Once Again

It is time to move.

My neighbor called yesterday.  She was all upset because her daughter who was visiting was outside the other night, cleaning up something in the yard, saw a possum in my yard.  It was night.  As far as I’m concerned it’s part of life.

Doesn’t matter that we live in the city.  Possums adapt and can survive just about anywhere.

Apparently I wasn’t upset enough.  My non-response of oh well, I’m sure it doesn’t actually live here and was just passing through didn’t satisfy them.  Today her daughter called.  She was bordering on hysteria as she begged my permission to try and have the muskrat trapped.  Muskrat?  How did we go from possum to muskrat?

She continued, telling me that when they are friendly like that, they are sick and very dangerous.  Friendly?  When I spoke with her mom the creature ran and hide from them.  Again, it was night.  Nocturnal creatures roam, looking for food.  It ran from them so I’m still not overly concerned.

She proceeded to blame my strawberries for drawing it.  Yeah, okay, it could very easily have stopped for a snack but so does the skunk that wanders down the alley every night in the wee hours of the morning.  Don’t hear them wanting to trap that and skunks are just as capable of carrying rabies as any other wild critter.

Now this woman is calling the game warden to come trap it.  Trap it from where?  I’ve lived here 25 years and this is the only sighting of such a thing in my yard.  I’m certain it doesn’t live there. I poke through it often enough that I would have noticed.  Not to mention that there is no suitable shelter that would be adequate for it.  Come to think of it my neighbor’s falling down garage is much more likely a residence for creatures of that nature than my yard.  Perhaps they should check there first.

I did mention that although I am willing to allow someone to come set a trap I will not be happy if they destroy my flowers and that they shouldn’t be surprised if they catch every cat in the neighborhood instead.  Or maybe, if they’re really lucky, they’ll get the skunk.

By the way, the possum in the pic worries me much more than the one I've never seen in my yard.  It has visited the courtyard where I work twice in five years.  Yes, it's in the city too.  (And yes, in case you can't tell I'm being sarcastic by saying it worries me.)