Misadventures of the Monster Librarian

Agh! Been so busy lately! Feel like I am in this constant, awkward dance which is work, water plants/pull a few weeds, work, home, bed, repeat, trying to fit in time to also hang with friends. I have been working my normal schedule then also working 15 extra hours a week at the library. I haven't had a full day off in over three weeks and I am starting to feel that irritable tug. I keep deep breathing and reminding myself that I am off for a long weekend over Memorial Day weekend when best friend K and her boyfriend Joe visit! Until then, the extra time at the library has been great, since they've begun training me in the local history department, and am learning tons of cool researching options for genealogy. This week marks 3 months since the tree fell on my cabin and HUZZAH the construction men finished this past Friday! Such good news to come home to after work! The time definitely gave me two things: A. many, many, many reminders reminders of the bonds of friendship; fr...

You might remember the porcupines of last summer --well, it seems like it's raining porcupines these days because I've been seeing them all over the place. This little fella was running alongside my car and then hopped into a meadow and ran for it when I tried to snap a photo. Enjoy!

It's funny how the daily rituals of the animals around the Farm can occassioanlly seem less than thrilling as we grow accustomed to sharing our little world with them. Being back in Michigan this past weekend made me very aware of this fact, as the only animals I saw were family pets; gas guzzling beasts on the southeastern Michigan highways, growling and lurching all around me; and the occasional robins, indicators of spring in the midwest. I told my family and friends stories about what we'd encountered lately around the Farm and they oohed and aahed, intrigued. So, I thought I would mention the latest and greatest animal sightings (my own and others) worth noting. Moose : A few weeks back an acquaintance mentioned his having seen a moose. It was near dusk and the acquaintance was hiking one of the many Farm trails. I am assuming it was this same moose which was also reported to have been seen not far from this trail a few days later. Hearing of these si...

Some days I feel like we are living National Geographic or Animal Planet (compared to my old life in the city). Today TSO and I went for a hike on one of the Farm's many trails, in search of the perfect Christmas tree. What we found were many Charlie Brown looking species of evergreens and lots of animal prints; paw prints from dogs and racoons, deer tracks, people prints. We even saw 6 white tail deer majestically bound away from us as we hiked. We were marching in a swooping fashion that would pop us out by the gravel pit, where we had found a beautiful tree in a past year, when we heard cries from coyotes. My knee jerk thought processes were as such: 1. Coyotes? but it's not even dark out yet. 2. Holy crap! Coyotes! and I am in the woods. I bravely turned to TSO and said, "we gotta go back." I am not sure when I became such a wimp, but I envisioned a very fat coyote picking his teeth with one of my bones after a very filling meal. TSO was very supportive of...

HOLY CATS! I love that there are so many visable signs of nature where I live! Cool animals sighting over the past couple of weeks since last I wrote, though none of them were as cool, or as close to me as the bear : TSO , S and I were driving into town, heading towards the highway, when what should run in front of my car? A BOBCAT! I was surprised at how small it was--about the size of a small dog. But still very cool! Some facts I gathered here : Type: Mammal Diet: Carnivore Average lifespan in the wild: 10 to 12 years Size: Head and body, 26 to 41 in (66 to 104 cm); Tail, 4 to 7 in (10 to 18 cm) Weight: 11 to 30 lbs (5 to 14 kg) Did you know? The bobcat is the most abundant wildcat in the U.S. and has the greatest range of all native North American cats. I had just turned onto the Farm's road from the state highway the other day when what should I see running across one of our fields? A RED FOX, not to be confused with Redd Foxx --because that would be weird! Some facts I gathe...

"The American black bear is the smallest of the three bears species found in North America, and are found only in North America. Black bears have short, non-retractable claws that give them an excellent tree-climbing ability... Height: 2-3 feet at shoulders Length: 4-7 feet from nose to tip of tail Weight: Males weigh an average of 150-300 lbs. Have been known to weigh from 500-600 lbs.; females are smaller Lifespan: Can live 20-25 years in the wild, although there is increased mortality around 10 years of age..." Wanted some information about the American black bear, so I did some reading at the Defenders of Wildlife page. For more info, click here . Why, you ask, did I do reading on the American black bear? Well, dear readers, the Farm has a returning visitor who likes to climb into our dumpster and pull bags of garbage out and into the woods. Yes, it is a black bear. The bear has been spotted by various farmers and after repeatedly hearing about these sightings, I was ...