act naturally

living out in the country as we do, we are not provided with city-provided electricity. rather, we are members of a local electrical co-operative. as luck would have it, most of the board of directors are under investigation for stealing profits, but that is a story for a different day.

as members of a coo-op we receive a magazine every month called "texas co-operative monthly" or something equally creative. it is often filled with stories about small towns across the state, "cutesy" pictures of grandpa taking a nap with the dog, and articles concerning energy saving/ environmental ideas.

one of the more recent articles i enjoyed concerned creating "wild" areas on one's property. through landscaping flowering and nut-and-berry producing plants one would attract wildlife to the area. they can help keep down insects and some rodents. mostly the author simply lauded the pleasures of watching nature exist on one's own property.

jackson and i have done a little bit of work trying to create an environment friendly to the "wild." we have running water and other water receptacles around the yard. we've hung several bird feeders. squirrel feeders are about. we are in the process of finishing our first owl house. we have quite a few plants that naturally produce foods which will attract the critters.

our first hope was that ours would be an inviting home for birds. they are everywhere. i wish i cared enough to look in an ornithology book to discover all of the various species that frequent our feeders and baths, but for now i am quite content in watching and listening to them while i sit on my porch.

of course the squirrels and deer are incorrigible. after a few weeks of running around like an idiot with a bb-gun, i decided i looked like too much of a wanker and was going to lose the war anyway. i have made my peace with the fact that they will do as they please, and that fact will not be altered.

the coolest part of the whole project has been the arrival of the creatures i wasn't really expecting. there are rabbits about. i have seen an owl a couple of times. we really need to finish his house. we've acquired a foursome of guinea hens. i have no idea where they came from or where they go when the leave; but most mornings around 8, they are pecking around in the grass. we also have got 2 raccoons creeping up onto our porch every night after the sun goes down. they don't seem to bother frosty at all, but they are very interested in his cat food. i guess they are just too darn cute to chase off, so we put out a little food for them and feed frosty in the house now.

now, if i see or smell a skunk anywhere around all bets are off and we are getting rid of everything.