WHAT WAS THAT??

It's morning and it's cool in the desert as I sit and wonder what's lurking just beyond the darkness.  I can hear coyotes off in the distance calling to each other.  Cooper apparently doesn't like what they are saying, because he's barking up a storm.  So much for quiet!!

My first moment of the daylight includes a peek out the door before letting Cooper out.  YIKES!!!  WHAT THE HECK?  SKUNKS?   

Just kidding ... I have a few weird stuffed animals, this little guy being one of them, along with a raccoon, an owl that talks and I think there's even a rat in there somewhere.  A stuffed one that is.  Like many little kids, I had a bed full of animals ... yes there was even a cow.  I donated most of them, but kept a box of the craziest ones.

While contemplating my being stuck with a quilt on the machine and not knowing how to fix it, I came up with the brilliant idea of having shrimp and grits for dinner.  If you want something really good, you go to the Chance house for preparation.  Chef Patty is much better at it than I.

I do think you probably can't ruin shrimp, bacon and garlic over cheesy grits, but I wasn't taking any chances, even if the ingredients were on sale.  Mighty tasty!!!

On a whim, I also picked up some lobster on sale.  I haven't had lobster since I drove to Maine with the Westerfields many moons ago.  I could eat this every single day.

Of course my preparation methods weren't the best, even if I did watch that video first.  I sliced my thumb nicely on the second one, designating it as mine.  Don't tell Dan, but I used his barbecue to cook them to perfection.  Ok, not really perfection ... even though the temperature said done, they needed some extra minutes in the microwave.  Boy did they taste GOOD!!  Note to self ... buy bigger ones next time.  Yes, I cleaned up the bbq and put it back like I found it, gas turned off.  He'll never know!!

In the meantime, I'm thrilled to announce the camera is again working, although disregard the dates.  Changing the batteries seems to make it revert back to 2019.  It sure made it difficult to find them on my computer this morning.  

Look at this BEAUTY!!  I was wondering if this was one of the critters hanging out here since I saw some territorial markings close to the water.  That means there is more than one hanging out.

Looky here ... there's a 10 second delay between videos so you don't see the actual "marking", not that you want to see a bobcat poop!!  But this guy left HIS mark also!!  There's no way to tell if it's a male or female.  If I hear yowling in the next few nights, you know, just like that neighborhood cat that screams all night long, I'll know for sure it's a pair.  I can't wait!!!

In the meantime, THIS critter was captured on video last night.  Wait for it ..... don't BLINK!!

One last critter of the day ... Patty's pet spider.  This is a western spotted orb weaver.  No, I didn't know that, I looked it up.  He has set up housekeeping in her tomato plants, with webs that hang down from the rooftop.  Too bad he doesn't eat up those tomato worms.

To finish off the day, we scrounged for a can of wasp spray to halt the making of a nest right by the back door of their garage.  Patty goes through that door several times a day, and although she said she could wait for Dan, I hit them with a quick blast.  I know how fast they can hit you with no provocation whatsoever ... and boy do they hurt!!

Another interesting day in the desert.  It's time to once again retrieve the critter cam.  I wonder what I'll find THIS time!