I actually learned a few things.... Did you know that a Tarantula can throw its leg hairs at you if you agitate it? Did you know that Monarch butterflies are poisonous if you eat them and there are other breeds that have the same coloration so that animals think they are Monarchs so other animals won't eat them? Do you think there are ever moments in the animal kingdom where a bird looks at another bird and argues, "No it's not, the poisonous ones are bigger, and I'm hungry!" and when he is mistaken do you think the other bird flies down and says, "I told you so!" Yeah.....me neither...
One of the coolest things I learned about was a Tardigrade..... No it's not the grade you get because you are late from class... it's a microscopic creature that is kinda cute, but the thing that is awesome about them is they can survive almost anything. They are everywhere as well, they can be dried out, frozen, exposed to extreme heat and cold and even be exposed to the vacuum of space and they will survive. Pretty cool.
Bugfest had a little bit for everyone in the family. From artwork to games to science projects to jumphouses for the kiddies to the surprisingly popular Arthropod Cafe. Yes ladies and gentlemen, this is where local eateries are encouraged to INCLUDE the bugs into their menus.... and people line up to try it. I have to admit, my "I Dare You" bar went up a little bit this weekend. There were thai noodles with chili powder and crickets, Bread topped with lettuce, crickets and chopped tomato, Tossed cricket salad with lettuce and crunchy fried mealworm croutons. Jambalya with mealworms and crickets, chocolate bars with the same but my favorite was the oatmeal and cranberry cookie with chopped up mealworms and crickets. Mmmmm.....
I tried to get my son to participate in the bug eating novelty but "No, daddy." was all I could get. Which is amusing to me because I have seen him dip pizza into milk and put ketchup into his applesauce.... I tried the lead by example tactic and put a cricket on my tounge, "Mmmmm, see?"..... "no daddy", I even went to the bible..... "Hey buddy, what was the name of the guy you learned about last week?"........"John the Baptist"....."Yeah, didn't he eat bugs?"...... he looked up, "He ate honey too, can I have a strawberry off that tray?" there was no way he was going to join us in our silliness.
All in all the food wasn't really that bad, the crickets weren't my favorite, it had to do with the legs....I kept having to spit out the legs, the mealworms were better when crunchy and seasoned. I actually had more of a problem with the lettuce that was used in one of the salads, other than the legs it was the only thing I spit out.
At one point, sadly, my son dropped the strawberry he was eating and my wife picked it up and threw it away....This made me laugh.....it was thrown away because it hit the ground.......but it came off of a tray full of bugs.
I can't say that I will make a habit of it or search out eateries that serve bugs regularly but at least I know If I'm out there lost in the wilderness and need to eat something to survive......I will try that much harder to catch that furry little creature with sticks and rocks.......but if that doesn't work I know that annoying little chirping cricket is just making it easier for me to find my next meal.....
Thank you for reading.
Tom.
No comments:
Post a Comment