Raccoon Wars Return

The raccoon wars are back in full swing. You can tell by the circles under my eyes and the drag in my step by the end of the day. Last night was …. well let me give you an overview of what is going on.

It began around 1:30 when Charlie my sheepdog turned into a snarling, barking bristling 120 pound maniac and launched herself off the end of my bed at the open window. That could only mean one thing; the raccoons were back for the 4th night in a row.

I have a large garbage can on the deck that holds 50 pounds of dog food. The raccoons have learned to unsnap the lid. So I tied the top shut and stacked a shovel and a rake on top so I would know if clever little raccoons tried to get in. I really don’t know why I bothered since Charlie immediately lets me know if they are within a half mile of the house.

It was hot and the window was open, so I had a very clear view of the raccoon trying to dislodge the tools. He also had a very clear view of me as he immediately stood up on his hind legs spread his little furry arms and hissed at me. I yelled at him but he only moved two steps away and hissed again. So I grabbed my broom, turned on all the outside lights and ran out on the deck and took a swing at him. He ran to the end of the deck and I ran after him wildly swinging the broom and yelling at him. He finally climbed the tree just out of my reach and sat there and hissed at me. I smacked the tree a couple of times with the broom thinking I could scare him off, but he wasn’t budging.

Meanwhile, Charlie continued to bark, snarl and lung at the window while out of breath, I leaned on the broom, tried to hush the dog and glared at the still present raccoon. Suddenly I had this picture of what the neighbors were seeing at this point. Me, running around the deck in my night gown, at 2:00 in the morning, with all the yard lights on, yelling and swinging a broom. (I have a feeling that the neighbors all think I get a little weirder by the day) I felt the laughter begin to bubble up and I just stood there at the foot of the tree and laughed and laughed. That was more than the raccoon could handle and he finally scampered off.

I turned off the lights, put the broom away, told Charlie she was a big hairy goober and headed to bed still chuckling.

“A cheerful heart is good medicine” Proverbs 17:22

It is a good thing that laughter is good for the soul, I just hope it will balance the lack of sleep.

Just Connie