Not Fit For Print

Yes, folks, I really was bitten on the butt by a turkey while out on assignment on Thursday morning. Cross your fingers that this wasn’t some sort of lycanthrope.

Anyway, as I scribbled notes at Leaping Lamb Farm near Alsea, I felt a minor pinch.  I wasn’t injured — or flattered, as some have wisecracked. I was mildly shocked, including when I looked down.

Frankly, I expected to be goosed at the farm by, you know, the goose.

Moments later, I learned the true eeevil of the white devil turkeys. As one turkey puffed up his feathers in front of photographer Casey Campbell, another came up from behind and nipped him on the calf before quickly scurrying away.

The diversion/attack technique was strongly reminiscent of the fictional velociraptors from “Jurassic Park.”

It made me wonder if the creatures weren’t trying to exact vengeance for the G-T’s coverage of Philomath’s turkey problem last fall, which resulted in the police shooting 10 of the feathered pests.

Now, don’t take this blog to be a critique of Leaping Lamb Farm. It was a great spot, and I’m thinking of staying over there sometime instead of heading to a mini-vacay at the beach.

Farm owner Scottie Jones hasn’t been thrilled with the somewhat aggressive nature of her white devil turkeys, either. But she let me know that the creatures wouldn’t be there long.

Revenge, after all, is a dish best served with a side of stuffing and cranberry sauce. (Not that I’ll be able to enjoy too much, seeing as I’m a fishyterian.)

*****

Here’s a rundown of the G-T’s top 10 Internet stories from the week of July 6-12.

Leading the pack was the news that Trader Joe’s is aiming to come to Corvallis, which got a whopping 5,384 page views. That was more than any other story got in the entire month of June, folks. Methinks there may be a niche for this business in Corn Valley, by the way.

The other big winner, or loser, was the new guidelines that prohibit dogs from entering farmers market stalls. Two stories about the rules were in the top 10.

Overall, the week was very strong, with the top three stories garnering more than 10,000 page views overall,  and the top 11 stories in quadruple digits. (The benchmark for a decent week, as I’ve said before, is 10 stories with more than 1,000 page views.)

Here’s the rest of the top of the pops

2.) Corvallis woman loses nearly $100K in bank fraud – 2,836 page views

3.) Platinum night spot closes, looks for new venue – 2,013

4.) Crime watch – 1,941 (no date so no link. Probably was July 6, though)

5.) Corvallis man faces felony marijuana charges – 1,811

6.) Dog limits take effect at farmers markets – 1,635

7.) Courtney trial to leave Benton County – 1,412

8.) $2K in cigarettes stolen – 1,398

9.) Dogs get short leashed at market – 1,327

10.) Paying for the ride – 1,059 (Sunday story on ambulance services)

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