Share your turkey / Thanksgiving story...

monkeybug · Nov 8, 2013

This was told to me by an older nurse I worked with in L&D, from back in the twilight sleep days of L&D: Patient has had the twilight sleep and has now come to the pushing part of labor. As was done back then, she was moved from her labor bed to the delivery room. It was Thanksgiving Day. They get to the delivery room, and the nurse is telling her to "move over onto the table." Patient says, "I'm supposed to get on the table? This is the worst Thanksgiving EVER!"

twinmommy+2, ADN, BSN, MSN · Nov 9, 2013

The last Thanksgiving I had with my Grandmother, she was diagnosed that year with small cell lung CA, so we knew it would be her last holiday season. She had a new peg tube because she wasn't swollowing well but remained at the table with the family. We were all halfway through dinner and I'm about to really dig into some mashed taters and gravy, when she lifts up her shirt all of a sudden and shows the entire family that her tube was leaking, the same color and consistancy of the gravy on my plate, wanting her dressing over it changed right then and there. I think my mouth dropped and I must have lost the color in my face because everyone was staring at me lol. There isn't much to make me lose my appetite especially at Thanksgiving but that did the trick.

tokmom, BSN, RN · Nov 9, 2013

Last year myself and fellow co-workers boycotted the 10.00 Thanksgiving meal and opted to send a CNA to McDonalds (on her break of course) for Mc Nuggets, fries and the grocery store for a pie. We borrowed some plates and silverware from the kitchen, took a sheet and tossed it on the break room table and had a fast food feast complete with different types of dipping sauce.

ANnot4me · Nov 9, 2013

Why would you celebrate something that is symbolic of the near extermination of a native people and their culture?

RHIA, RN · Nov 9, 2013

Why would you celebrate something that is symbolic of the near extermination of a native people and their culture?

Really? I am Native American. Chickasaw, Choctaw and Mississippi Choctaw. I celebrate Thanksgiving as a time to come together with friends and family, reflecting on all we have to be grateful for NOT a time to complain about our history. Now, Columbus Day on the other hand . . . well, we have another name for that "holiday", LOL.

As far as Thanksgiving at work- as a unit we usually skip the cafeteria meal and have a potluck.

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Nov 9, 2013

Before the days of budget cuts we had a cook [ in LTC by the way] who came in every Thanksgiving at 0400 to start dinner. It was always home cooked, real food. Real whole turkeys, made from scratch dressing , home made pies, the whole traditional feast. She made enough for the residents, their families and all the staff. Even made sure to put food aside for the later shifts that couldn't be there during the meal but still had to work on a holiday. Now it is pre-packaged turkey loaf, pre-made pies, nothing fresh or real about it. There is barely enough for the residents and if their families would like to join them for the holiday meal it is $5.00 a person and needs to be ordered well ahead of time so enough food is prepared. As for staff...forget it. We haven't received a holiday meal if working, or a Thanksgiving turkey or Christmas bonus of any kind in years.

tokmom, BSN, RN · Nov 9, 2013

Why would you celebrate something that is symbolic of the near extermination of a native people and their culture?

Part Flathead, and Thanksgiving for my family is showing thanks for everything that has been given to us.

applewhitern, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2013

I was hesitant to post this, but if we can discuss leaky Peg tubes at the dinner table, then here goes: It was my first time to host T-day dinner at my house; I was also 8 months pregnant and didn't want to travel. I put the turkey in the oven to roast overnight, then went to bed. I got up a couple times during the night to check on the turkey; each time it didn't look like it was cooking very fast, but I did not realize the bottom element of the oven was not coming on. That morning everyone arrived and all I had was a salmonella-infested turkey that sat in the oven all night with only the top element cooking it! It sat in the oven with the temperature just warm enough to grow bacteria! The entire bottom half of the turkey was still white and raw. We had hardly anything to eat; I had depended on the oven to finish cooking the meal that morning. This was in the 70's so there were no cell phones to call anyone already traveling, and no groceries opened on holidays back then.

tokmom, BSN, RN · Nov 10, 2013

I was hesitant to post this, but if we can discuss leaky Peg tubes at the dinner table, then here goes: It was my first time to host T-day dinner at my house; I was also 8 months pregnant and didn't want to travel. I put the turkey in the oven to roast overnight, then went to bed. I got up a couple times during the night to check on the turkey; each time it didn't look like it was cooking very fast, but I did not realize the bottom element of the oven was not coming on. That morning everyone arrived and all I had was a salmonella-infested turkey that sat in the oven all night with only the top element cooking it! It sat in the oven with the temperature just warm enough to grow bacteria! The entire bottom half of the turkey was still white and raw. We had hardly anything to eat; I had depended on the oven to finish cooking the meal that morning. This was in the 70's so there were no cell phones to call anyone already traveling, and no groceries opened on holidays back then.

I remember those days of frozen turkey's and such. If you screwed up there was no recourse, lol. On the other hand, I liked how everything was closed. I know for me it seemed more like a true holiday.

monkeybug · Nov 12, 2013

Why would you celebrate something that is symbolic of the near extermination of a native people and their culture?

Oh yes, every year after lunch the family reenacts the Trail of Tears from the street to the garage. After that we hand out smallpox-riddled blankets at the homeless shelter. Give me a freaking break! :bored: We come together as a family and are thankful to our Creator for His blessings on us. If there's something inherently wrong with that, I don't want to live on this planet any more.

And just to make it clear, the first two lines were blatant sarcasm. I have a small amount of Native American blood (as I'm sure many Americans have), I'm very sympathetic to the plight of those living on reservations in this country, and I don't celebrate Columbus Day (as another poster pointed out). I felt the need to point this out as plainly as possible, because someone who gets their knickers in a twist over a large meal shared with family and friends once a year probably would think we pretend to drive people out of their homes for the entertainment value.