I flipped the TV off a few minutes ago, determined not to get sucked into watching some show I really didn't care anything about. It's been a busy day here...housework, laundry and diving into the black hole of family history dominated and it's an early morning tomorrow. Too bad they don't offer yoga at some reasonable hour...like 9:30am.
The room had just fallen silent when I heard something outside. Voices? Laughter? My neighbors have been asleep for hours; who's on the street at this time of night? Then (speaking of someone who's been asleep for hours) I heard Wayne calling my name. It's too cold for teenagers in the pool...what is going on?
As I scurried down the hall, I heard the noise again. What is that noise? I asked as I neared the bedroom. That's what I want to know! he replied. It was loud enough it woke him up. We stood there listening to it repeat every five or ten seconds, similar but not exactly the same each time. If I didn't know better, I said, I'd think it was those howler-like monkeys we heard going through the trees overhead the first night we were in Africa. But I haven't seen any monkeys swinging through our trees.
The noise continued. After deciding it was coming from down by the green on the golf course behind, we headed for the back patio. There was a little moonlight but not enough to see that far away. We stood and listened to this very loud sorta-bark-sorta-howl noise repeated itself over and over. Odds are it was probably a coyote as we've heard them back in the woods numerous times before but usually there are several of them and they have a distinctive, more melodious sound. This was clearly just one animal and he sounded like he had laryngitis. He just couldn't get that long, plaintive cry at the end to come out right and at times it was almost funny.
In the cold night air, his howls seemed to echo off the houses or maybe it just seemed so loud because everything outside was so quiet. He went on for about twenty minutes before things fell silent again. Either he moved on or someone else came out to investigate and didn't stop at their porch's edge, scaring him back into the woods.
We won't have the big frogs to make a commotion next door once warm weather arrives. Someone came and covered the nasty pool with a frame of wood, plastic and wire. Insurance, I suppose, to be sure no one falls in or to avoid the health department getting after them for what a nuisance it is. Noisy as they were, however, the frogs were quiet neighbors compared to this fellow tonight.
Life would be boring if we just had regular old neighborhood noises when darkness rolls around. It's much more interesting this way.
Hi, Brenda and Wayne! Long time, no comment, I know. As I took the dog out last night, I noticed our little melodious frogs have started in again. We have had a particularly mild winter, here. I have liked it, but the 9yo ds wishes for some snow! We have coyotes and foxes too, and they can make quite a commotion.
Scrapp-ie news: I am taking Stacy Julian's TWELVE class at BPC. Twelve weeks of classes and twelve months of assignments in 2012. Some people are foodies, some are techies. I guess that makes me a "Class-ie" I've been called worse. LOL! (Brenda, you would be a great teacher over there if you ever got the itch.) Anyway, it is proving to be worth every dime, as usual. And taking lots of time, as well. I suppose a little snow wouldn't be too bad with all the scrapping assignments I have.
And I, too, shall get to the Ancestry.com thing before too long. I have signed up for a couple of trial this and thats and found a few interesting pieces.
Well, hope you all are doing well. Hang in there, Ms. "Cold-ie", spring's a-comin'!
-Rhonda in AR
Posted by: Rhonda H | February 07, 2012 at 09:43 AM