True Story of Life without the Internet or a Cookbook

I burnt the Thanksgiving Ham and the Christmas Turkey was so dry and tough we gave it to the dogs but had to cut it into small pieces first.  My husband wanted a ham at Thanksgiving so I went along with it since it was going to be just us two anyway.  The wrapping gave me good instructions, I thought, although I thought it was a long time to cook a fully-cooked ham.  I ended up cutting it into cubes and making ham and beans, which was good.  Our disappointment was palpable at not having juicy ham for days to come.

So on Christmas I got to choose the meat and chose Turkey.  I bought a 20 lb young turkey and cooked it in a bag.  Too tough to cut without sharpening my knife twice.  It went to the dogs.  Tough.  Dry.

We did not have access to the Internet due to poverty at that time.  Nor did I have a cook book due to major downsizing in 2008.  My next major purchase will be a complete Betty Crocker cookbook orsomething close to that so if we lose the internet again, I won't be helpless.