Books to Blogs #4
This week’s question comes from the book 3000 Unique Questions About Me:
“What’s one useless general fact or nugget of trivia you know?”
Well, I’ve got a whole drawer full.
But the first one that popped into my head—probably because I heard it as a child and never questioned it—is this:
Turkeys can drown by looking up at the rain.
I know, I know. But hear me out.
As a kid, this was told to me as absolute truth. That turkeys were so lacking in common sense, they’d tilt their heads toward the sky during a storm, forget to close their mouths, and… well… drown. It was repeated enough that I never thought to doubt it.
And if that wasn’t enough, I was also told that turkeys sometimes forget to eat—and starve to death as a result.
That’s right. These majestic (and yes, delicious) birds were painted as completely helpless. And I believed every word.
There was even this added layer of panic: if you owned turkeys, you had to bang pots and pans together when it rained to snap them out of their daze and keep them alive. Can you imagine? You, in the backyard, in a downpour, clanging cookware like a thunderstorm percussionist—just to stop your birds from accidentally ending it all.
Now, of course, I’ve learned that most of this is a myth. While turkeys do have their quirks, they’re not as hopeless as the stories make them out to be. Still, those “useless” facts stuck around in my memory long after the truth came to light. And that’s kind of the point, isn’t it?
Some facts, even when they’re false, are too funny or too vivid to let go of.
Others are real and equally strange—like one I heard on an episode of The Bob and Sheri Show. Sheri mentioned that sharks don’t have a protective membrane over their eyes, so when they lunge at prey, they roll their eyes back into their heads to shield them.
Now that’s real. And weird. And unforgettable.
So are these facts practical? Not particularly.
Do they make me pause, smile, and want to share them? Absolutely.
In a world full of things we have to remember—passwords, appointments, bills—there’s something oddly comforting about facts that just exist for fun.
I’m convinced: useless trivia isn’t so useless after all.
It reminds us to laugh, to stay curious, and to share the strange little things that make life feel lighter.
So now I’m asking you:
What’s one useless, weird, random fact you learned once and never forgot?
Reach out and share it —or bring it up at your next dinner party or gathering. You might just start a pot-banging, turkey-saving, shark-eye-rolling conversation you never expected.
Thanks for being here. If you enjoyed this post, there’s plenty more where that came from, everything from soulful healing tips to playful prompts and real conversations about life.
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Empowering Your Journey to Healing, Clarity, and Self-Discovery.
Theresa Martinez-Shapiro
Hello! I am Theresa Martinez-Shapiro; Wife to Robert. Founder of Flexible Being. A Master Reiki Therapist, Certified Oracle Guide, Spiritual Mentor/Guide, Intuitive Empath, Coach, and Educator. I am a fur mom to 3 cats and 1 dog – Sonny, Patches, Ryelee, and Winnie. We currently live and practice in Stockton, California. We operate three businesses – Shapiro Holistic Health and Chiropractic, Fusion Health APC, and Synergy Health MSO, where we seek to improve and change the lives of our patients and those we have the privilege of crossing paths with. My healing and mentoring journey began around 5 years old when I discovered that I was put on this planet to help others. I knew I was different, unique, and gifted. I did not see the world the same way everyone else did, and recognized I was meant to do so much more. I began to research, spending a lot of time reading & asking a lot of questions to anyone that wanted to share stories about their life experiences. I am a dreamer and had a unique relationship with the dream world. My very real, vivid & lucid dreams began turning into out-of-body experiences and unexplained occurrences. I began doing my own dream interpretations to look for patterns & a new way of deciphering life. Family members were part of many different religions, so I was educated in Catholicism, Buddhism, Metaphysics, and Native American culture & beliefs. Along the way, I took up multiple mentors that cultivated my growth and expansion of my gifts, allowing me to focus on my potential and purpose. As an adult, coworkers were unloading their life stories, internal secrets, and things that had not been shared or even spoken out loud. I began to share those experiences with my aunt & Reiki Master/Teacher, Carmen. In 2012, Carmen told me, “I think you are ready to walk the path I always knew you were meant to walk”. That saying began my obsessive journey into Reiki, Spirituality, Psychology, Intuition and Psychic gifts, Meditation and Mindfulness, Past Lives, Consciousness, Energy Medicine, Mysteries of the Universe, Moon and Sun cycles, Astrology, Numerology, Oracle Cards, Shamanism, & so much more. My journey has helped me to assist patients, clients, families, and friends discover who they have been, who they are, and who they want to become. I am expanding my reach and educating others by authoring Musings of a Flexible Being, and I look forward to sharing my journey with you. Thank you! Theresa Martinez-Shapiro Flexible Being Website: www.flexiblebeing.com Socials: Facebook: @flexiblebeingonline Instagram:@theresamartinezshapiro Instagram: @flexiblebeing
