Notes From a Lazy Weekend

This was the first weekend in a month where I didn't have to give a dharma talk at the zendo, or go to Chattanooga, or address a neighborhood spirituality group, or lead a weekend sesshin. Not that I minded any of that, but this was a weekend for rest and relaxation. The construction crew completed the remediation project down in Jena, Louisiana on Friday and I felt a sense of closure and a strong desire to nap.

Unfortunately, I missed two talks by Sensei at the zendo that sounded quite interesting. I had set my alarm clock both Saturday and Sunday mornings, but it was apparent that my mind and body needed a good rest more than intellectual stimulation as I hit the snooze button both days before turning off the alarm altogether.

Eliot did his part to keep the weekend entertaining. One would think that after getting bit on the eye he would have learned his lesson about chipmunks, but no, not my cat. Saturday, while I was talking to a neighbor on the phone about community politics, I saw him coming in through the trap door with a chipmunk in his mouth. Fortunately, I was able to block his way before he got in and he dropped the chipmunk, which scrambled away with Eliot in hot pursuit. The chipmunk, finding no where else to go, then climbed straight up the brick exterior of my house, clinging safely to the wall as Eliot leaped from below in failed attempts to reach him. While still on the phone, I caught Eliot and locked him back in the house to let the chipmunk escape. He meowed and carried on, wanting to go back outside, and the dumb chipmunk just continued to cling on the wall about 8 feet above ground surface. Chipmunks are technically ground squirrels, and not natural climbers, and it was soon apparent that like a cat up a tree, he had gotten himself up there and didn't know what to do to get back down.

While still talking on the phone (it was a long conversation), I got a broom and headed outside. I didn't have a plan on how to get Alvin off the wall, but as soon as I so much as raised the broom, the chipmunk leaped off the wall and landed 8 feet down on the ground with a sickening thud. That had to have hurt, but the little guy ran right off and hid underneath a hosta plant in the garden. I hope he's alright. My neighbor on the other end of the phone still has no idea of what was going on while she was talking.

Eliot was successful is getting a chipmunk inside of the house today. This time, I locked him in the bathroom, opened a back door, and guided the chipmunk back outside, which wasn't as easy as it sounds. In his panic, the chipmunk ran right past the open door several times, and once tried to get outside from behind the door through the opening beneath the hinge. He didn't fit, so I tried opening the door a little more to let him escape, but only wound up nearly crushing him in the vice-like grip. Eventually, he backed out and got away and after I was convinced the proverbial coast was clear, I let the cat back out.

This time, he came back in with a larger chipmunk. He actually carries them quite gently by the scruff of the neck like a mother would her kittens (which reminds me - happy Mothers Day, Mom!) and even when he pounces on them, he doesn't seem to use his claws - I've not seen blood or cuts on one of the chipmunks yet. They might be getting hurt more by my attempts at rescue. Anyway, this one escaped under the refrigerator, and neither Eliot nor I could figure out how to get him out from under there. We both eventually just gave up, and I left the kitchen door open all day hoping that he'd come out to play when the cat was away and find his route back outside, but for all I know, he's under there still. If he does come out, I know that Eliot will find him before I do.

Oh, and one night last week while I was calmly watching television and Eliot was lounging around inside, he suddenly spotted a chipmunk behind a floor lamp. It was pretty passive (it might have been inside for days) and didn't put up much resistance. I scooped it up with a dustpan and took it outside before Eliot could follow and bring it back in. But I do wonder how long it was trapped inside the house, and if there's any more (including under the refrigerator).

So that was that. Otherwise, it was a quiet weekend of reading, cleaning up some files on my computer, and watching sports. The trifecta's this evening: the Celtics play Orlando in Game 4 of the Semifinals tonight on FX (Channel 42), while the Bruins face off against Carolina in Game 5 of their Semifinals on Channel 44 and the Red Sox play Tampa at Fenway on ESPN (Channel 46). All at the same time, and all being televised here in Georgia.

Go figure.