We were driving down the country road back to Justin's old house when we saw few friends of the family standing in their front yard. Justin pulled over for a visit.
I'm not entirely sure who the man on this beautiful horse is but the man in the red shirt is Scotty. He and Justin have known each other for as long as Justin's been alive.
Scotty and his wife Kathy were getting ready to head on down to Charlotte to visit the rest of their family for Christmas. Their dog, Heidi, would not leave the back of the car for fear of being left behind. Marcy joined her.
Marcy and Heidi playing in the driveway.
The sun was starting to set so the rider decided that it was time to head on home. It seemed to be dropping a degree every five minutes that we stood out in the field. That gray strip slightly beyond the power lines is the road; it has two lanes in most places but sometimes it only has one.
From left to right: Heidi, Marcy, Kathy, and Justin.
Scotty sits back in his leather armchair and watches while Marcy tells Heidi who's boss. Marcy looks extra tough with that turquoise owl sweater on.
Scotty and Kathy had a beautiful home with wood paneling and a lot of leather highlighted with the obligatory taxidermied animals that every home out here seems to have.
Scotty and Kathy had a beautiful home with wood paneling and a lot of leather highlighted with the obligatory taxidermied animals that every home out here seems to have.
These mules were penned right up against the driveway to Scotty and Kathy's house. I tried to get a better photo but my phone is limited in how far the flash can reach. There were three mules at the fence.
Back to the taxidermy... When I first came out here, I had no idea why every house looked like a cabin and why every "cabin" had at least three or four taxidermied animals inside, most of them proudly displayed over the mantlepiece or on a prominent wall in the home. After talking to the locals and visiting with Justin's family, I began to come to terms that just about everyone out here hunts and that hunting isn't worth a damn if you don't bring back meat to eat and a head to mount on the mantlepiece. Sitting here in Justin's parent's living room I can see, even with part of the room obscured by the beautiful Christmas tree, two large bucks (bust only), and a bobcat catching a quail. It really reminds me of how my dad always wanted a Jackelope, a mythical creature created out of deer antlers jammed onto the head of a jack rabbit. We spent a good portion of our vacation in Montana looking for a taxidermy shop that sold one. When we did find one, my mom vetoed the idea of actually owning one and we left the Big Sky country free from the pointy-headed hare.
Now, with this being my fifth trip to Tennessee (including the three months that I spent living here over the summer of 2009), I am used to the idea that every home that houses a Good Ole Boy also has a surplus of taxidermied animals displayed within. When you come from a state where taxidermy is as verboten as coats made out of actual fur, it is a real kind of culture shock to see something so casually displayed in someone's home. And, truth be told, I think that the fact that taxidermy is looked down upon in Southern California is what gives it it's appeal here in the Appalachian mountains.
--Amy
Back to the taxidermy... When I first came out here, I had no idea why every house looked like a cabin and why every "cabin" had at least three or four taxidermied animals inside, most of them proudly displayed over the mantlepiece or on a prominent wall in the home. After talking to the locals and visiting with Justin's family, I began to come to terms that just about everyone out here hunts and that hunting isn't worth a damn if you don't bring back meat to eat and a head to mount on the mantlepiece. Sitting here in Justin's parent's living room I can see, even with part of the room obscured by the beautiful Christmas tree, two large bucks (bust only), and a bobcat catching a quail. It really reminds me of how my dad always wanted a Jackelope, a mythical creature created out of deer antlers jammed onto the head of a jack rabbit. We spent a good portion of our vacation in Montana looking for a taxidermy shop that sold one. When we did find one, my mom vetoed the idea of actually owning one and we left the Big Sky country free from the pointy-headed hare.
Now, with this being my fifth trip to Tennessee (including the three months that I spent living here over the summer of 2009), I am used to the idea that every home that houses a Good Ole Boy also has a surplus of taxidermied animals displayed within. When you come from a state where taxidermy is as verboten as coats made out of actual fur, it is a real kind of culture shock to see something so casually displayed in someone's home. And, truth be told, I think that the fact that taxidermy is looked down upon in Southern California is what gives it it's appeal here in the Appalachian mountains.
--Amy
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