It’s a Monday night and I’m sitting at my laptop listening to jazz and trying to come up with a column for Thanksgiving.

Because of the holiday, The Post is running a tight schedule to get out papers so the staff here can get some time off to spend with their families and enjoy a good meal or just pile up in sweats on the sofa or in their recliner and watch football. And remember, the Egg Bowl is on Thanksgiving night.

In fact, the Thanksgiving weekend is full of things that will interest someone, whether its football rivalries like the Egg Bowl or the Iron Bowl (War Eagle!) or any of the multitude of games one can watch on television or through the magic of the Internet, or shopping for the bargains offered by stores during “Black Friday.”

Black Friday has always been an interesting thing to me. It seems like a strange day. Unlike Black Monday, that day in 1929 when the stock market crashed starting the Great Depression, Black Friday is all about commerce; people buying and stores making budget or beyond for the year.

I’ve covered Black Friday and been caught up with it in Norcross Ga., watching people in a mall talking to someone else through a small two-way radio about some popular item that was that year’s must-have.

But all the football and ninja shopping aside, Thanksgiving is about being with family, enjoying the company of loved ones and friends and having a good meal. That’s one of the things we should be thankful for – that we are able to travel across the country wherever we want to visit whomever we please and that’s a blessing. I’m sure we can all think back through the year and realize that somewhere in time we were blessed with something good that happened to us.

As for me, this week means I’ve been on this earth 73 years despite my efforts over the years that could have cut my time on earth short. I’ve been blessed with two wonderful women, my wife and daughter, who have put up with me without snatching me bald-headed or smacking me one.

But enough of me.

I hope that all of you have a pleasant and blessed Thanksgiving holiday weekend; that you take the time to count your blessings. So whether you’re eating turkey or steak or watching football, shopping or just enjoying the company of others, have a Happy Thanksgiving holiday.