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Show Mr. Gross says this about Ehrlich and Bass: "They may explore their connection to their new place, true; but until they've explored their connection to the reader, their new place will seem surface and exuberant...They fail to express the road which has brought them to their locale, and, in doing so, fail to express themselves." Unfortunately it is Mr. Gross, not Bass or Ehrlich, who seems surface and exuberant, and fails to say anything at all. Sincerely, Dear Jim: : I am writing in response to Matthew Gross’s essay (Coming in to Set it Down) which appeared in the October-November issue of The Canyon Country Zephyr. Editor's note: Recently The Zephyr has been monitoring strange falling objects in Salt Lake City Matthew Gross claims, in this article, that Gretel Ehrlich and Rick Bass are two writers who "pose" as westerners while denying, or disregarding, their true roots. He accuses them press release from the World Crane Congress which helps to explain things a lot. Our apologies that (See "A Sign From Above" and “Falling Feces Update" in past issues). Now we have received this we could not publish these comments until now..JS. of cashing in on the current fad of being "western." In his essay, Matthew Gross questions the two writers' motives for moving to the West. "Knowing little about what brought Bass and Ehrlich to Montana and Wyoming makes it difficult to trust their proclamation about what they've found." My question for Mr. Gross is--why don't you know? Both of these authors have been very open about their origins, why they chose to move west, and what they found to keep them there. Neither of them is hiding or omitting information about their previous homes. There are places one can go to learn more about Rick Bass. The first is The Book of Yaak in which Rick Bass personally explains how, at age twenty-nine, he and his wife were "pulled west, as seems to be the genetic predisposition in our country's blood...we ran for both the thrill of flight and for the searching-for-a-place...I was starving for a thing but until then I had not realized what it was, and still even as I discovered it did not know the name of it, peace..." (p.3) The second place is Rick Bass's book: Brown Dog Of The Yaak, which contains an essay called: "Rick Bass, A Portrait." Written by Scott Slovic, it explains, in detail, Bass's roots and the road that led him to the West and into the Yaak Wilderness. "Bass learned his deepest childhood lessons about paying attention to the landscape, about loving a place, from childhood hunting trips to Gillespie County, near Fredricksburg, beginning at the age of World Crane Congress Summer Gathering Northern Scandinavia FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: citizens of Nature, the World Crane Congress (WCC) to continue and expand Operation Sky X Drop over northern Utah earlier this summer were clandestine Targets will be limited to selected dysfunctional in a unanimous decision voted today the state of Utah. Several incidents in training missions only. members of the Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) and their financial supporters in the State Legislature “Specifically, we are after Tom Aldrich”, said Grus Canadensis at a press briefing following the adjournment of the Congress. “Of course, once the armed attacks on us begin any of the terrorists— permit or not--will be fair game!” he added. PUBLIC NOT TO BE ALARMED In preparation for Operation Sky X Drop crane volunteer flyers are fed 24 hours before eight." (p.129) Slovic’s essay goes on to describe the path Bass took from Texas to Utah to Mississippi and later to Montana. It also describes Bass's sense of place in each of these locations. Bass did create and publish pieces while he was living in the South--he did write before moving to Montana and these writings are available to the public, not hidden under his mattress or buried in the back yard. As far as Greta Ehrlich is concerned, I recommend The Solace of Open Spaces and A Match to the Heart. In the preface of Solace, Ehrlich explains, "It is impossible to speak of writing this book without mentioning the circumstances and transitions taking place at the time."(xi) She then goes on to write about her initial move to Montana (to work on a film) and the discovery, while she was there, that she no longer desired her familiar life, her old city life. Her friends felt like she was “hiding out” but Ehrlich describes it as just the opposite. In Wyoming She had found a place she could truly call home. "For the first time I was able to take up residence on earth with no alibi, no self-promoting schemes." Earlier in the article, Mr. Gross attacks Ehrlich for leaving Wyoming after the completion of her book Solace Of Open Spaces--insinuating that she took up residence in Wyoming solely for the purpose of writing her book, for profit. He even goes so far as to question the motives behind her marriage. He fails, however, to mention Ehrlich's experiences being struck by lightening twice, or her need, after almost being killed by the second strike, for ongoing medical attention. He does not mention her book a match to the heart which details the painful journey which led her away from Wyoming, her ranch, and the place she called home. It is obvious that Mr. Gross did not hear Greta Ehrlich speaking, in a match to the heart, OPERATION SKY X DROP TO CONTINUE Declaring that the government of the State of Utah and its armed militia, the Division of Wildlife Resources, must stop the harassment and killing of unarmed and peaceful ethnic their mission--a mixture of corn, Prozac, frogs, snails, and Lithium. This creates a potent eXcrement that, upon contact with the skin of a human, will instantly affect the central nervous system of that individual. The chemical compound specifically targets the parts of human brains that have to do with emotions and the mechanisms that enhance empathy. It unblocks healthy emotions that have been repressed while the organism pursued a fruitless search for self-esteem through hunting. “The effects are instant and permanent. If we hit you with the shit, you can kiss Mr. Macho hunter good-bye and say hello to a warm and sensitive humane being. It is quite a wonderful experience and nothing to be afraid of’, said the Crowned Crane delegate from southern Africa. (NOTE: The chemical compound will soon be available in Sky Drop body/mind care products for men and women. In stores Operation Sky X Drop will continue State of Utah financial support from the Long live the buffalo! Long live the Long live the humane beings! for Christmas.) until all DWR targets have been neutralized or General Tax Fund is halted. coyote! Love live the crane! Unsigned about the days, weeks, months, and years that followed the near death lightening strike. If he had, he would have understood her departure from Wyoming and maybe even respected her truth. He would have known that Greta Ehrlich's last night on the ranch was spent on the floor, covered in sweat. “Lying on the floor of the ranch house, I felt the life in my body trying to ebb away...At the time I had no idea I would never spend another night at the ranch." 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