What Do You Think?

So, what do you think they are–those mysterious drones that are appearing in swarms over many of our northeastern states? Isn’t it strange that no one knows what their purpose is or where they came from? It seems odd to me that if anyone does know, they aren’t saying.

That’s just one of the puzzling things on this cloudy, drizzly, chilly December morning. Another puzzling thing is the antics of the squirrels that inhabit my yard. In past years, each winter when I put out seeds for the wintertime birds, squirrels swarmed the feeders, robbing the birds of any food. If they would only share–but, no! They sat at the feeders, eating happily until the seeds were gone while the birds hovered near-by, waiting to see if anything was left. This year, however, is happily different. A dear friend gave me a squirrel-proof feeder and it has proven to live up to its name–until lately. The wily squirrels have discovered if they don’t put a foot on the footrest that closes the opening to the seeds, but just lean in and grab a seed with their mouths, they can eat seeds from the feeder.

So, my next tactic was to grease the shepherd’s hook that the feeder hangs from. I liberally applied Crisco. This works! And, it affords me a sort of diabolical amusement to see the cunning rodent jump onto the pole and slide back down to the ground before he nears the feeder. I’m not trying to starve the squirrels. They have acorns in abundance all over the ground, plus seeds from plants and weeds, plus whatever it is they find under the bark of trees. But, my sympathy is with the birds who truly do find it hard to have enough seeds to last through a cold winter.

So, those are my thoughts this morning–ranging from the mystery in the sky to the mystery of birds and squirrels. And now, while the Christmas lights are glowing and the fireplace is crackling, I’ll move onto another mystery–writing my own.

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