Looking for something to do on Thanksgiving Day that doesn’t include food? The San Antonio Food Bank’s got the ticket for you and your kids at The Great Turkey Challenge, starting at 7:30 a.m. for you early birds!

It’s a 5K Run/Walk to support the Food Bank’s efforts to put turkeys on the tables of needy families in our area. Registration is $20. Just show up at the H-E-B Arsenal, 646 South Main Avenue in downtown San Antonio with your walking shoes. At last count, just over 800 people had registered.

Can’t make it? No problem. You can donate online. Every $10 raised buys one turkey for a family who needs a Thanksgiving meal. You can also donate cash or nonperishable goods at any of 23 Security Service Federal Credit Union through the end of November. A list of the service centers is here.

1.  It’s not a wise idea to leave frozen turkey in a sink with running water to answer the phone. Because inevitably, the turkey will slide, cover the drain, and you’ll flood your kitchen. Don’t ask me how I know that.

2.  Just because a turkey is golden on the outside, doesn’t mean it’s fully cooked on the inside. Use a thermometer. Don’t ask me how I know that either.

3.  Potato peelings and disposals do not mix. That’s why Thanksgiving day is the busiest day of the year for plumbers and why they can charge an arm and a leg and a foot to solve your kitchen problems.

4.  Brining – no matter what anybody says – is messy work. Spills happen.

5. Two slices of turkey on top of a piece of bread covered in mashed potatoes, gravy and cranberry sauce and warmed in the microwave the day after Thanksgiving is heaven.

Wishing you and yours a stress-free, mess-free Thanksgiving week.