Springtime in Nashville
I've been watching the grass outside my apartment for the last couple of weeks and noticed it was growing a lot more in certain spots: around the trees, in front of the living room windows on either side of the duplex, by the front steps. Finally, I took a closer look and realized that the daffodils were starting to come up! They're still shoots at this point, but I can't believe that it's February 1, was in the 60s today, and flowers are getting ready to bloom here. Unreal. Pretty soon I'll have to buy myself a lawn chair and lather up in Crisco for a base tan!
<img src="http://static.zoovy.com/img/digmodern/W220/crisco_american_pie_celebration"></src>
I've been thinking more about going to see the Opry at the Ryman show in two weeks when Elvis Costello will be performing. Any takers? I'm sure I could get us tickets!
Today I saw two of the neighborhood vultures hanging out on top of the appliance store near my place. Totally creepy, but cool.
Last night when I came home from work about 9pm, I pulling into the driveway and was making the turn into the carport when I noticed a critter in the yard. I backed up so the headlights pointed in the right direction and viewed a very brave, or shocked, bunny rabbit. It was like one of those huge chocolate bunnies come to life! This morning, in its place was a robin. Now, I'm pretty sure robins stick to a diet of worms, bugs, berries and seeds, but it was a little eerie to see it sitting in the exact spot as the bunny.
A pope and a bunny were shitting in the woods...
Unfortunately, this morning about 4am the birds who live next to my house started their coffee clatch. I'm really draggin' today, but am looking forward to seeing <a href=http://www.csathemovie.com/home.html> this gem </a> tonight at 10pm! Would seeing that movie in Nashville constitute irony?
I called my parents to tell them about it, and after they finished listening to my story, they told me that they'd just enjoyed a delicious chicken dinner. At least they hadn't hit it with their lawnmower!
Today I called the county extension office to see if they needed to test the bird for West Nile Virus, since I live between a creek and a big rain bank (pond of standing water). Haven't heard back from them yet, but I'm not ready to face the bird again, so that's okay. Still unclear whether the neighborhood cat got it or something more sinister. Let's hope for the cat.
The weather was sweltering and it had recently rained, so the knee-high grass was damp and matted. I kept having to put the push-mower aside to rake up the matted-down grass and pluck out as many of the fallen apples as I could (many had already started rotting & some had nearly disintegrated). The density of apples grew as I neared the trees to the point where I was raking up piles of vinegar-scented mulch. Straight up the center of the garden was a stone pathway which revealed itself as I worked (it had been completely obscured by grass & mouldering apples), and it was there - toward the trees - that I started to find large black feathers.
Don's pie-baking neighbor had warned me that a fox and her cubs were making the rounds in the neighborhood, so I was already being careful not to disturb areas that looked as if they could have been used as a den until I had the chance to investigate further. The feathers confirmed that the fox had paid Don's lawn a visit, and I started silently hoping that she had carried the remnants away... But a few steps further along the pathway I found what can only be described as the dry husk of a crow - most of the feathers intact, skeleton intact, but no crow inside. Like a macabre Halloween costume for a sick-humored small bird. "Hey, Jerry, look at me - I'm a crow!"
As old Mozzer sang, I can smile about it now but at the time it was terrible.
There were tears, a bit of hyperventilation, many hand-washings, and later a long, long bath. You have my empathy, m'dear.
I'm voting cat.
Poor bun-bun. And poor pchippy!
Still, I can only imagine how unnerving that was.
No word back from the extension office yet; I may give them a call again this morning.