Kowabunga

Living in the country is, to me, the best way to live, and, other than a long commute (and dealing with high gas prices for said commute), I have found very few disadvantages about living in a rural setting. Today, however, I found one.

The first thing I do every morning when I get up is take the doggers out for their morning walk, even if, as it was this morning, still dark. I had to get an early start as I had to give a talk up in Lakeville. Generally, it is fairly peaceful, rarely interrupted by anything other than an occasional neighbor driving by with a honk and a wave, or a few minutes of chatting. Or the occasional deer that the girls would really love to chase, which is why I keep them on leashes.

This morning, still being dark out, we headed down the driveway towards the road, when Katya and Tasha caught wind of a critter and began to strain at their leashes. I spotted a dark lump at the end of my driveway that I figured was a raccoon, as they are fairly common, and are about the right size as what we were looking at. Raccoons can be dangerous, and carry rabies, so we stopped and watched yon critter to see if it would scoot across the road an into the surrounding cornfields.

Move it did, but not across the road, but positioning its main battery up the driveway in our direction, and allowing me to spot those white stripes down its back. Fortunately, it did not let loose a blast at us. Instead we gave ground and headed back to the house, and settled for an abbreviated walk. Skunks not only have that odiferous main battery, they also carry rabies, so two darned good reasons to leave it alone.

Ill have to make it up to the girls when I get home tonight. And maybe I should look into getting a varmint gun.