Heidi Chronicles: Got Milk?

Hello everyone!

OMG, I finally got home and wow, there is a new thread. I did however scan through it., and I truly think you are amazing for buying all the food for the little bandits.

Sculter, I work nights and yes,I'm certain others do feed her/them when I'm not there. The reason they do not want us to feed them is because at the house where I work, 8 people with developmental disabilities live there also. Although they love to watch all the wildlife they do tend to try and coax mamma raccoon to come to them and I can just picture one of them trying to grab her and then end up getting maybe a bite from her.

I've been staying with one of the people at the hospital, but I'm sure mamma is getting fed. I will return tomorrow night for 10 hours then will start my long stretch again next Friday-Friday. I hope she comes to the patio doors to see me then.

We have Deer, opossum, raccoon, birds, and an occasional fox that come to the yard.

Ursla is a very beautiful girl!
Keep up the good work!

Annie

Excellent photos of Ursula (beautiful girl!) and the kit. It really does show & highlight that they don't all look alike!

Thanks Annie,

Naturally, I can't vouch for every raccoon, but for the ones in my yard I have found that if I frighten them by moving toward them or reaching for them they will just move away from me. The ones I deal with are not inclined to attack if they can avoid a fight by moving or running away. As long as they have a path to get away and don't feel trapped I doubt if they will attack - but, then again, you may have that one raccoon who behaves differently.

I hope Momma Raccoon comes back to the door to see you when you return. My guess is she will, especially when starts nursing a bunch of young ones as that makes them very hungry. If she found food there in the past, she will probably be back.

Thanks, nanny.

No, they really don't all look alike (as most of us once thought). Some look more alike than others, but as you pointed out, Ursula's unique (for my yard anyway) look makes it clear that they are not all identical. Since most of the ones in my yard are Heidi's descendants, most of them look more or less like her which only exacerbates the 'look alike' tendency out there - much as most of the people at your (or my) family dinner may seem to look similar for obvious reasons.

The shape and such of Ursula's head in the cover photo reminds me of a specific cartoon or animated character, but I can't recall 'who' or 'where'.

I had the same thought....lol

I was wondering if it was just me, but I'm so SURE there is a cartoon character out there (drawn in outline only) who looks just like that top picture. Hopefully, someone will figure it out and post it here.

I think there is a little girl in the cartoon, too. The cat or kitten may not be the main character but is usually with her, I think.

YEs -- Ursela is quite stunning... very pretty girl.

OH.... get my PedEgg..... hopefully i'll leave some skin so the Crocs dont hurt.
see what a good teacher you are Cheryl. *wink*

Terese,

Looks like I need to try paid testimonials. ; )
Just don't get all carried away when you start to see the smooth skin and think 'more is better' like I did.

Maybe in summer I'll get a video of Ursula chewing. I love the way she wrinkles her nose up in the air with each bite. That is sure to make you break out in smiles.

Now what is that cat cartoon? You must know, Terese.

ah... i'm not much on cartoons... i'm not that young,.. only one i can think of, is that one that loves the skunk... is that Pepe' LePew ... sorry i dont type French.

but yea.... she does look familiar. very distinct markings.... and Sooooooooo unlike Heidi and the clan.

Wow, I was shocked to see all these posts on the new thread already! But hey, if you stay up 'til after 5am....!

Great pics--I agree, Ursula is a lovely lady.

This is a more recent cartoon, probably 90's, at least 80's or above (I think). I would have sworn it was Hello Kitty, but that isn't the right cat. The cat I'm remembering is, in my mind at least, just a line drawing, but the face shape is the same as that of Ursula in the top picture. I could almost swear this cat (line drawing of face) was on some fad jewelry for teens at the time.

Thanks, KyWoods,

I am a night owl by nature. During the week I'm a semi-conformed hybrid. On the weekend I revert to type. It has obvious downsides though. Saturday morning at 10AM someone was out there playing the doorbell like a musical instrument while I tried to throw on decent clothing in a hurry.

Incidentally, while I am obscessing over the cartoon thing - I need an answer - I found the answer to the cartoon question I posed about 2000 threads ago. It was so long ago you probably don't recall now, but just to bring 'closure' to that question...

At that time I was trying to recall a sheepdog from an old Looney Tunes cartoon. The sheepdog had a sheepish laugh which is what caused me to bring him up in the 1st place at the time. Back then someone mentioned that it might be Huckleberry Hound. Recently, I watched Huckleberry Hound. Definitely, not him. It didn't occur to me at the time that 'huckleberry' might be blue/purple. The sheepdog was white.

I finally found the sheepdog. It was Sam the Sheepdog from Looney Tunes 'shorts' that ran between the other cartoons. Ralph the Wolf would sneak in and try to carry off the sheep. After clobbering him, Sam the Sheepdog would do that sheepish laugh. Here is a link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Don%27t_Give_Up_the_Sheep

I remember, I remember!! I loved him, too! That was so funny the way Ralph always piled the sheep up, like a big mound of cotton balls--thanks for the link.

Yes!!! Sam & Ralph....clocking in and out on their shifts...Loved them!!!

The Heidi Chronicles will resume on Saturday evening.

Class runs 8AM-6PM M-F. Exam 8AM-9AM T-F, 50 questions. Must make 80% or above on EACH test to pass. Final Exam Sat (Yikes, no one told me about Sat) 8-10AM. Must make 70% or above on Final to Pass.

Tests require not just understanding but near total recall of the facts presented each day. I have 2hrs to study before bed. Yikes. This is a little tough.

Consequently, there will probably not be any meaningful stories before Sat evening. see you then.

Best of luck Cheryl. We all pulling for ya. Study comes first. Pray ya make the whole journey pain free. : )

Same here! And I have faith that you'll do great with the class--don't let anyone intimidate you.

You'll do fine Cheryl --- C'ya Saturday night.

Luck and love and great memory!!
You'll do fine.

Sounds like a demanding drill, but know you'll handle it beautifully. Hang in there and learn a lot-
Ruth

Best wishes! See you again this weekend.

Just caught up with the new thread. Ursula really has a sweet face. Enjoyed all the pictures. It was nice to see green grass! We're still buried in snow.

Good luck with your class - you'll do great.

I had been going to lunch with my friends. Today I stayed behind hoping to rest my mind - which idea isn't working so well since other people also stayed behind and are talking non stop mostly about course related material. Argh!

Anyhow, I thought that I might take a few minutes now (during lunch) to tell you about last night. Before I begin, I'd like to thank all of you for your support and for the confidence you've shown in me. After the test on Monday, I started working on my excuses because I really thought I had failed that test. Thankfully, I didn't and am still in the game.

Since Mon morning I've done nothing (literally) except attend school, go home and take a quick restorative nap, walk (or run) the dog, feed the raccoons (abbreviated version), scarf down dinner, go over the material to review for the next morning's test, and sleep. I haven't even had a moment to watch the news. I don't have time to finish going over the day's material before bed, so no time to do anything fun, just school, study, sleep, repeat. Others here say they are doing the same. The very small amount of time I'm spending out there with the raccoons - about 15 to 20min a night right now - is the only enjoyable thing I get to do each day, except sleep which considering I'm only getting 5hrs of so per night, is also a much appreciated blessing. I will be very glad when this is over. 8-9hrs a day plus another 3 or 4 hrs to review for a test is serious overkill. Last night after I fed the raccoons, I could not force myself to study, couldn't even hold my eyes open. I just crashed and went to sleep early. I didn't have another ounce of energy. Sure hope I didn't fail the test this AM as a result.

So - raccoons:

Heidi has been hanging out around the patio waiting for me each night. When I come out, she doesn't walk beside me (or under my feet) like Dennis does. Instead, Heidi follows me at a slight distance but on a parallel path cutting through hedges and flowerbeds. I think sometimes she forgets momentarily that she is 'supposed' to maintain some distance between us. Last night while I was filling her dish, she walked right up and started to reach into the bucket I was holding before she realized her error and backed away a step to get that space back.

Dennis was there last night. Ah, Dennis. I so enjoy having her around these days. I can't possibly tell you how incredible it is, esp not while people are talking over my head and I'm rushing to get this sent before class begins again - in 4min. A few weeks ago when Dennis resurfaced for the 1st time this year, I didn't actually notice her, was looking really. As I was dishing out food, I felt fur gently caress my calf and looked down to see a raccoon down there calmly nestled against my leg while eating - up close to me, probably for protection. Looking down at her from above, I could only see her back, and even though I hadn't seen her in months and had long since accepted that she was gone for good, instantly I knew it was her. "Dennis!" I cried out in joy and recognition even before I saw her face. The others come up to me for treats and do so with varying degrees of comfort. Some even come up to sniff me. No one nestles against me, rubs up on me, and otherwise acts just like a pet the way that Dennis does. I must say that I surely have missed that - missed her!

Oops! Gotta go. Class is resuming. Later

I've mentioned this before. Heidi appears to be somewhat 'jealous' of Dennis, probably not jealousy as we experience it but concerned that she may loose her position of prominance with "the human" and, thereby, loose resources for herself and her babies.

We've had vanilla sandwich cookies (same bag) for dessert for 3 days now. On the two prior days, I tossed Heidi a cookie. Both nights she looked at it and turned her nose up, leaving it behind in the dirt when she departed for the evening.

The 3rd night, last night, I didn't bother to give Heidi any cookies. Everyone was eating their dog food. Dennis sat upright and ever so gently placed her front paws on my leg just above the knee. The touch was so soft and so precious. I knew what she wanted and handed her a cookie which she ate there in the artificial corner made by my legs and the small table beside me.

Almost immediately, here came came Heidi, the Heidi who rarely comes over to me for treats, the Heidi for who it is almost unheard of to come over to me for anything other than frosting and grapes. Suddenly, after days, years even, of not eating cookies, Heidi wanted a cookie. I reached past Dennis to hand her one. Heidi sat upright to reach up with her paws and take the cookie from my hands very gently and deliberately.

For the duration of the evening until a sound somewhere frightened them all away, Heidi and Dennis sat with me to each taking cookies from my hand to eat them, Dennis sitting in her corner of sorts against my leg and Heidi just beyond her near my knee.

Was Heidi's sudden interest in cookies motivated by the sight of Dennis up there beside me eating them? Jealousy? Concern over favoratism? Interest in maintaining rights to the treats?

Edited to finish immediate part of story. More on Saturday.

This message was edited Mar 5, 2009 10:06 PM

Cheryl, good luck on the test. Does Heidi often refuse cookies? Hope she is back to her old self in a few days/weeks. Also, I'm glad Dennis is back. :O) :O)

The last time I was at work I didn't see Momma R, maybe this coming week-end.

Annie

will have to finish the story saturday. Sorry. thought I could do a quick post at lunch, but people kept messing with me, and then lunch was over. had to stop the story almost in mid sentence.

Hi Annie,

Heidi is fine. This is her normal. She's a health nut. Except for a few weaknesses like frosting and nectar she tends to stick with the healthy stuff like grapes and peanuts and eggs. The youngsters will eat almost anything that is sweet but not Heidi. She rarely eats cookies. I didn't expect her to eat them, just wanted to offer her one just in case.

There is more to the story. I had to stop in mid thought. That's why it doesn't make sense. Don't have time now to finish. Will have to finish after the exam on Sat.

I went back to my post from earlier today (lunch) and edited it to finish the though: http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/p.php?pid=6225458
I added the content to that post instead of adding a new one because the information only made sense when read together and in the same context.

One final thought before I get back to studying.

I've been observing the raccoons for a while now. This will be my 4th summer doing so. Many things are 'old hat' now, and I am inclined to keep thinking that I have seen and heard it all, at least, that is, all that is to be seen and heard in an urban backyard. But tonight moments after everyone, Heidi included, left in a hurry for some unknown reason, I heard the most unbelievable and almost indescribable sound eminating from the forest, a sound I am sure represents yet one more in that vast array of raccoon vocalizations.

The sound lay somewhere in a continium between a harsh and loud crow call, "Cawww, caw, caw!" and that "zzst, dzzzst, dzzzst" sound of a short duration, high voltage discharge. It was a loud and distinct sound, nothing muffled about this one, and continued for maybe 9 calls - or pulses - until the forest finally went silent again. It was the kind of exotic sound one might have expected to hear emanating from the depths of some dense, Amazon jungle, the kind that would surely have caused one to question what unique lifeform lay ahead there in the darkness, yet I was certain it was a sound that had come from our 'common' and 'humble' backyard raccoons.

There appears to be no limit either to raccoon vocabulary or things to learn about raccoons but then I suppose that is a logically redundant statement.

Class, BTW, as previously mentioned is awful. We are all becoming quite exhausted, our energy waning with each passing day, and we all agree that we do nothing but attend lecture, review class notes, and sleep, and that each day takes a greater tole on our energy reserves. As a group now we are becoming grumpy and eager for this sleep deprivation experiment to end.

The one bright spot in our days now - aside from the sunlight streaming though the classroom windows and the lovely forest view there - is the food. Each morning at 7ish we arrive to find a spread of goodies outside our room including: coffee, plain and chocolate milk, fruit juice, water, sodas, bagels, cream cheese, cereal, yogurt, bananas, grapes, oranges, apples, tangerines, and I'm sure I am missing something - oh, and ganola bars.

They take the breakfast foods up just before lunch and then at 2:30 bring out the afternoon snacks: mixed nuts, various crackers and cheeses, sodas, coffee, water, trays of huge, fresh baked, cookies (choc chip, pecan choc chip, and white choc macadamia), granola bars, rice crispie treats, more fresh fruit, and a wonderful array of cruidite with ranch and blue cheese dip, including summer squash, zuccini, asparagus, cucumbers, carrots, celery, grape tomatoes, and broccolli.

Each day there is always some new and special item added to the morning and afternoon spread. These refreshments are something of an oasis in our otherwise unpleasant days. (and are also the reason why I skipped lunch today as I find that we are noshing and grazing from 7AM until we go home leaving little need for a meal).

now back to studying. see you saturday. oh, I may be late on saturday as some guys from Costa Rica are trying to organize an after exam beach party on saturday. It has been cold all week but is expected to rise to 80 on sat. we shall see - both if the temp makes it that high and if i have the energy left by then. still, as I recall from college, it can be helpful to get together with your fellow 'sufferers' and have a 'blowout' after finals - of course, I was much younger then.

Edited to add that the Costa Ricans asked how far it was to the beach. We were like, "just look in almost any direction and there it is". You really don't even need directions. When learning to drive here I actually used to say to myself that I would just drive in the direction I thought something should be in and worst case if I didn't find it, I would end up at the ocean whereupon I would know where I was (so I couldn't get lost regardless).

This message was edited Mar 5, 2009 10:56 PM

Class does sound like a monumental drag on the energy, Cheryl. Hang in there; not much more to go!

It's just wonderful that Dennis is back; now if only Fraidy could find her way back to the diner and be allowed to dine (at least occasionally). But as timid as Fraidy always was, I doubt she'd try it. Too funny about Heidi's sudden interest in cookies, so unlike her; and I suspect you're on target with the "prime position with human and therefore with resources" theory. After all, she has babies out there in the forest, and wants to be sure they will get first crack at all good things...

Hang in there, Cheryl! The food DOES sound good! The rest of it sounds exhausting. I'm SOOO glad you got the shot in your hip before you started this week.

Ruth,

I keep hoping to see little Fraidy. I figure now that Dennis is back, there is greater hope for all of our missing friends. Who knows, she may show up in time. I might also have a greater chance of seeing her if I stayed out there longer since she always had a tendency to show up on 3rd shift (when 1st and 2nd round members are gone) to forage for anything that might be left over. In summer I often stay out longer. Right now when the night time temps dip down in the 30's and 40's, my feet and hands start to get painfully cold after 30min to an hour.

Marylyn,

You are SO right! I've need a small amount of medicine, but with that have experienced 0 pain - other than the pain caused by the class itself. ; )

>>30's and 40's, my feet and hands start to get painfully cold after 30min to an hour.

What... don't you have wool socks down that in ole SC ?? *wink*

Got to thinking and while Heidi maybe wantign to make sure she not missing out on trats or ya playing favorite s to much, I wonder if maybe too, she would know Dennis is probably pregant and is watchign and seeign that Deniis is not comign to amy harm and may feel safe too being aroudn you closer with Dennis sittign there.

May be way off base here, but seems liek as tame as Hedi is her first instinct woudl especially to knwo that she prego and to protect her body from anythign that might possibly do harm to her an dhe run babs. Seeign Dennis their an dprego may be givign her extra confidenc e and especially sinc eya startign to get some of her, why didn't ya do that in th efirst place s down pat. LOL

Now go eat, ya cna read and answer later, get the free grub and healthy food in ya first before yoru lunch time all gone. Good luck and party hardy LOL

Terese,

LOL. Because it is hot as he__ here 360 days out of the year (well, not quite), I cringe at the thought of any kind of warm clothing, socks included; hence, I have none in my wardrobe - ok, well, very few and am too lazy to try to find them for a 30min activity. Bottom line, I am geared towards thinking Southern, thinking it will be relatively warm everywhere I go. Then when it isn't, I just shiver and whine a lot.

starlight,

We 'load up' on food for our desks at 7ish when we come in just to be sure we get what we want before they remove it, so I had already eaten before I posted earlier. Right now, because it is Friday and because it is a beautiful, sunny, 70F day out, we are going outside to eat pizza in a few minutes (when the delivery guy arrives).

Almost done...