Attack of the Overly Aggressive Squirrel

In the city, it's all about the rats and the squirrels in the cold time and, in the warmth of summer, we add pigeons to the mix. Cats tend to be kept in doors. There's an occasional dog, although in my neighborhood they tend to be very tiny dogs, loud and frisky and actually sometimes smaller than the rats and squirrels.

The point of all this is that the wildlife around here isn't all that wild.

So it was with a great deaal of surprise that I was walking down Barry this morning and I came upon a squirrel, squatting right in the middle of the sidewalk chattering at a woman who had apparently been halted in her steps by the sudden challenge of the fierce squirrel. Suddenly, the squirrel charged. It took off running directly at the woman. She dashed across the street, panic writ large on her face. The squirrel followed her as far as the street, and then paused.

The squirrel sniffed the air and then slowly turned its head in my direction. I was a good half block away, but damned if I was going to take my chances against this fierce urban rodent. I crossed the street and left the squirrel to his turf.

I'm thinking I should start carrying a weapon to protect myself from wild animals.