Nature these days

Last night I returned from the office very late to find my outdoor sensor light on. I could see it from afar. Aha, I thought, the deer must have been around, or maybe they are still there.

Sure enough, there they were, six of them (made me wonder where the seventh was since we have had a family or congregation of seven in the fall and early winter), not just near the house but literally at my doorstep! They are not shy. Instead of bounding away as they often do, they literally ambled away, not even bothered by the car. Once I drove into the driveway they went into the woods, but this is about the closest they've stayed to me. They always come out at night, or at dusk, when they do come out. When the babies were younger they would chase each other around the field and look like dogs from far away.

Only the mama or mamas are there. (The buck did, for the first time, come to visit and I was face to face with him in my driveway, a couple of months ago. We just stood there and stared at each other.)

Then overnight it snowed. Just a little North Carolina dusting, but Maya Pavlova, who is a young feline, had never seen snow since we didn't get any last year. Or I hear we did once, but I must have been asleep and missed it. We were worried about ice later in the day since it started raining and getting colder, but school was not canceled (ours anyway) and we didn't get an ice storm.

It's lentil soup season. I was home for lunch (the advantage of living on the edge of campus -- though some days are so busy I don't get back) and before the lentil soup the cat decided it was time for a big feline cuddle and came and draped herself on me and we just sat there for a while.

Naturally, I was wearing a dark sweater. And she has a white belly.