Skip to main content

Hounds, Birds and Squirrels, The battle rages on Day two

Round two of the grey squirrel battle begins.  It is the early morning. I spot a squirrel slowly coming out of the oak tree, and   I watch from my window as this ring leader hits the ground. He heads straight for the deck.  His tail is twitching erratically. I am convinced that the ring leader, the one who I named Boris, is sending out an all-clear signal to the infantry.  Suddenly I see them. The brave first squirrel, who was running point position, is followed by two others. I watch from my window as the tree rats survey the situation. Satisfied that the dogs are sleeping unaware of the pending assault, the tree rats begin their ascent to the feeder. Watching from the window now with a cup of coffee firmly in my hand, I call for the reinforcements.   " Come quickly, "I yell to my husband. My hero appears at my side with our son's 35-year-old Red Rider BB rifle in hand.  Pump, pump my husband loads, opens the door aims, and fires. Uninjured but shaken the squirrels, retreat to plan their next move.  I am hurriedly convening a secret planning strategy meeting with the hounds.  Armed with dog treats, I begin to instruct the hounds on their roll in the battel. I explain the objective clearly.  The hounds' role would be to keep the enemy off of the deck. They would use their barking and chasing skills to accomplish their objective. The hounds respond with their most enthusiastic tail wags.  They grab for the treats and then wander off to take another nap.  I can only surmise that they are planning for the battle to come.
   
The hunger of the relentless squirrels does not appear to be ceasing.  The seed supply is dwindling rapidly.  I will need much more than the hounds and a Red Rider BB rifle to will this battle. A moment of good luck, the squirrels appear to have retreated from the deck to escape the heat of the afternoon sun.  The birds have returned and are taking advantage of the temporary break in the battle.  I watch from my chair under the umbrella.  I begin to think about bubble wrap! Can bubble wrap be the secret weapon that I need?  I wonder! 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Wrinkle in My Time Living with Hemianopsia

    March of 2009 my world was rocked.   I experienced a cryptogenic stroke which is a stroke caused by a blood clot from an unknown cause.  The clot was located in the right frontal occipital lobe of my brain. As a result, I suffer from Hemianopsia. What this means is that a portion of my visual field is missing in both my eyes.  Hemianopsia is classified by the part of your visual field that’s missing. These are the parts of my visual fields that are no longer there.   left homonymous: left half  superior: upper half  inferior: or lower half  In other words, I can only see in the right side visual field.  Another way to illustrate this is to ask you to imagine a dinner plate divided evenly in four quarters.  I can only see portions of the right side quarters of the plate. If we run into each other either at the church or on the street please know, it is very hard for me to recognize anyone.  I only...
2 comments
Read more

Bubble wrap

This morning I watched the squirrel named Boris as he planned his assault on the bubble-wrapped post on which the bird feeder hung. Boris scrambled onto the deck, hopped on the chair that was closest to the railing,  From that vantage point he made the leap to the deck rail. I watched in awe of Boris as he surveyed his surroundings.  Sitting 3 or 4 inches from the bubble wrap on the deck rail he just sat and stared at the newest weapon that had been deployed the previous day. To my surprise, Boris took two steps toward the bubble wrap, stopped, and then ran off.  I could not believe my eyes was the bubble wrap the secret weapon that I had been seeking? For the balance of this day, there was not a squirrel in sight. The birds were feasting at their leisure with the absence of Boris and his gang.  Unfortunately, things were about to change. Boris returned later in the day along with his first lieutenant. they both scrambled up the deck post and onto the chair. The lieu...
Post a Comment
Read more