The Talking Heads song has been playing over and over in my head since about 4 pm on Friday afternoon. Around that time, we were heading through Brunswick on the way to Cushing, when a Bald Eagle swooped past the car and headed up the river.
About 45 minutes later, I spotted this pair, sitting in a tree overlooking upper end of the St. George and RG was kind enough to pull a yooey on Rt. 1 and go back so that I could take a couple of shots. At that moment, I was desperately wishing for my Big Lens, but a little cropping and some editing and we can at least see that they're real Bald Eagles.
We arrived at the house just before nightfall. As we were unloading the car, I noticed that the toilet seat in the downstairs bathroom looked like someone with a muddy bottom had been sitting on it. Funny, because I'd thoroughly cleaned the entire cottage both bathrooms before we left on Sunday in anticipation of house guests this weekend. Then I noticed that someone with very dirty hands had been in the downstairs sink.
Then I noticed that Malcolm, the bobbing-headed moose wasn't on his shelf next to Larry the bobbing-headed lobster. Malcolm was on the floor next to a pile of scat. UT OH. We had a visitor...mouse, raccoon, wayward lobsterman, squirrel, something else?
There was scat on the couch, on the rocking chair by the sliding doors and the nice LLBean comforter that I'd splurged on for the guest room looked like someone had cleaned off on in after a mud-wrestling match. Very strange because everything is snow covered and frozen. There's no mud or dirt to be seen for hundreds of miles, at least none that I can think of. Even the clam flats are frozen solidly over.
Uncle Dick finally spotted a very large gray squirrel behind the chair in the living room. Aunt Patty and I did what any wise woman would do--we went and stood in the driveway while the guys got the critter outta there. I wish I'd had the presence of mind to grab the camera, but I was a little too freaked and besides, the next time we saw that guy he was sprinting off the deck, down the hill, heading toward the river. He didn't even pause to climb a tree.
For all we know, he might have decided to swim over to South Thomaston.
We stripped the beds, sent the guys to the store for Lysol and disinfectant. We swept, washed and sanitized and marveled at the lack of damage done. He must not have been in the house long, as nothing was gnawed and nothing was really damaged (the bed spread has two small holes, easily repaired). We were very lucky. It could have been much worse.
On Sunday, we spotted the really large red fox who frequents the area--not once but twice. He's almost the size of a coyote and very healthy looking--he's definitely not lacking any food source this winter.
We arrived home this morning to discover that the ice chopping dudes who were to clear the ice dams on Saturday did not, in fact, do that. Ice chopping dude arrived around 11 this morning and thankfully, we've had no more water damage than what had happened on Friday morning. Top that off with a Santonio
Holmes' Super Bowl MVP Award and some good company for the Super Bowl and it was a fine weekend.
UPDATE: Last night, local news reported on the health of the Bald Eagle population in Maine (more than 450 nesting pairs and eagles living in every county in the state). Video of the report
is here. And of course, there's the
Bald Eagle cam, where you can watch the eagles' nest.
Sorry about your nature encounter inside the house. At least you can say you've thoroughly cleaned the cottage, and not just your bathrooms!
Posted by: margaret | February 03, 2009 at 01:03 PM