The Friday Five for October 14, 2017

[missy42]

1. When was the last time that you enjoyed a camp fire? When I was camping with my family this last August. Love me some s'mores and a nice, warm fire!
   
   
2. What is your favorite fall tradition? Not sure I have a favourite. I like the festiveness of Halloween and all the wonderful food and family and friends on Thanksgiving. And of course, all the

Comments

[spikesgirl58]

Love, love, love your answers! There's nothing quite like a nice campfire, is there?

I maintain that if you have pets, you have wee beasties that go bump. :D

[missy42]

Aw, thanks! I'm a Sagittarius, which is a fire sign, so I've always loved a good campfire! So mesmerizing!

Hahaha! True! My dog wasn't bad, really, but I do have critters that hang out in the trees outside my windows. I hear rustling and large plunks out there all the time!

♥

[spikesgirl58]

I'm a Leo, same thing. One of the best parts about getting to this time of the year are fires in the fire place.

We have a large tree outside the upstairs study window where we get possums, raccoons and the occasional rat. When the cats start growling, I make myself scarce!

[missy42]

I live in Southern California and we only moved into a home with a fireplace a few years ago, so for a long time camping was the only time I did get a fire. Even then, our first or second year in this place it was too warm to light a fire on the holidays!

Oh yeah! We get possums all the time! Or maybe it's just one that we keep running into, I'm not sure. One night, it was about 4 am and I heard a great commotion and went outside to check and there was this great, dirty brown possum hanging from the gutter not three feet from my head trying to scramble back up onto the roof! Freaked me out! We have another possum that really loved our persimmon tree. That critter was one of the few things my dog would bark at! I'd usually try to bring her inside, though, because I didn't want her to get hurt if there was a fight.

♥

[spikesgirl58]

We live in the Central Valley, so I know what you are talking about. Thankfully we do cool down, but then we get an inversion and can't burn because of the pollution. Sigh...

Same here. I worry about our outside feral cats and the wild critters, especially the skunks. Possums put up a good show, but they are usually pretty harmless, contrary to their appearance (or so I'm told. I'm still avoiding them).

[missy42]

Aw, that sucks!

With those claws of theirs, opposable thumbs and their sharp little teeth, I believe possums would defend themselves if needed, so I'd rather not risk it. They're not native to California. They were most likely brought here by folks from the South Eastern United States who wanted one of their favourite meals available in their new, Coastal home - possums!

♥

[spikesgirl58]

Ugh, they can have it. I'm from Vermont originally and have no desire for possum anything. :P Of course, it makes sense and all folks do that.

They are adaptable creatures, though, and do well in cities as well as the woods. At least that's according to what I've read.

[missy42]

Right?! Ugh!

I've read the same thing and what I've seen seems to support their adaptability.

♥

[spikesgirl58]

It's really amazing how well some creatures can adapt to urban living. Only seems fair, though, considering how some cities have encroached upon the animals' habitat.

[missy42]

Fair point. I still worry about all the ones who aren't able to adapt.

♥

[spikesgirl58]

Sadly, they call it evolution, but I think it's just another way of being unfair to some creatures, like the ones I see by the side of the road, killed by cars. It reminds me of Pom Poko.

[missy42]

I think you're right about how unfair human building and expansion is to most wildlife. I kinda get the sense that possums were already adaptable before modern cities were around, but for most critters, I don't think having to adapting to cities was part of nature's plan. Heck, even humans can't even adapt to it, really. Exposure to our own pollution is why so many people have acquired health problems like asthma, allergies and cancer.

I had to look up Pom Poko. Never seen it, but there are plenty of other movies, TV shows and books with similar themes. "Dances with Wolves," "Fern Gully," "The Rats of NIHM" and even "Captain Planet" come to mind.

♥

[spikesgirl58]

Sadly, until we learn this as a planet, I suspect nothing will change. The best we can do is to do our best as guests here.

[missy42]

That's the thing, though. I don't think we are doing our best.

♥

[spikesgirl58]

I am doing my best by trying to recycle, walking instead of driving, lower by carbon foot print and so on. I can only take responsibility for me. However, when I see China and its massive pollution/polluting, I'm just hoping the world will be around for another few million years.

[missy42]

I know what you mean about feeling like your contributions are futile when others add massive amounts to the problem. But I'm not too worried about the Earth. It's been around for billions of years, I think it will be just fine. It's all of us living on this planet that have to face the consequences.

♥