The Elephants are Coming!

The long-awaited leaf-vacuuming trucks have finally arrived in our neighborhood, three weeks later than promised, after our 4-foot high leaf embankment has been greatly diminished to mere mound.  I captured the leaf-cleaning operation in action; the pair of trucks look uncannily like elephants on parade, slowly going up and down the block and sucking up vegetation to eat along the way.  That's a thought!  Maybe the City of Bloomington should consider importing elephants to help removing yard waste.  Nah, maybe not; wild animals and the suburban environment are not a good fit, the free-roaming deer in town may be an exception.

I saw a couple of deer casually lounging against the hedge in our back yard this morning; though alert to potential danger, they are not exactly afraid of people.  Unfortunately, humans should be the least of their concern in a suburban environment; instead, like the other free-ranging city animals, squirrels, possums, armadillos, etc. avoid becoming roadkill should be their number one priority.  I was watching a group of deer, en famille, grazing on the front lawn of a house by the High Street the other day coming back from a walk.  High street is one of the main north-south corridors linking the University to neighborhoods south of campus, of which ours is one.  It is a busy, narrow, 2-lane road, with a narrow strip of sidewalk on one side.  Cars were zipping by me while I was leaning against the fence watching the deer.  I was very still trying not to startle them but in the back of my mind I could sense danger brewing in the air.  All of a sudden one of the deer darted across the street and before I could turn around I heard a big thud and an SUV coming to a screeching halt.  I shouted "NO" and for a few seconds locked eyes with one of the remaining deer, who seemed to have frozen with her head up.  I don't know whether any of you has ever looked a deer in the eye; their eyes are big and very expressive.  Fear and bewilderment filled her gaze, while mine was more accusatory - how could you let it happen, why didn't you stop him?  I don't know if street smarts can be taught or learned by the wild animals, but surely only those who possess it can survive in the suburban wilderness.  I don't know what happened to the injured deer; he managed to dart across the street and disappeared behind the woods around the neighborhood on the other side.  According to an acquaintance who had a close encounter with a deer on his way to work one time, the minimum cost for car repair was about $2,500 for a deer collision.