some people use it as a potluck opportunity as well. Mackenzie Filson of delish.com listed some potential Friendsgiving recipes for your spread. “Air Fryer Garlic Herb Turkey Breast Quit stressing over a perfectly roasted turkey for Thanksgiving! It’s hard and it takes up all of your oven space. This year, make your turkey in the air fryer; it takes way less effort with far better results, and you’re guaranteed to have crispy skin and juicy turkey! Also it’s a phenomenal way to make a smaller Thanksgiving.” She also suggested “Cornbread Stuffing Truth: Not everyone likes classic Thanksgiving stuffing. However, it’s hard to be mad at sweet, crunchy-yet-tender cornbread stuffing. We’re okay with this. Also known as cornbread dressing, this dish is a classic in the South, where you’ll often find it mixed with sausage, bacon, jalapeños, nuts and even chopped oysters. We kept ours simple with flavors you’d find in classic stuffing, but don’t let us stop you from jazzing up your own version with extras.” Now, if you’re going for the potluck approach, then your guess is as good as mine as to what would suffice for you and your friends.
The Music/Entertainment:
When it comes to music, it all depends on what kind of vibe you’re looking for. SZA, Brent Faiyaz, Summer Walker, Giveon, Bryson Tiller, Mahalia and Jessie Reyez for R&B. If it’s more of a pop music kind of night, Harry Styles, Taylor Swift, Meghan Trainor, Lizzo, Shawn Mendes and Ariana Grande should do the trick. Maybe hip-hop or rap? Drake, Nicki Minaj, Ice Spice, Future, Lil Baby and more have what you need to get the night jumping! If you and your friends enjoy country music, Morgan Wallen, Kane Brown, Carrie Underwood, Luke Combs and Miranda Lambert got you what you needed. As far as entertainment goes, you guys could go see “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever” if you haven’t already after filling your bellies. If you guys want to stay in the house, a good card game like Uno or Cards Against Humanity should be fun. Alternatively, simply loading up a streaming service like Disney Plus, Hulu or Netflix should be enough to get you through the night.
The Theme:
Since we are in the fall, standard fall colors are usually your reds, yellows, browns and oranges, so centering any aesthetics around those colors for your Friendsgiving should make the night beautiful.
All in all, Friendsgiving is a time where you’re supposed to lay back and chill with the friends you love the most over food, drinks and laughs. Have a wonderful fall break and be sure to enjoy this much-needed break before finals roll around.
Isaiah Ireland is a second-year media and culture major and digital marketing minor. II978280@wcupa.edu