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So Joyce was in the garden and I was in the front of the house cleaning out a flowerbed. Joyce hollered at me and pointed in the direction of the witch tree. There was a possum heading east from the tree towards the shop. It was walking funny and I finally realized it had little possums on its back, the weight of which gave it an awkward, ungainly gait. We never see possums in the daytime so this was all very strange. It and its load of young ‘uns finally made it to the shop and then into the doghouse on the north side. We could hear it/them bumping around inside. Sometime later after I finished my flowerbed cleaning, I strolled past the chicken yard to where Joyce was watering tomatoes. I noticed there was a sort of low-level grumbling coming from the chickens. No squawking, just all of them clucking softly, something we’d never heard them do all together. We finally saw what was causing the commotion. There was a little possum which had apparently gone exploring and managed to get in the chicken yard. It roamed around the area, in and outside the chicken yard, long enough for the neighbors to come have a look at it. We think the possum family all moved on after dark. We haven’t seen any of the little ones after that afternoon, though we capture big ones on the crittercam.
After cleaning out the lily pool as best we could last weekend, I set up the solar-powered aerator the Wylie clan gave me for Christmas. The fish seem intrigued by the bubbles, especially the big one (yes, it survived jumping out of the tub). In addition to providing more oxygen for the fish, the aerator may help with keeping the pool in better condition. Biodegradable material will break down faster which will reduce the nutrients in the water, which in turn will reduce the algae/moss growth. At least that’s the theory. At the minimum it provides some entertainment for the fish.
Due to an ill-considered offer to help out at Wildcat Bluff as a volunteer, I’ve learned to despise mesquite. Based on my limited observation, the other volunteers are generally women of a certain age so when a man comes along, even one long in the tooth, out come the spurs and the quirt which are liberally applied. It seems there was a back way into the wildlife area, a road that had been graded some years ago but which the mesquite was encroaching on and growing up in. The director told me Sports Illustrated was planning a photo shoot for their swimsuit edition with Wildcat Bluff as a backdrop and they would need to use that road, and would I mind trimming back the mesquite. I spent more than 10 hours over three mornings giving the mesquite my best shot. The road is probably less than a mile long but there was plenty of mesquite hanging over on either side to scrape a passing pickup and growing up in the roadway to possibly puncture a tire. While I enjoyed the pleasant weather of the early mornings I worked at it and the interesting surroundings, I didn’t care much for the work. Too damned hard. And mesquite bites. I got it done, though, finishing up on the morning before the shoot. I haven’t heard how it went, but the crew should have had no problem getting their vehicles to the picturesque bluffs unscathed. I just hope none of the nubile young females got snake bit.