A Cacophony of Thuds

It started with a squirrel.



Poor thing thought it would be a good idea to check out the bird feeder hanging from the gutter. I'm not exactly sure what went wrong but it seems he mistook himself for a gecko and thought that he could just crawl down the slippery plastic to the sunflowery goodness.

As he tumbled earthward, I was hoping that squirrels were like cats and therefore he would turn in midair and land gracefully and unharmed. Then there was a thud.

I looked down out of the window to see a dazed but whole squirrel squatting on the ground. We made eye-contact but I tried not to stare. He seemed a little embarrassed by the whole thing. I watched until he started to nose nonchalantly for seeds on the ground as if he hadn't just cheated death.

The other squirrel that had been feeding down below didn't take the episode so calmly. Apparently a squirrel falling from the sky is a bit unsettling and worthy of comment. Squirrel number 2 ran to the tree and started flipping his tail and barking.

He might need some therapy.



The second loud thud was our gazebo bird feeder. It's actually the third feeder to take a dive from the second story but the only one that hasn't lived to feed again. It split into three unsalvageable pieces upon hitting the ground and disgorged a tiny feast for the squirrels.



The rest of the thuds were from the work crew that showed up and started pounding on the wall for some unknowable reason.

Needless to say they scared away the birds.