Deerly beloved

I am a complete nature geek. I remember years ago, when we visited Costa Rica, after we would come back from hikes, all of the locals around you wanted to know what animals you had seen out in the forest. It really impressed me that, while living there and seeing those gorgeous butterflies, sloths, and monkeys all of the time, they still got excited about the nature that surrounds them, and are equally excited when visitors get to share it with them.

And thanks to my dog, Buddy, and all of our long walks together, I get to witness some pretty cool nature around here, too. Just today, while walking on a quiet street on one of my many routes, we were startled when a mid-sized, beautiful but scruffy doe crashed out of a side yard about 25 feet from where we were. She bounded down the hill, and when she got to the street, she bounced almost Tigger-like toward the other side of the street. With side yard gates locked all around her, she had a difficult time figuring out how to get back to the surrounding open space. Finally, squeezing between some little trees, she made her escape.

Hey there, deery

Sadly, this really made me think about how things have changed over the years for the animals that live in the Southern California open space. More and more houses are built, more fences are erected. The paths that deer, coyotes and other critters have been using for thousands of years are no longer accessible. Just last August there was a tragic story of a deer with one antler that ran into two separate stores in our downtown area, got out of that jam, only to crash into a car, then head straight for the ocean. Even though lifeguards tried to paddle him to safety, the poor guy just couldn't be saved.

The nature that surrounds us is there to behold. And even though our neighbors fences are getting higher, it's still a treat to look out over Laguna's preserved land, and delight in and share the nature that's there.