Burdock Day 2010

Once again, the team at COSI finds itself rounding the bend of the Holidays, past our Annual Gala and into the sprint that is our very busy Spring break season. Back in 2004, COSI found it necessary to make several cuts to their operations to stop the bottom line from bleeding. One of those cuts was to close COSI down on Mondays and Tuesdays. Over time, COSI has found other measures to save money and gain revenue which has allowed us to meet our guests’ demands to be open on Mondays and Tuesdays again during the busy Spring Break season and during summer.

There is one day that many COSI Team Members find special. It is the last Tuesday that COSI is closed before we stay open seven days a week. It is a time for everyone to make sure that our show is polished, our Look Shirts in order and the Pendulum Ball shined to a reflective gold. We call this Burdock Day.

Usually, this Tuesday falls somewhere in May, between Spring Break and summer. This year, COSI was able to secure the Titanic Artifact Exhibition and we will be open seven days a week starting on March 17th, 2010. So it was necessary to push Burdock Day up to today, March 16th, 2010.

How can you celebrate Burdock Day? First off, wish everyone a “Happy Burdock Day.” When they ask what Burdock Day is, just tell them that it’s the day before the day after. Or say it’s the end of the beginning or the start of the finish. Another way to celebrate is to eat at a Greek Restaurant. Lastly, it is traditional to “Be Burdock.” While that means a lot of different things to a lot of different people, for me it means to do my best, using the resources at hand, with a friendly smile and a bald head.







Happy Burdock Day!!

Celebrate Burdock Day: Tuesday May 19, 2009

This coming Tuesday is a very special day at our work place. It marks the last weekday that our museum is closed before the “open seven days a week” summer schedule kicks in. For some Team Members, it is a time to take one last deep breath before diving into our busy summer. For other Team Members, it is a time of reflection. For me, it’s all about Burdock Day.

Burdock Day celebrates the Burdock in all of us. What is Burdock? For some, it’s an unending drive towards near perfection. For others, it’s the 11th hour (and 59th minute) last ditch, 110% effort that goes into making experiences in our building top notch. A small few might suggest it’s the “Get The Crane”, grab ‘um by the horns attitude. And lastly, Burdock is any of a group of biennial thistles in the genus Arctium or a leather bag, used by sheep headers, to carry wine.

No matter what you consider to be “Burdock”, we request that you help us celebrate this year on May 19th. How can you participate? Here are the Ten Ways to Celebrate Burdock Day:

1. Buy a T-shirt at skreened.com : http://skreened.com/holyjuan/burdock-day Choose your favorite color and wear your shirt with pride.
2. Buy the larger frozen meal to fill up and not be hungry later in the afternoon.
3. Shave your head and claim that the ladies dig it.
4. Embrace the message and stay true to the Big Idea.
5. Write your name overtop other peoples on their tape measure, ruler and stapler.
6. Outsource It!!
7. Clean your desk (actually, clean his desk).
8. Dream about the computer game “Lemonade Stand” coming back
9. Paint it orange.
10. Use “making coffee” as a legitimate excuse to be late to a meeting.

**Due to lack of participation, the 2009 Burdock Day 250K Run/Walk has been canceled. Sorry, no refunds.**

Photos from Burdock Day 2008