Hear the fisher cat?

Occasionally the sounds outside our window are not as pleasant as the loons. Living by the lake has its ups and downs.
This week I was rudely awakened at 5 am by the worst high pitched screams you ever heard. It sounded like little children being hurt, or a woman being attacked. The screams went on and on, and were RIGHT OUTSIDE MY WINDOW! Needless to say I jumped up and looked out to see what was going on. Soon an animal came into view, skulking and looking back at another animal, a small dog that was running away. The animal looked like a fox, but didn't have a pointy nose and wasn't colored right. (Although it was not as dark as the above picture). A little investigation tells me I was one of the ?privileged? few to witness a fisher cat! It is neither a fisher (as in catches fish) or a cat, but that is its name. It is from the weasel family. The fisher cat has the MOST DISTINCTIVE high pitched scream. I am amazed that dog got away, because the fisher has 2" fang and claws that do not retract. It is very mean, sneaky, and fast. It went running on our lawn towards the back of our house to the woods.
My heart was pounding so fast, and I hurried and got our crazy cat into the house. It is pointless to try and convince Schnookums our cat to be an inside cat in the summer, so I guess we will just take our chances with her and the fisher cat. Hopefully this cat won't be back soon. To think, I used to be scared of encountering a skunk in the yard. Now I have to worry about the fisher.
I would much rather go to sleep to the sound of rain on the roof, and get woken up by the loons!

Hear the duckies?

When Katie was little she would climb into our bed in the summer asking us "Hear the duckies?" The loons would be crying on the lake and wake her up.
I love to hear the loons cry. They carry on with a very distinctive wail and chatter with each other. They get busy late at night, and again in the early morning hours. I love to lay in bed with the windows up, listening to the loons. I can still hear Katie asking "Hear the duckies?" How blessed we are to live on a lake, and get to hear the loons in the summer!

lions and tigers and BEARS, oh my!

Guess what was hanging out in a tree in downtown Rochester on Sunday. This friendly but confused black bear took a stroll down the center of town around 6:30 am, and got spooked up into this tree by a passerby. Doesn't he look squishy and cuddly? It was a very hot day and he napped up there all day. Finally they tranqulized him in the cool of the evening and by 11pm they had him out of there and on his way to the woods.
When I say downtown, I am talking MIDDLE OF THE CITY - this tree is in the triangle across from Kelly's Gymnastics, right in the center of the town. This certainly caused quite a stir, and lots of onlookers.
By the way, it is right down the street from the old Clinton Headquarters where some guy took a couple of hostages last year.
Rochester NH certainly is a happening place.