Reasonably Educated Bumpkins

Living out on the flat alluvial plains of the north valley -- farm country -- we get our share of wildlife. Opossums, skunks, rabbits and squirrels represent the Cute 'n' Fuzzies; hawks, owls, and the occasional golden eagle represent the birds of prey; egrets, great blue herons, ducks, pheasants, quail, doves, wild turkeys, and even a tired Canada goose or two, make up the Meals On Wings contingent. Foxes and coyotes keep the Cute 'n' Fuzzy population in check, and buzzards are there to clean up after everybody.

Animals we don't see very often, surprisingly, are deer. We live pretty close to a creek, and there are lots of deer there, but they usually stay near the water and close to thickets where they're safe. Half a mile is just too far to go for big risk and small gain.

Until recently. Four times this week I have seen a doe and two half-grown fawns -- never on our property, but in one of the adjacent fields. Twice they have run out in front of my car in the twilight. Deer are lovely, but not known for their superior intellect.

I'm seriously thinking about knocking on doors on my street to warn the neighbors of this new incursion, because the deer look like they're here to stay for a while, and nobody needs a head-on collision with a deer. Leastwise, the deer. I'm willing to risk being the neighborhood busybody for the sake of the deer, and because I, too, am not known for my superior intellect.

That will bring us back to DOE.