Black Woods, Blue Sky

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death and substance use. 

Birdie is 26, works at the Wolverine Lodge in Alaska, and lives on the property in a guest house with her six-year-old daughter, Emaleen. She wakes up hungover from partying with Roy and friends at the lodge bar. Birdie knows that she made a mistake doing cocaine and drinking too much, but she got carried away with the music and atmosphere, which took her mind off her problems. Birdie gets dressed and walks outside into the cold morning to smoke. Remembering that her grandfather Hank always said that fishing is the “[b]est cure for a hangover” (7), Birdie grabs her gear and walks to the stream to fish for trout. She forgets to bring her rifle, and though she’s never seen a bear near her house, she recalls all the stories she’s heard about bear attacks.

Birdie drinks in the fresh air to clear her head. Yet, as she fishes, she worries about money, childcare, and her strained relationship with Grandma Jo. She catches a trout and is excited to return to the house to surprise Emaleen with a fish.