“If a fellow isn’t thankful for what he’s
got, he isn’t likely to be thankful for what he’s going to get” – Frank
A. Clark
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| Photo courtesy of Tuomas_Lehtinen via Freedigitalphotos.net |
It’s that time of year again when Americans overindulge
on one single day more than they probably do any other time of the year. We
also take more naps, watch a lot of football, and probably shop until we drop.
Yup. It’s Thanksgiving! The holiday that turkeys hate with a passion…..
Our colonial ancestors probably never imagined that their
holiday would eventually revolve around a bird. A bird, by the way, that isn’t
particularly attractive looking and looks rather menacing. Have you really ever looked closely at a
turkey? Even the name denotes something negative to us. Merriam-Webster
identifies a turkey as “A stupid, foolish, inept person”. Hmmm. Remind you of
anyone that you know or maybe even work with?
In honor of Thanksgiving and the almighty turkey that you
will be munching on this week, I’m sharing some turkey facts. Not only am I
sharing two legged facts but turkey facts about someone that you may work with.
Are You The Turkey?
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Turkey Dinner Tidbits
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Co-worker Tom Turkey Tidbits
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Turkey gobbling can be heard up to 1 mile away
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Tom’s gossip spreads among the team and breeds distrust
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Turkeys roost every night high up in the trees
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Office turkeys live and breathe a silo mentality. The
higher the better!
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Turkeys see in color and have daylight vision 3X
stronger than humans. They have horrible night vision
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Your turkey cube mate fails to see (or refuses) the
facts and team vision in front of her face
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Turkeys will attack and peck at their own reflection
(ask any turkey farmer with a shiny car)
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Tom sees himself as the center of attention and wants
people to “see” him
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A group of turkeys is called a gang or posse
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Your fellow turkeys try to lead the gang down a slippery
slope when they feel threatened or powerless
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Turkey heads turn from bluish to red when they are mad.
Their feathers quickly become ruffled
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Need I say more? We have all seen this turkey enraged
and burnt red with temper!
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Wild turkeys can run up to 25 MPH and fly up to 55 MPH
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Tom the turkey loves to have his ideas, and only his
ideas, heard. He quickly runs away with them at the expense of the team
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Turkeys were almost extinct in the 1930s
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Your co-worker has a leadership style from the 1930s.
The word “teamwork” is a foreign bird
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Wild Turkeys are only 5-20 LBS and we fatten them up
fast to eat!
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The turkey in your group has a fat head and tries to
tell everyone else what to do and how to do it because she’s right
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Ben Franklin wanted the turkey to be our national bird
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Tom turkey thinks that he’s the top bird!
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I remember my few encounters with turkeys of the feathered
kind. Years ago I was on a garden tour and found myself on a country farm with
wild flower gardens and turkeys. The turkeys were massive and stalked people as
they head butted us from behind. Worse yet, they quickly discovered my car and
started pecking away at the mirror and anything else shinny.
I also saw turkeys in action by my Mom’s summer cottage a
few years back. The town was under a turkey attack. A gang (literally) of wild turkeys roamed the
town chasing mailmen and terrorizing anyone on foot or bikes. They would even
stop traffic daring anyone to interfere. They ruled!
Unfortunately, I have also worked with turkeys, for turkeys, and even managed a few. Their
behavior was wild, puzzling, and disruptive. They really did resemble our
feathered friends with their actions and behaviors. There may have even been
times where I might have had visions
of stuffed “turkey” on the table….
Happy Thanksgiving and I hope
that this year YOU aren’t the turkey!