Meat and meaning (or, Hunting on the brain)
The past few months have been crazy. I had the final six chapters of my book to draft. And I had a thesis to write.
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The good and the slobby: Hunting, logging, living
Everyone I know—hunter or non-hunter—detests slob-hunting: Animals wounded carelessly or maliciously. Bodies and body parts dumped along roadsides. Shots fired at unidentified flashes of movement. And so on. We agree that such behavior is callous and wasteful, disrespectful and dangerous. But why should it surprise us? Recently, while revising a chapter for my book, I … Read more
Kill-humor, long shots, and the future of hunting
Photo: A hunter stands in the woods, rifle to his shoulder, looking through the scope. Caption: “All you can think about is how good this shot is going to feel.” I saw the advertisement several years ago. I don’t remember if it was for the rifle or the scope. I don’t even remember what magazine … Read more
Accounting for taste: What’s with “gamey”?
Just before the New Year, I was talking with a hunter I know. He mentioned how much he enjoys preparing venison for non-hunters. So often, they’re surprised by how good it tastes. Only one thing bothers him. After they declare it to be delicious, they’ll say, “I expected it to be gamey.” “I’m so tired … Read more
Wounded animals, Uncomfortable hunters
Back in November, a fellow hunter and I talked about an essay he’d written. In it, he described stumbling onto a deer that had been wounded by someone else. When the piece was published, he heard from some disgruntled hunters. They didn’t like seeing that kind of story in print. A couple months later, I … Read more
Deer: Part of every stew, every salad, every stir-fry
Venison, a forester friend tells me, is the best way he knows to eat trees. He points out that whitetails do a dandy job of converting cellulose into protein. When Cath and I sit down to a bowl of venison stew, we are eating more than potato, carrot, and deer. We are also eating maple … Read more
An absence of orange (and other sins against safety)
The young man’s hunting outfit consisted of dark wool pants, a camouflage vest, and a brown knit hat just a couple shades lighter than winter deer hair. (Strike One: It was rifle season and he wasn’t wearing a stitch of blaze orange.) His lever-action rifle, aimed downward, was pointed at the laces of his left … Read more