Today's no walk report: 073022

 I had every intention of going for a walk this morning. It was shortly before 8 AM. All I needed to do was grab my camera strap, stick my phone in my pocket and I was out the door. While getting the strap in hand I looked out my office windows. There's an old chaise lounge next to the west fence in the backyard and under that there's a large sort of faux crystal bowl that provides water for outdoor kitties and... whatever else happens along. This is what I saw lapping away at the bowl.

By the time I got out to take these photos she was done with the water and was heading toward me on the patio, presumably smelling Stan's liver and chicken pate cat food. I didn't want to encourage that so I moved closer while talking to mamma opossum. Opossums are nocturnal but it's not unusual to see them in the morning (although 7:56 is stretching it). Being nocturnal their vision is better geared for low light, their pupils are dilated so their vision is terrible in daylight. However, she heard me just fine and turned away to go under the north fence. She used a spot I refer to as Stan's catcave. I wasn't trying to scare her away, I merely wanted to redirect her. I went back to the patio, picked up cat food and brought that inside.

Meanwhile, I checked my camera battery after these pictures were taken and realized it was real low. I decided I'd give it 15 minutes on the charger and then leave for my walk. Actually, that means driving to the nearby college campus where my walks generally take place. It's only about a mile and a quarter to the campus parking lot but guess what I forgot to do before I left? That's right, no battery. Having been up since 3:45 AM and spending much of my morning worrying about Stan who's been AWOL for a couple of days I decided I had enough and called it quits. I think I better wait till tomorrow. Sunday is a better day anyway. From the looks of the parking lot on the campus it appeared some summer session classes were taking place and I'm not too keen on mingling near college students. 

Here's some general information regarding opossums (Didelphis virginianus) from the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. Basically, while they are mostly seen as a beneficial animal, it's not a good idea to entertain them with food or permit them to roam where you have pets.