“I’m Your Huckleberry”

For those of you who have seen the 90’s movie “Tombstone”, you’ll  know that Doc Holliday, played (brilliantly in my opinion) by Val Kilmer, repeats the phrase “I’m Your Huckleberry”, several times throughout the movie. “Tombstone” is a great shoot ’em up. Lots of fun.

I’ve researched the phrase “I’m Your Huckleberry” and it’s reputed to mean something like, “I’m the best person for the job”. Or, “I’m your wingman”.

That movie line, before this week, was the extent of my experience and knowledge of “huckleberry”. Good that I’m getting out more.

As I’ve driven across Idaho and Montana, I see signs referencing “Huckleberry shakes”, and “Fresh Hucks Here”. Turns out, huckleberries are a thing.

Here’s some info about them, courtesy of my pal Wikipedia.

• In North America the name was applied to numerous plant variations all bearing small berries with colors that may be red, blue or black.
• The berries are small and round, 5–10 mm in diameter, and look like large dark blueberries. In taste, they may be tart, with a flavor similar to that of a blueberry, especially in blue- and purple-colored varieties, and some have noticeably larger, bitter seeds.
• Huckleberry was one of the few plant species to survive on the slopes of  Mt. St. Helens when it erupted in 1980, and exists as a prominent mountain-slope bush in 2017.
• The huckleberry is the state fruit of Idaho.
• In the wild, huckleberries are consumed by bears, birds, coyotes and deer.

 

All of the above is secondary research, yes? I did my own primary research this week.

 

Conclusion: Huckleberry pie, with huckleberry ice cream a la mode, is un-fricking-believably delicious.

 

 

 

On a related note…when I return from this great adventure, if I decide that I want need to get another real job, I am going to make my resume a one-liner.

Resume of Exxxxx Pxxxxxx

Qualifications: I’m Your Huckleberry

Thanks for following along!

Next post — Glacier National Park.