Cherishing and Creating Holiday Traditions

Written by Judy Bortman

It’s almost Thanksgiving. Suddenly life has ratcheted up. The season for holidays, traditions, traffic congestion and guilt-free eating is officially underway!

 

Throngs of travelers on the roads and last-minute shoppers crowding the supermarkets remind us that this is a hectic, fast-paced holiday. We hope you eke out a moment to pause, enjoy and savor time with family and friends. It’s what Hallmark calls, “priceless.”

Where feasible, try taking public transit to family celebrations, gatherings with friends and holiday events. Riding the bus or train is a safe, sane, stress-reducing and hands-free way to travel, especially during peak travel times and inclement weather.

Online resources and smartphone applications help seasoned commuters as well as occasional public transit riders plan their route and reduce their stress. Here are some tips to get you started:

• The New Jersey Transit website has bus and train schedules as well as a point-to-point Trip Planner to help you find a specific route, options and schedules.


• MyBus provides online access to bus information for more than 19,000 bus stops

Using public transit to take a break from holiday traffic is one way to “push the pause” button during the long Thanksgiving weekend.

Park & Ride Lots located throughout the state are an ideal place to connect to public transit or meet friends and family to share a ride. Some lots offer free parking while others charge a nominal fee or require a permit. You can find Park & Ride lots in northwest New Jersey with the Map It page on our website.

While growing up, Thanksgiving Day was all about family and food. The holiday ritual began by getting dressed in a “party outfit” and traveling to Grandma’s house. (Yes, I really did go “over the river and through the woods” to get there because Garden State Parkway Exit 102 didn’t exist then). We’d see relatives that lived far away, get caught up on family happenings and hear childhood stories related (once again) by Uncle Alvin or Aunt Eleanor.

Eating lingered throughout the day starting at a buffet table of appetizers, moving to the dining room table for carving the “bird” and passing a host of side dishes. The feast was topped off with a plethora of desserts. Who can have just one?

On Thanksgiving Day it was okay to have whipped cream on your slice of pumpkin pie and to try the pecan pie, too. No guilt. It was family time. We’d always joke that calories didn’t count.

After pitching in to help with the dishes, everyone would settle themselves in the living room to overcome a carbohydrate-induced food coma. Of course we all knew that would happen. Conversation lingered into the evening until it was time to collect our “care package” of leftovers and head home feeling content and satisfied. Such was our Thanksgiving Day tradition.

Whatever way you travel to spend Thanksgiving Day, consider hitting the “pause button” for a few minutes to reflect on what you’re thankful for. Perhaps that “time out” moment will become your new Thanksgiving Day tradition.

Enjoy and travel safely! Happy Thanksgiving Day from TransOptions.