The War is On

This is war.  The raccoons have declared war on me.  I accept the challenge.  Yesterday when I got home, all that was left of my 7 beautiful, lush, bright red geraniums, were 7 pots full of green leaves and stems.  They were up on the picnic table, that is pushed back from the end of the deck, so the deer could not reach it.  We have a deck spanning the width of the house.  It runs across the front of the house, and we have a view of Puget Sound, and we spend lots of evenings out on the deck watching the birds and the water.  It is beautiful.  Its beauty was enhanced by the pots of flowers, including the bright red geraniums.  My ONE AND ONLY  tomato is now gone too.  Those dastardly bandits came up on MY FRONT PORCH and stole my lone tomato.  I am out for blood now.  We feed our leftover popcorn, and bread heels to those damn raccoons, plus they have 2 acres of forest to forage.  And they have the nerve to come up on my front porch and eat MY food and plants.  We don't ever feed them in the front of the house either.  Any food we give them, we take out back.  Our back yard is not very deep, and it borders on the edge of the woods, so we throw the food into the woods.  I am wondering how painful a death I can inflict on them.  I could torture them first.  Pour tons of popcorn and rice down their throats, followed by lots of water so their stomachs would explode.   Of course I will do nothing, but sit and stew and dream about the torture until I am done being mad. 

I do realize that I am on their territory.  It really is I who am infringing on their habitat, but dang it, my mouth was watering, waiting for that tomato.  I am really mad about this.

 I am now ruminating over some type of barrier that I can put across the front of the deck.  It has to be low, so it won't block the view.  It also has to be tough enough to discourage the raccoons from coming up on the deck.  I am thinking a short electric fence.  I will teach those little bandits.  I think that the practical answer will be to grow flowers they don't find tasty.  They didn't touch the petunias or the impatiens.  They too are beautiful flowers and I could live with a deck full of their bright colors and wandering vines, but right now I am busy plotting my revenge.

I went and stood next to my peas this morning.  It was one of those cool, clean crisp mornings we have in the northwest.  It rained a bit during the night and everything was alive and fresh and clean smelling.  For those of you who have never experienced it, the air and the ground have a distinct fragrance after rain.  It smells clean and crisp with the promise of a beautiful, fresh day to come.  Anyway....blah blah blah.....I was standing next to the peas and they are now as tall as I am!!!   When did that happen????   It made me feel a lot like I used to as my kids got taller...when did that happen?  What was I doing when these peas sprouted up and started developing flowers and pods.  I have been so distracted with all the company, that I saw them, but it didn't hit me how tall they are and that we will really have peas soon!!!  We really will have peas soon.  Imagine.

I have had two salads using some of the salad bowl lettuce from the garden.  I have never had lettuce straight from a garden.  I used to think lettuce didn't have any flavor.  Wrong again!  It has a sweet delicious flavor.  I have heard that arugula has a peppery flavor.  I think I may have to plant some.  This is going to be fun...getting familiar with the way food tastes straight out of the ground.  There is something very comforting and primal about growing your own food.  Not to mention the unbelievable taste that you can't get in the grocery store produce.  Enough musings...back to the day, and my revenge.

Until next time...good eating.

karen