What am I doing these
wintery days?
Feeding the squirrels…
mostly.
Our furry little black or
brown friends scurry up to our window every morning. They stand in the cold, white
snow with little front paws clasped to their chest- like the church lady.
Patiently and hopefully,
they wait until I go to the pantry to grab the big bag of Planter’s Peanuts- in
the shells.
I open a window where I’ve
taken out the summer screen and lob a few handfuls of peanuts towards the bird
feeder- also outside the window. These days our feathered friends seem few and
far between but our squirrel friends are there most of the day. The squirrels
grab a couple of nuts and scurry back to one of the huge maples trees a few
feet away. Some days a chipmunk or two- living under the north side of the house,
drop by to grab a nut or two. I usually throw non-salted peanuts in their
direction- out of the shells of course.
It’s kind of fun watching
them run about but I can’t figure out how they stay warm on bone-chilling
January nights.
Body fat, I guess.
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| Blackie in Summer |
Like the birds they need
to eat on cold days to keep warm, so I help them along by feeding them several
times a day. When I’m not there shelling out from my window, they help
themselves to the bird feeders.
From time to time a
quartet of doves comes by to eat seeds from the screened feeder bolted to the top
of the feeding station pole but few other birds. Chickadees come occasionally as
well but I think all the squirrel action shoos the birds away for the most
part.
I can’t stop feeding the
squirrels now.
They look for their winter
feedings to survive, so I need to keep it up.
It’s not such a big deal.
Seven dollars and forty-nine
cents buys a big bag of peanuts up at Wally World and that’s good for a week-
maybe two. We do get a lot of pleasure watching the squirrels frolic. Our cats-
Dickens and Doyle, do too. They like to lie across the back of the leather
chair at the window watching the squirrels romp about. It gives them something
to do on cloudy, cold afternoons. Keeps their puddy minds active.
Gives my husband and me
something to watch too keeping a couple of old pharts entertained!
We’ve even noticed
different personalities within our squirrel family. Some are shier than others.
Then there’s the big black fellah- Blackie, who can climb onto a bird feeder no
matter how high we hang it.
He’s quite the acrobat.
So, that’s how we spend
some of our winter time.
Watching the wildlife,
while wishing for the hot days of summer and all for under 8 bucks a bag.
