Day 2: Phenology, Shintangle and Square Dancing


Folks dancing at Shintangle

Shintangle is an annual fundraiser hosted by Swan Valley Connections (SVC). SVC is a non-profit organization dedicated to conservation in the Swan Valley. They maintain trails, restore wetlands, conserve land, assist land owners in creating fire breaks around their homes and overall work to conserve the natural resources in the Swan Valley. SCV, Earthwatch and the USGS are the three organizations participating in our research project on Huckleberries, Climate Change and Grizzly Bears. 

Now back to Shintangle.

Some of us were  a bit hesitant about going to Shintangle and a few people were reluctant to go. As city folks we didn't quite know what to expect. Luckily, I am a master at peer pressure (kids, peer pressure is bad, don't do it) and I was able to wrangle those reluctant folk into attending. 

There was delicious BBQ, a unplanned performance by Jesse (one of the conservation technicians with SVC) and music by the Beet Tops. We all had fun square dancing and making fools of ourselves. I can't remember laughing that hard at myself in ages. I am not a square dancer, in fact I can only remember square dancing in the first grade when boys had cooties and I didn't want to hold hands with anyone. Shintangle was much, much, much better than square dancing in first grade. We learned a dance where we pushed ma and pa and then went to Arkansas, another dance where we were a bird in the cage and had to dance around like a bird and another called the rip and snort. I still haven't figured out the rip and snort and am not sure that I ever will. 

In summary, we need to bring Shintangle to Los Angeles immediately. 

                                                    


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