Where There's a Will...

...there's a way. Imagine my surprise this morning when I looked out my window and saw this scene. We don't have many squirrels around our house because the cat usually keeps them at bay. However, I looked out to check on my birds when the squirrel hanging upside down caught my eye. I did a double take, at first thinking it might be dead, having gotten caught on the suet cage. Then he just curled himself up and grabbed some seed, only to hang again to eat it, very unconcerned about the birds or me watching him. Knocking on the window did not dislodge him. Eventually, I went outside to see what he would do if I approached. I was curious to see how he would get down from this precarious position, as the pole is pretty thin. He did, indeed, scamper down the pole and make his getaway.

This brings to mind a story about my mom and squirrels. She, too, fed the birds, and she had a lovely flower garden. However, the squirrels would get in the garden and eat all the flower bulbs. They also bothered the birds. She would get so frustrated with those squirrels. It was almost comic how it bothered her. One time, she got serious. My dad got a catch-'em-alive cage, and they caught a squirrel. My parents put the cage in the back of their van and headed to the park to set it free in a more appropriate location. My parents lived about 10 minutes away from the park, so they were confident they were doing a good thing for the squirrel as well as for Mom. The caged animal squawked and squeaked away on the way over to the park. Shortly before they got there, the noise from the back of the van stopped abruptly. My dad looked around and saw the poor dead squirrel hanging from the side of the cage, where it had strangled itself in its fury. My mother was horrified by what had happened, as they never expected this outcome to her humane plan. She decided from that time on to live and let live and quit planting bulbs in her garden to feed the squirrels.

Meanwhile, I'll not bother our squirrel. I don't imagine he'll hang around long as soon as he sees our cat. If he does, he will end up on our back porch, but not the way we'd like to see him. I hope he makes his escape before Spot catches him. So far, for him (and me) life is good...