We have a Thanksgiving confession: The head cook does not like turkey! Before you fly off the handle, here’s Leslie to explain.

Dry-bird blues

Yes, it seems odd that a person who cares so much about food and about gathering around a feast would have an aversion to turkey. This likely goes back to some rocky roads traveled during my childhood.

We lived with Dad after the divorce, but Thanksgiving was frequently spent with my mother on Orcas Island. Because she and my stepfather worked – they ran the island’s movie theater – Thanksgiving dinner was often gobbled on the run. One year, we even had TV dinners.

After I grew up, I dedicated a fair number of years trying to come around on the tradition of roasting a turkey, inviting friends and family over. I tried hard to lean into that lean – some might say DRY – poultry. One year, we cooked the turkey over a campfire while staying at Deception Pass State Park -- and sure enough, it turned out dry again.

So I said no more turkey, and instead, I’ve been on a  quest to create a new kind of holiday menu. One year, we even roasted hot dogs on the beach in Southern California. It was good fun, but I have to admit to feeling a little left out when we saw dressed-up families heading into the dining room of the hotel where we were staying.

During our Going Mobile mission, alternative-style holiday dinners have become the norm. We’ve loved eating oysters at Hog Island in San Francisco before heading to the legendary John’s Grill for some sensational steaks. We’ve dined on high-end pizza in Vegas and gnawed on mail order Rendezvous Ribs while soaking up the sun in Tucson.

Then, there was the memorable salmon on the grill in Sedona. Yum. And, yes, those ruby red rocks matched our fish.

What was the defining positive vibe of holiday dining while wandering? Spending time with our dear grownup kiddo, Butter. (Yes, that’s what Claire prefers to be called these days.) Butter was living in Los Angeles for nearly six years before recently returning to the Pacific Northwest.

Call this slightly corny lesson fairly obvious: It doesn’t matter what’s on the menu as long as we’re together. That goes for this year, too. We’ll be sharing a meal and the menu is still TBD, likely with wild salmon as the star attraction.

While there’s currently a run of coho salmon on, I am also a fan of the pristine frozen-at-sea product from producers like Eva’s Wild. They even have an amusing discount code: salmonturkey. Ha!

Now, moving onto the next great debate: Pumpkin or sweet potato pie? No controversy there, we love them both, but if I had to pick, I’m on team sweet potato. How about you?

Tips for staying warm?

We’re heading up north of the border soon for a little early season skiing at Whistler, where we’ve enjoyed staying at a well-located RV park called Riverside. It’s nice to have a full hookup when the weather’s chilly, but we’re wondering if fellow travelers have any suggestions for keeping the floors warm? Everytime we try camping in the cold, we wonder whether we should invest in some skirting. We’d love your advice. Please share that wisdom at goingmobile@spokesman.com.

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