: Not that unusual a tale. Seems deer take offense at being shot as well, : and can rip a hunter to ribbons rather quickly. Not that afraid of even : a grizzly, but I really would prefer to stay away from a senior bull : moose in the fall--not even the grizzlies are stupid enough to tackle : those mellow marsh munchers.
Picture this:
It's November 1975, a 17 year old girl moves from a small town in northern California to Ninilchik Alaska to be with a father she has never known and his family. The family of four lives in a very small 4 room cabin on Deep Creek in Ninilchik Alaska.
The girl, though a country girl, knows zip about the wilderness and Alaska in particular.
After a long flight on a commercial airline (her first plane trip) and a bumpy ride in a much smaller plane across the inlet and then a long drive down the Kenai peninsula they arrive at the small cabin nestled up in the trees and covered in snow. By the time they get there it's dark and they have dinner visit a while and then hit the sack.
The next morning the girl wakes up bright and early and the first thing she does is open the curtains to look out at the view. On the other side of the glass is a mother moose and a baby moose staring at her. They stand there momentarily face to face with only a thin piece of glass between them. They are so close that the moose's breath makes fog on the window pane.
Then the girl begins to scream.
Evidently they were looking at their reflection in the window and this startles the moose. They jump back and snort big clouds of steam from their nostrils and you can see them wondering what this strange squealing creature is. A decision is made to keep their distance after all.
The girl continues to scream and jumps back and runs, still screaming, into the kitchen.
This is where her step mother begins to yell at her "What the hell's the matter with you!!!???" The step mother grabs her by the shoulders and shakes her and says "What's the matter with you stupid child!!??"" (I swear to god, it's true)
The girl is dubbed Cheechako and all enjoy a hearty laugh at her expense.
They still tell that story at family gatherings.
Kate
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