February 12th, 2009

Filed under:
Flora and Fauna

James and the Tiny Deersicle

When it comes to the outdoors, James is ridiculously capable. A couple of years ago he took me fishing up in Squamish. Well, he went fishing. I floundered around in a freezing river, waving a long graphite stick at the fish who mocked me with their toothy grins. That followed the time we went snorkeling for crabs.

Here’s James’s latest demonstration of woodsy prowess (caution: graphic photos of the inside of a small deer ahead). Boris, Travis and James, among others, discovered a fawn that had frozen to death in Boris’s parents’ backyard on Bowen Island:

In truth, I felt pretty unsure. ‘Doing something’ meant butchering the fawn. I was all for wild game but I didn’t know that everyone at the open house would be as open. And I didn’t have any hunting knives. I had excuses: I had never butchered a deer that wasn’t a fresh kill, I had never butchered a deer, never mind a fawn, in BC, within sight of downtown Vancouver and the birthplace of Greenpeace and all those moral vegetarians.

But, in the end, he went to town and they had a deer feast. I might have even temporarily suspended my no-red-meat habits for a taste of Bowen Island deer.

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Comments: 5 Responses so far

Thanks for the overly kind overestimate of my outdoors prowess, DB. It’s really just curiosity and a little experience.

You’re welcome to join in anytime.

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I’m so jealous I missed that.

Can’t wait to do some future slaughtering and butchering with James. He’s my meat god and I bow before his mighty knife.

Oh, that sounds so wrong…

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Jason Landry Reply:

Now there’s an image I didn’t need. Thanks Mark.

Anyway, I was also very impressed when I first heard of James’ butchering display, but then I remembered he was from Winnipeg, so he probably could have done it blindfolded.

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I always figure that if you’re going to eat any sort of meat, you should be at least theoretically willing to kill or butcher it yourself. It’s more honest.

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My only objection was the reference to “moral vegetarians”. I may be vegetarian but I’m pretty damn immoral.

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