SQUIRREL!!!

When Michael and Jessica left today, I went into the guest bedroom to strip the sheets off the bed.  Michael walked in behind me to put something away, and that's when we discovered it.  We had a dead squirrel in the planter around the tree in our front yard.

Michael and Jessica had the blinds open when they were here, so I was surprised that they hadn't said anything about it.  It seemed to be glaringly obvious when you walked into the room, so I didn't know how they had missed it.

Michael and I talked about it for a minute.  Then, as I continued to stare at him through the window, Michael went to get a trash bag and gloves to dispose of it.  While Michael was in the back of the house, I saw the little guy's right paw twitch a little bit.  I yelled at Michael that he was either not dead or had just died, and he was still having muscle twitches.  I knew that would freak Michael out if he were trying to pick him up, so I told him he'd probably want to wait a little while before going out there.

Then, all of a sudden (mind you, I've been staring at him for about five minutes), he turns his head a little, lifts it up, and starts sniffing at the air.  All this just before he does a little roll and sits up to stare back at me!

He wasn't dead after all...just taking a little rest in this heat.  Crazy squirrel.  He continued to just lay on the ground until we got pretty close to him outside.

Then he took his self-defense stance and scampered to safety.

He looked so comfy in his little spot that I figure we're likely to see him again.  He let us get pretty close before moving, and I just kept thinking about how funny it would be if Michael had gone out there to pick him up and he jumped up just as Michael got close.  I keep thinking about the squirrel scene from Christmas Vacation, and it makes me laugh.