Rodent by Chipka
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Description
Squirrels belong to the family Sciuridae, which is to say that in many ways they share a lot in common with their co-rodent compatriots. They are elusive creatures: proof that they are intimately aware of their position on the Natural Food Chain. They are strangely intelligent, and I suspect that they have a greater stake in the ultimate meaning of the universe than we allow ourselves to think.
I can’t say that I know very much about squirrels: despite one of them making a home on the false-balcony ledge of an apartment I once lived in—the same apartment I shared with Corey, back in the days that we lived (together) in a place where the floors slanted (oh so vaguely) toward the load-bearing-center of the building. The apartment I lived in, with Corey, bore a stunning array of windows, centered with two French doors that opened—inwardly, of course—and allowed access to the wrought-iron railing installed to prevent the unwary from walking, crawling, or otherwise moving onto the balcony that wasn’t there. The mere ledge (one that served as a balcony for insects) was occupied, in one corner, by a pigeon’s ramshackle nest, but the pigeon moved out shortly before the squirrel-in-question moved in and made a mess of things.
This, I would say, is about as close to a squirrel as I’ve gotten (for more than a few minutes at a time.)
It has been years since I thought of that apartment on a street called Greenleaf; it has been years since I thought of the squirrel that lived on a balcony that wasn’t there. I no longer live in an apartment in which every floor in every room slants (very, very faintly) towards a central, architectural axis. It will probably be years before I think of it again. And a squirrel might be the trigger of that, especially since a squirrel seen earlier today (with Corey and his sister Kate) made me think of…well…the shameless adaptability of squirrels, and their habit of living on balconies that aren’t there. They move into abandoned pigeon nests. They rummage through garbage bins. They chatter and make odd, somewhat chirping-quacking-wheezing noises when they’re upset. They poop in the strangest, most awkward places, and tend to inspire both awe and vertigo when they’re observed scampering along telephone wires (so that they may find a conveniently-awkward place in which to…um…unburden their dainty, little intestines.)
Squirrels: as I see it they’re among the only mammals that can look cute, while perched on the lip of a rubbish bin before darting off to…
…well…never mind.
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This particular squirrel has an odd, magenta-tinged hue but this magenta-tinge is not entirely the product of my camera, though I suspect that some of the coloration is a camera artifact. The rodent in question actually did possess an odd, ruddy tinge, and I'm rather amused to see that my camera read it as something bordering on magenta.
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As always: thank you for viewing, reading, and commenting, and I hope you’re all having a great week/end.
Comments (13)
mbz2662
Wonderful little tale of a squirrel/squirrels. For some reason, I like squirrels. Of course, none of the squirrely little critters live near by. Ah, and squirrels always remind me of a particularly funny episode of "King of the Hill", where Dale takes off at a run, pushes off a wooden fence then the trunk of a tree and over the wooden fence, parkour style, while shouting "squirrel tactics". That cracked me up and still makes me smile :) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ov8sqa-ZJVs (in case you want to see what humors me). Nice "seein'" ya Chip
giulband
Great capture !
durleybeachbum
At any one moment this time of year, if I am outside, I can see a/some squirrel/s. Cute though they are, I wage a constant battle over the bird feeders, most of which are only allegedly 'squirrel proof'. I also at this season have to choose dog walks which have no woodland if I want to let Rosie and Fritz free: no woodland is quite tricky in my town, which from above is mainly trees. A good thing we have the beach! Magenta squirrels would be good fun.
Wolfenshire
Mother Nauture's cute rat. Yep, squirrel's are just rats with good P.R.
Faemike55
Very cool capture
jendellas
I see a good few squirrels, they run along my fence. Lovely capture. x
jeanebean
Rats in tuxedos! They knock the baby avocados off our tree and eat out of the bird feeders. We have given them their own place to eat, but they still like to play games with the avocados and mess up the bird feeders. They are fun to watch tho. We have 6 that have a highway over the power lines and through the trees and back again.
MrsRatbag
Ah, the elusive ruddy squirrel! Mine are all grey, and a rich thickly-furred gray this year at that. I suspect it's the bird food they shamelessly steal from my feeders, despite the loud and vociferous chasing that they get when my little dog sees them. They're quite bold, and wait until the last minute to dash up the tree or fence, as if to tell her they aren't scared of her and she isn't worthy of hurrying. I hope she never proves them wrong; I saw what she did to the one rat she managed to catch. Wonderful photo of this little city squirrel!
flavia49
very nice
NefariousDrO
I like how the squirrel struck a pose for you. Whoever developed the word "Squirrelly" understood at least one certain thing about squirrels: They're crazy. The kind of mad-crazy that sits in the tree and screams "I'll Cut You!!!" at everyone passing by. They also delight in tormenting domesticated animals. I don't fully understand squirrels, but I do appreciate their crazy.
auntietk
Back when I was still working, the dumpster was outside my window and across the parking lot. There was a squirrel in the neighborhood that REALLY wanted to get into that dumpster, and it ate a hole in the lid, which was always closed and generally locked. Any time of day, I could look out the window and was bound to see him coming or going through that little hole in the corner of the lid. Amazing creatures!
kgb224
Superb capture my friend. God bless.
KatesFriend
He/she does have an interesting mixing of hues in his fur and skin. I've never seen such a specimen here in Ontario. By the look of him he certainly considers himself particularly handsome. I really enjoyed your description of your old apartment. Every dwelling - no matter how mundane in origins - has its own character and your old place seems to be no different. There's probably a rich history to the floor slanting which your fine detailing makes me ponder. I wonder if this is just mundane settling of a pre-building code structure or a consequence of sometime more curious like Chicago's fabled stilts - I call them stilts anyways. Chicago seems to have a odd bet with nature as to who can be more clever. Okay now I'm starting to ramble again.