A four day “shock and awe” (q.v.) ritual of masochistic excess designed to torture Americans into some form of familial cohesion, usually imaginary. Undertaken as unconscious penance for what they done to the Indians.
Oh God! We have to go to my parents' house for Thanksgiving! Honey, where'd you put the waterboard?
Modern Definition: An American tradition where people gorge on turkey until they puke and visit their relatives to eat even more turkey. Usually the stores start to get flooded with Christmas shoppers at this time.
Real meaning: Originally celebrated by the Pilgrims (early north-American settlers) as a remembrance of the time when they took full advantage of the local Native American tribes' knowledge of the land, invited them all over to a feast, slaughtered them all the next day, settled on their land, and looked westward to the vast, unconquered land that lay ahead of them.
A shitty "holiday" where you have to spend time with your family and act like you're enjoying yourself, when in reality you are just waiting on everyone to finish eating so you can get the hell out of there.
Johnny was in such a hurry to get out of his grandparents' house on Thanksgiving that he fell down a flight of stairs and nearly broke his neck!