Getting To Know Sparrowgrass

[PrincessFiona60]

1. What is your favorite thing to cook?

2. I you could, would you won a restaurant and what would you call it?

3. Who is your hero?

[GB]

If you could be invisible for a day and have access to go anywhere in the world, where would you go and what would you do?

[babetoo]

do you like to read ? how many books have you read this year? what kind of books do you like?

[sparrowgrass]

1. Favorite thing to cook: Well, my dears, that depends on what I am hungry for. I like ethnic cooking--Chinese, Thai or Indian or Mexican--spicy, please. I live in the boonies, so if I want something out of the ordinary, I have to do it myself. I grow a big garden, and have chickens for eggs and meat, so if you came for dinner, everything on the table might be extremely local!

2. If I won a restaurant--hmmm, I think I would sell it and buy a bigger farm. No desire to run a restaurant. I love to feed people, but I would hate to have to do it every day.

3. Who is my hero? That is a hard one--maybe Sacacawea, the teenage mama who helped Lewis and Clark make it across the continent. Wouldn't you love to talk to her about her adventures?

If I could be invisible? Maybe I would hang out in Sarah Palin's house, and try to figure out just what the hell the woman is thinking. I am not sure my blood pressure could stand that, so I'll go hang out on some movie set, instead.

I live to read, I have books in every room of the house, out on the porch, and in the truck. I have no idea how many books I have read this year or this month or even this week. I visit the library about every 2 weeks for 5-6 books, plus the ones I buy (mostly at the thrift store), the ones I get from Audible.com, and the ones on my Sony Reader.

I like non-fiction--Sebastian Junger is a favorite (just finished War), along with John McPhee, and I am a weather geek, so I have read several about big storms, hurricanes and blizzards. I like Stephen King, Ivan Doig, Barbara Kingsolver.

Right now I am reading The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova from the library, and Pinocchio (on the Reader) and listening to Some Sing, Some Cry on my mp3 player. But not all at the same time. I probably would if I could!

I read in the bathtub, in the pool, in bed, while I am cooking, and I don't have TV, so I read in the evenings.

[babetoo]

Originally Posted by sparrowgrass

1. Favorite thing to cook: Well, my dears, that depends on what I am hungry for. I like ethnic cooking--Chinese, Thai or Indian or Mexican--spicy, please. I live in the boonies, so if I want something out of the ordinary, I have to do it myself. I grow a big garden, and have chickens for eggs and meat, so if you came for dinner, everything on the table might be extremely local!

2. If I won a restaurant--hmmm, I think I would sell it and buy a bigger farm. No desire to run a restaurant. I love to feed people, but I would hate to have to do it every day.

3. Who is my hero? That is a hard one--maybe Sacacawea, the teenage mama who helped Lewis and Clark make it across the continent. Wouldn't you love to talk to her about her adventures?

If I could be invisible? Maybe I would hang out in Sarah Palin's house, and try to figure out just what the hell the woman is thinking. I am not sure my blood pressure could stand that, so I'll go hang out on some movie set, instead.

I live to read, I have books in every room of the house, out on the porch, and in the truck. I have no idea how many books I have read this year or this month or even this week. I visit the library about every 2 weeks for 5-6 books, plus the ones I buy (mostly at the thrift store), the ones I get from Audible.com, and the ones on my Sony Reader.

I like non-fiction--Sebastian Junger is a favorite (just finished War), along with John McPhee, and I am a weather geek, so I have read several about big storms, hurricanes and blizzards. I like Stephen King, Ivan Doig, Barbara Kingsolver.

Right now I am reading The Swan Thieves by Elizabeth Kostova from the library, and Pinocchio (on the Reader) and listening to Some Sing, Some Cry on my mp3 player. But not all at the same time. I probably would if I could!

I read in the bathtub, in the pool, in bed, while I am cooking, and I don't have TV, so I read in the evenings.

you sound much like me in the reading dept. if i don't have at least two unread books, i get uneasy.

[Barbara L]

1. Who was your favorite teacher in school, and why?

2. If money were no object and you had a year to do anything at all you wanted, what would you do?

3. How do you want to be remembered when you are gone?

4. Would you get more satisfaction from preparing a perfect meal for ten people or from teaching those ten people how to prepare that meal?

Barbara

[sparrowgrass]

Good questions!!

1. Favorite teacher--I had an English teacher in high school who really cared about me--and the rest of us. I had a teacher in college in an outdoor education class who said 'Your audience doesn't care how much you know, they care about how much you care.' She cared about her subject, and she cared about her students.

2. A year off--I would spend the winter somewhere warm, with a beach. I would travel some the rest of the year, but I have to be home to tend my garden in the summer!! I would like to go to Africa on camera-safari, maybe to Alaska or Canadian Rockies, the Maine coast, and back to Yellowstone for a couple of weeks.

3. I think I will be remembered as a slightly 'off' woman , who loves her family and friends with all her heart.

4. I am an educator--I teach Master Gardener classes, and do programming for kids in school on various subjects, so teaching 10 people how to make bread or potstickers or sushi would be so much fun!! As a matter of fact, the bread making class will probably happen this winter!

[taxlady]

What is the most dangerous thing you have done? Are you glad you did it?

[sparrowgrass]

I am not big on danger--I don't need that adrenalin rush. However, I did once punch a bear in the nose.

We were camping in the Boundary Waters in Minnesota, and some little rodents were skritching on the side of tent. I smacked the tent, and the mousies went flying, and I went back to sleep.

Again--I was awakened by skritching on the side of the tent--smack--flying mousies.

Third time, skritching. Again a smack. Loud woof! Big feet thumping across the campsite. I had smacked a black bear, and scared him away.

[PrincessFiona60]

Originally Posted by sparrowgrass

I am not big on danger--I don't need that adrenalin rush. However, I did once punch a bear in the nose.

We were camping in the Boundary Waters in Minnesota, and some little rodents were skritching on the side of tent. I smacked the tent, and the mousies went flying, and I went back to sleep.

Again--I was awakened by skritching on the side of the tent--smack--flying mousies.

Third time, skritching. Again a smack. Loud woof! Big feet thumping across the campsite. I had smacked a black bear, and scared him away.

And I thought I was brave staring down a skunk.

[taxlady]

Originally Posted by sparrowgrass

I am not big on danger--I don't need that adrenalin rush. However, I did once punch a bear in the nose.

...

Third time, skritching. Again a smack. Loud woof! Big feet thumping across the campsite. I had smacked a black bear, and scared him away.

Oh my! That must have given you a fright.

[sparrowgrass]

Not scared--excited, but I really wasn't worried about being eaten.

I would take a bear over a skunk any day. There have been very few attacks by black bears--only one in all the history of the Boundary Waters, and that is because the guy who was bitten was chasing the bear to retrieve his food pack, and fell down a hill ONTO the bear. Can't blame the bear for that!!

They are quite destructive when it comes to getting food, but even the mama bears with babies only 'bluff charge' and don't attack. For more info, if you want it, google the North American Bear Center. Lynn Rogers, the director, is kind of the 'Jane Goodall' of bear research--he follows bears in the woods, gains their trust, collars them without drugs, handles the cubs--very interesting stuff.

I was thinking about this 'danger' question, and probably the most dangerous thing I (or anybody else) will do is driving the car.

[PrincessFiona60]

Our bears around here are a bit bigger and more aggressive...the balck bears have been coming in to town causing havoc, but no attacks. The grizzlies on the other hand...couple of mountain lion spottings around town, too!

[taxlady]

Originally Posted by PrincessFiona60

Our bears around here are a bit bigger and more aggressive...the balck bears have been coming in to town causing havoc, but no attacks. The grizzlies on the other hand...couple of mountain lion spottings around town, too!

Actually, the grizzlies don't tend to be as aggressive as black bears. People have certainly been injured badly in Canada by black bears and mountain lions.

[PrincessFiona60]

Originally Posted by taxlady

Actually, the grizzlies don't tend to be as aggressive as black bears. People have certainly been injured badly in Canada by black bears and mountain lions.

Last summer several people were killed or injured by grizzlies here in Montana...they are certainly aggressive and getting more so as they are losing their habitat. Terribly sad, they had to hunt down and kill a mother grizzly in Yellowstone for attacking campers. Her two cubs were relocated.

[taxlady]

Originally Posted by PrincessFiona60

Last summer several people were killed or injured by grizzlies here in Montana...they are certainly aggressive and getting more so as they are losing their habitat. Terribly sad, they had to hunt down and kill a mother grizzly in Yellowstone for attacking campers. Her two cubs were relocated.

That is sad.