Tuesday turkeys

On the way home from Reedsburg this morning, I came upon two wild turkeys strolling down Berry Road some 100 yards from the house. At first they stayed in the middle of the road, speeding up and moving from side to side. Eventually they took off flying, one veering off to the right before getting to the Dorns house and the other finally sailing off to the left into the middle of Jerry's field.

I was reminded of being at Holy Hill in the late 1980s when wild turkeys were being re-introduced to the area. Fr. Daniel and I were out walking one evening and startled one, who promptly flew up and perched in a tree. It was an unexpected sight. 

You may recall a famous episode of WKRP in Cincinnati, in which live turkeys were dropped from a helicopter in a Thanksgiving Day promotional stunt. Those fictional birds were domesticated and it did not end well. The episode concludes with the famous line, "As God is my witness, I thought turkeys could fly!" It had us rolling on the floor in hysterics.

The clip is four or five minutes, but it is well worth watching. Click the arrow and be amazed.

I was quite surprised to learn that wild turkeys indeed can and do fly. Butterballs, on the other hand ...