Not the holiday itself, but the name Turkey Day. As a policy, anybody who wishes me a Happy Turkey Day gets a “so you aren’t thankful for anything but turkey?” in return. One person this year called me a jerk in return, and the other said “of course not! I’m thankful for you, and the rest of our family, and that we’re all healthy and can be here…” and both of them got a piece of my mind about my feeling.
Okay, first of all, changing the name from Thanksgiving to Turkey Day probably takes more effort and thought than just saying “Happy Thanksgiving”, so its not like it’s an accidental greeting. Secondly, even though I’m not big on holidays OR tradition, I feel like changing the name from Thanksgiving to Turkey Day is either trying to sound funny (no, it isn’t, and you aren’t the first one to come up with that), or trying to desensitize the holiday as nothing more than a day to eat a big meal, both of which annoy me.
I’m not trying to make this a pit thread, but the opinion I’m asking is if a. you use the term Turkey Day and why, and b. how you feel when other people use the term.
I don’t think I usually say Turkey Day (I did have a teacher in high school who called it “Yardbird Day”), but I will in jest call it “National Poultry Industry Appreciation Day”. Mostly it’s just me being a bit of a smartass.
And how do I feel? I dunno, it probably depends on how you feel about Turkey. I tend to associate Turkey dinners with good, tasty warm meals, usually with loved ones. Others might see a big fat bird that supposedly drowns in the rain and lives outside.
If someone wished you a happy Turkey Day, sincerely meaning that they hoped you had a good holiday and trying to be funny, and you were snide and snarky, yes, you were a jerk. As an atheist, I don’t particularly care to be wished Merry Christmas, Happy Easter or to be blessed or prayed for, but I take it in the spirit that it’s intended. When people wish you well, you thank them and reply in kind, instead of preaching or correcting their semantics.
I cringe every time I hear someone refer to Thanksgiving as Turkey Day. There seems to be an inclination for Americans to try and shorten and make cute the names of EVERYthing.
But calling it TURKEY day reminds me that it’s a holiday about killing, gutting and then stuffing with savory goodness an animal of the poultrey variety. Thanksgiving? Pssh. A holiday for pussys!
Or in the OP’s case, not saying anything at all would have been a better solution. It’s what I do whenever someone “blesses” me after sneezing, a custon I frown upon.
Good thing I never wished you a “Happy Saint Tryptophan Day” then.
I do say Happy Turkey Day to people who is not born American. For us it is mostly a Day Off with a built in excuse to pig out. We didn’t grow up with it and it is not part of our culture. This is not to mean that we have nothing to be thankful for, just that it is not part of our culture.