Nothing says "home" like a squirrel.

[weaselmom]

Today I let a squirrel in for a little visit. He was an exceptionally handsome squirrel, a squirrel with a marvelous tail. He had been scampering around on the back porch and making a noise that sounded like a very small crow cawing. I opened the screen door and stood back. He very hesitantly tiptoed in, traveling about three feet and stopping to nose at my toe. I think his nerve failed him, because he skittered out the door again. I left it open, just in case, and a few minutes later he came back. This time he wandered quite far, about a dozen feet from the door, into the kitchen and living room. S was not at all happy about having a squirrel in the house, but he loves me enough that he just sighed and barricaded himself in the computer room. For the second and final time, the squirrel fled out the back door, after depositing a dime-sized puddle of piddle--a small price to pay for enjoying this enchanting little visitor. I tossed a handful of cashews off the porch in the hopes that the whole experience would be a pleasant memory for him. Who is to say squirrels don't have memories?

We did other things this weekend besides enticing squirrels. On Saturday S and I went to the fair (thus missing out on an opportunity to go to Dilettante with the PMBs. Rats.). This year's gimmick was tiny, bright lights that could be worn almost anywhere thanks to a powerful magnet. People wore them as earrings, mouth studs, and nipple blinkers. Everywhere you looked, you saw blinding flashes of red, green, blue, and white. We did not buy a set because, as you all know, I am the very embodiment of dignity and refinement. The food gimmick was deep-fried Twinkies, and we gave those a pass too. I know somebody, and his wife knows exactly who I mean, who would have eaten one for sure, and possibly two or three just to make certain. Heck, he might even have bought a blinking light. Sadly, my main reason for going hadn't yet arrived. For the last few years the fair has had an exhibit of "animals from around the world" ranging from yaks and zebras all the way to smaller animals such as genets and coatimundis. It turned out that this exhibit doesn't arrive until the 18th, and we won't have time to go again. And after the nightmare of trying to get out of the main parking lot at the end of the day, I don't want to go again. The gridlock was so bad that in the timespan of over an hour, we moved approximately one car length. Finally S had had just about enough of this. He told me to hold on, and we threw it in reverse and busted out of the lot by going over a sidewalk and off the curb. Illegal? Yes. But if we hadn't done this, we would still be sitting there. S is the guy you want to have at your side when you're in a desperate time calling for desperate measures.

Comments

blinky lights you can wear?!

[cupcake-goth.livejournal.com]

ooooh, I want some. To put in my hair.

blink blink blink

Yay for squirrels in the house! I've never been able to entice one in, but that probably has something to do with the Giant Cat staring fixedly at them. Or the Slightly Smaller Brain Dead Cat throwing herself at the screen (and window and walls) whenever she sees something moving on the deck.

The Dilletante

[(Anonymous)]

The good news (for you) is that we didn't go. The D just isn't as much fun without company so we had some sugary stuff at home.

Which only leaves the question, when do you guys wanna meet us on the Hill?

Peev

Re: The Dilletante

[weaselmom.livejournal.com]

Say, here's a thought. S is going to be able to play SG paintball after all, so maybe after you boys finish playing and get de-stinked, you'd like to go replenish your critical ephemere sauce reserves? Unless you've got other plans, o' course.

S is really looking forward to paintballing with you (or against you, depending on how the teams look).

Re: The Dilletante

[(Anonymous)]

uuuuh. I'll get back to you on that one.

I think it is very likely that I'll be exhausted and will want nothing more than to veg on the couch. We'll see.

Peev

Re: blinky lights you can wear?!

[weaselmom.livejournal.com]

The problem with getting blinky lights to put in your hair is that you'd have to (a) go to Puyallup, and I'm sure you guys don't even know where it is; (b) pay $19 to get in and $5 or $6 for parking; and (c) schlep around the fairgrounds until you found the right vendor. You would be surrounded by people who were Doin' The Puyallup. The experience might prove fatal, especially for Peev. I wonder if you can buy the blinkies online? I agree that a swarm of them in your hair would look fab...

[kijjohnson.livejournal.com]

Squirrels rule. Rice Lake is overrun with them, many young and stupid enough that I don't think I've gone more the 10 mph on my parents' street since I got here. On my way down to the bookstore, there's a tree with the remains of a dead branch about twenty feet up. I've taken to checking the little stick every time I pass, and every single time, there's been a squirrel there, sometimes making sounds exactly like a catbird (unless catbirds make a sound like squirrels: cause and effect are not always clear).

Deep-fried Twinkies must remain Our Little Secret.

Town Squirrel, Country Squirrel

[weaselmom.livejournal.com]

I remember one day at the dot-com when we had the front door open because of the heat. One of the Hill's big, sassy squirrels swaggered through the door, sauntered around the office for a while, and left through the back door when he'd seen enough. City squirrels have an entirely different attitude than small-town squirrels.

How about deep-fried Snickers bars? The fair had those, too.

Re: Town Squirrel, Country Squirrel

[kijjohnson.livejournal.com]

I don't think he reads any of our LJs, thank the gods.