No Moose is Good Moose

Four a.m. came awfully early this morning.  

Oops, I mean 5 a.m.  

Seems I've been jumping the gun with this mad month of March.  Yesterday I sent a note to a friend wishing him a happy birthday.

He kindly wrote back, thanked me and informed me that his birthday is today.

Oops, I thought "today" was March 10, I wrote back, adding "Have a nice day tomorrow too." 

It wasn't such a big "oops" to think 4 a.m. came awfully early today.  After all, yesterday it was 4 a.m.  when the usual 4 a.m. is supposed to happen.

But we have sprung forward overnight. 

I must admit that I groggily went through the motions while doing this morning's initial chores.  

I'm pretty sure I wasn't quite awake when I went out to get some kindling to start a fire and let the dogs out.

Normally, there's still a little fire left in our wood stove from overnight, but this morning, even though it was really early, the fire had burned out. 

So, my normal early, early routine changed a bit.  

Then, I got back into synch, making the coffee, watering the geraniums, taking my glaucosomine-chondroitan tabs.  

Next, as is customary with normal routine, I next went to the garage to let the dogs out.  They were already out!

I asked Bill if he had let the dogs out.  He said no.  Then, I remembered that in my mental state of being up too early that I had let the dogs out.

That's what happens when we spring forward and time gets all mixed up. 

Maybe today things will settle down, but for now, I'm still adjusting, as are the critters. 

After first cup of coffee and Internet brain stimulation, I headed out to the barn.  

I'm sure the horses were shocked when that door went open at what was yesterday 5 a.m. but today was 6 a.m.

Horses tummies don't run on Pacific Daylight Time, and horses are routine creatures, so they probably thought they were getting a good deal when their food dispenser showed up early. 

Nobody seemed to mind the time change in the barn, although Lily was a bit taken aback when she discovered that I had put her flakes of hay in a different barnyard spot.  

She adjusted.

Next part of usual morning routine:  the walk.  

Three dogs went back into the house as hints of daylight were showing up in the eastern sky.  

Yesterday, when I went for my walk, the sun was thinking about rising from behind the Cabinet Mountains. 

This morning, it still fairly dark, and the sun was probably still asleep. 

Reaching the end of the driveway, I made my choice.  

"It's kinda dark," I thought, "and I remember spotting those three moose off in Gary Finney's back field when I walked north in the clear morning light last week."  

"I think I'll stay out of Mooseville and head south, then east down Selle Road.  Maybe no dogs will bark when I pass by." 

That decision made, I thought for a minute about how Geneva from next door, upon hearing of the Finney farm moose sighting during our Friday visit, had asked me if I carry any pepper spray to fend off potential moose encounters.

Geneva's been known to bang on pots and pans with wooden spoons outside her house to scare off the Bullwinkles hanging around their yard. 

So, she's knowledgeable about moose encounters.  

No, on this Sunday morning when it was earlier than usual, I was not armed with any moose deflectors. 

I continued my walk and thought about the Saturday events and how the ZAGS won again in their usual fashion after horrifying their fans and probably their coaches for most of the first half.  

Maybe they had experienced an early Daylight Savings Time change in Las Vegas,  and maybe their bodies and minds just hadn't adjusted yet.  Thankfully, like my experience this morning, they eventually got into some rhythm.   30-2  GO ZAGS

I was still thinking deeply about yesterday's events when I turned on to Selle Road, hoping the neighbors had not yet let their dogs out.

I continued to enjoy the Selle solitude when my eyes suddenly did some major focusing on an object next to the fence in a field just beyond Taylor's driveway.

I'm sure the object was doing the same thing----focusing.

As I kept walking east, I could see the object with ears up focusing back at me.  

No, Taylors do not have a horse, but that dark object focusing on me does look like a horse.  

With that fact clearly established-----I executed an instant about face.

My pace quickened as I strutted west down Selle Road.

No, I do not have any bear spray or pots and pans, but I do have legs and they'd better get me down the road.  

So, on this earlier morning than usual, I have dealt with a near miss with a moose, and I am thinking about taking a wooden spoon and maybe a pot along on my next early morning walk. 

I got to thinking about that moose.  I'm sure nobody told it about Daylight Savings Time, and it was probably a little bit out of synch just like me and the ZAGS.

Fortunately, I made it back home with no more moose sightings, but I do believe that when I'm out walking on these mornings when we have gone back to darkness so that we can have the light in the evenings, no moose is good moose. 

Happy Sunday.   Enjoy the evening light!