So today, I twice heard about something that I'd never heard of before. Turkey shooting. A good friend of mine is going on a turkey shoot this weekend. When he told me where he was going, he said I'd laugh, and then joked that he was going to a ComiCon. Now, that didn't make me laugh; it actually made me smile, giant geek that I am. Then, he told me that he was going on a turkey shoot, which did make me laugh. The idea of something like that is so foreign to me, really. I grew up in Maine, one of the big outdoor sports capitals of the world, but I come from an indoor, city-loving family. Hunting wasn't something that anyone in my family had ever considered. We we're all kind of klutzy, so there was no skiing (for our own good, really). And we all preferred a weekend of shopping and staying at a hotel to a weekend outdoors. I mean, the closest we ever got to nature was when we visited Acadia National Park, or when we stayed across the street from the beach in York. And those trips all included shopping, either in Bar Harbor or at the outlets in Kittery (mmmm...shopping).
When I was watching Antiques Roadshow (part of the traditional Monday night "Liz Will Die Alone With Many Cats" ritual), I then heard about turkey shooting as an activity for a second time today. Some chick brought in a plate that her great grandfather won at a turkey shoot in Illinois. It was ugly as sin, an ivory plate covered with blue drawing and script. It showed a farmer near some dead turkeys, so it was at least topical.
In my mind, I'm trying to imagine what a turkey shoot would look like. Having never, ever been involved in anything like this, I'm coming up with very cartoonish images. Very Bugs Bunny and Elmer Fudd and Daffy Duck running around the oddly spaced woods, disappearing into rabbit holes, dressing up as strange looking turkeys complete with blown up rubber gloves on their heads. I'm pretty sure that's not how it is. I'll have to ask.
1 comment:
I'm glad I introduced you to the new and exciting world of turkey hunting. Although the image of Elmer Fudd and Bugs Bunny running around the forest chasing and playing tricks on each other is a bit off, some days I feel like that's what's going on (not just with turkey hunting, but life in general). Did you know turkeys fly? And they actually roost in trees and not on the ground? And that there are Toms, Jakes, and Hens?
As weird as this may seem, being in the woods/forest as the sun rises and the wildlife starts to come to life is one of the most beautiful things I've ever witnessed. You don't even have to have a gun to enjoy that ;). But, you do have to be outdoors, which involves: putting up with unpredictable weather conditions, sitting in one spot without moving or talking loudly for hours on end, and sometimes a lot of walking.
You'll have to get introduced to the great outdoors one of these days. Baby steps...
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