Don’t even try talking to me before I’ve sucked down a couple of cups of coffee. Coffee must be sucked down while I’m out on the front porch, with a cheap cigar.
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Every morning when I step out onto my porch, the squirrels come running. Sometimes it will be just one, other days up to a half dozen. Three of them have got used to taking peanuts directly out of my hand with one in particular being extremely brave about the whole thing. He’ll run up to me, touch my foot and get up on his haunches till I head for where the peanuts are kept. They all know where that is and will continue to bug me till I go get them.
Today the squirrels were running a little late. Everything was covered in ice and snow from the great storm that was blown way out of proportion by the news media. Neither ice nor snow amounted to much, but I would imagine hurrying along branches covered in a thin layer of ice is not a smart thing for a squirrel to do.
Through the trees I could see a bald eagle fly down the river heading in the direction of the dam. A few minutes later a couple of juvenile eagles drifted at tree top level over my head. They seem to be doing this more often and I can’t figure out why. My hopes are that they’ve given up on fish and are coming to get some of the worthless neighborhood dogs.
We used to have deer and turkey that wandered through the neighborhood on a regular basis, but we now have a couple of new neighbors living in the houses right next to the ravine and they have a need it seems to leave their dogs out all the time. Haven’t seen a deer or turkey since. I saw a video once of an eagle chasing a mountain goat down a mountain. It would be entertainment at it’s finest to see these eagles chasing down these dogs through the ravine.
Fresh rabbit tracks were in the snow and soft ice directly in front of the porch. A rare sight considering the amount of hawks and falcons in the neighborhood. The rabbit must have a pretty good hiding place it can get to in a hurry.
The other morning while out feeding my aggressive little squirrel, I thought I would try to get a picture of him. I had fed him a couple of peanuts by hand then tossed a few more on the ground. I got up close to the peanut pile with camera in hand and waited. He apparently didn’t see me toss down the peanuts, came right up to me and started to grab the camera. He knew I must have a peanut in my hand somewhere and he wasn’t going to let a camera stand in his way.
It’s hard to get a picture when a squirrel has a paw wrapped around your finger, it’s nose pressed against the lens and he’s trying to pull the camera out of your hand. I settled for something a little more subdued when he finally figured out where the peanuts were.
After a brief departure about a week ago, the ducks and geese are back down on the river by the hundreds. This morning, quacks and honks coming from the river are non-stop and the geese are forever circling over head in loose “V” formations looking for landing spots. Like the worthless neighborhood dogs, the waterfowl also never seem to settle down, only I find the noise of the ducks and geese much more tolerable.