Stand-Off

This morning I noticed the little bird feeder that was suctioned onto the kitchroom window was gone. I stepped out onto the balcony to look down and see where it had gone.

There it was underneath the window of the first floor apartment, its birdseed contents spilled out. Next to it, munching away, was the prime suspect: a big, fat squirrel.

Yet I think the squirrel will be acquitted of the crime, because I don't how that fat thing could've found a way to crawl onto the window screen next to the feeder, and then pull the feeder down. The only thing that made sense was that had his fat squirrel rear-end tried to sit on the feeder, it definitely would've come down. But, there are no tree branches near the window or anything, so I don't have any clear design of fatty's possible birdseed heist. Plus, fatty's fatness would've busted the screen out of its track. Okay, that wouldn't all happen because of the squirrel's girth -- the fact that our screens our old and very loose would've contributed.

So I couldn't pin it on him. I continued watching him dine.

He looked up and saw me staring at him, but did nothing except continue his buffet. I clapped my hands. He jumped and scurried about ten feet away, but then stopped and watched me. It was a stare-down. It's like fatty knew that my pajama-clad self wouldn't be coming down the front stairs and around the back to catch him. He was right.

But we continued the stare-down. He would inch closer to the birdseed and then look up. Scoot closer, look up. Scoot more, look up.

So I let Fatty win. I'd go get the birdfeeder later.

Let him enjoy the birdseed, I thought, At least some creature was enjoying the food. I hadn't seen any birds there yet.

And in exchange, maybe sometime in the future I'll get some joy out of watching fatty get his fat butt up into a tree.