Monday, February 6, 2012

Call Me Starbuck

“‘Vengeance on a dumb brute!’ cried Starbuck, 'that simply smote thee from blindest instinct!  Madness!  To be enraged with a dumb thing, Captain Ahab, seems blasphemous.’” 
-Herman Melville, Moby Dick; or The Whale

Hanging on with just one leg!
If you are paying attention, many of us garden bloggers are focusing on the squirrels in our lives.  The attention they are receiving from garden bloggers must have something to do with the leafless trees and how the nakedness of those trees reveals the dastardly deeds of the cute but annoying rodents in our yards. 

My issues with squirrels are nothing out of the ordinary.  Well, except this one squirrel that looked to be pregnant or cancerous.  For the most part, the squirrels in my yard are little more than bird feed stealing acrobats.  They are annoying in that regard but watching them try amuses me in spite of the frustrating consequences. 

I have another critter that has caused me more problems in the garden than any squirrel ever has: my beloved dog.

Recently, I went out to check my newly seeded containers.  I was hoping for signs of sprouting and instead discovered that an entire wine barrel had been ransacked.  Potting soil had been piled up with chaotic abandon on one side of the barrel, burrowed into on another . . . and I immediately blamed my dog. 

But the telltale evidence wasn't there.  There were no bones buried.  There were no stolen socks hidden for later.  I did not hear Ray LaMontagne singing "Trouble". 

 
Maybe it was those villanous squirrels!  Could they have been stealing my seeds?  Or were they burying their nuts in my potting soil?  Or do I fault birds looking for seeds?  I didn’t know who to blame or what to do about it.  I certainly wanted revenge though; swift, thoughtless, and unflinching revenge.

Revenge for what though, exactly?   

I am currently halfway through reading Moby Dick for my “Finer Things Club”.  I’m ashamed to admit that I somehow got through high school plus four years of college (where I earned a degree in English) and never managed to read this American classic.  While some of the book’s questions and answers still await me, I’ve read enough of it to know that one of its central themes is dealing with our desire for vengeance.  The quoted passage above reflects ship mate Starbuck's reaction to Captain Ahab when he finally tells the crew that they will travel to the ends of the earth to make the white whale pay for taking Ahab’s leg off without prior written consent to do so.  What is the point in seeking revenge against creatures who are simply acting according to blind instinct?  It really is madness.

Loitering with Intent to Harass, I'm sure.
So there will be no BB gun vigils and no scarecrows erected - not this year anyway.  There will only be hardware cloth, some heavy duty staples, some crossed fingers, and lots of hoping that some of those seeds will sprout and that my patience with life’s little challenges will grow as quickly as whatever lettuce is left to me. 

(P.S. For those of you with inquiring minds, the coffee company, Starbucks, was, in fact, named after the character in Moby Dick.  They thought it made a better name than the original suggestion of naming it after the ship in the book: the Pequod.  That's pronounced "Pee-quod" so they made the right decision, methinks.) 

16 comments:

  1. Trivia on Starbucks, good to know. Dogs and squirrels don't mix. I never really had squirrels in the yard with my dogs, and when both dogs were gone, no squirrels until a year later. My Akita caught one (R.I.P.) and I guess that made it around the neighborhood to all squirrels.

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    1. It seems like Starbucks trivia will eventually pay off somehow. Maybe it will help you win Jeopardy one day or maybe impress friends during Trivial Pursuit. Or (dare we dream?) perhaps it will some day help to win a free venti extra shot no whip tuxedo mocha!

      I didn't use to have to deal with squirrels but my dog has slowed down considerably the last year or so and he no longer has the fire to chase them away.

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  2. I think they made the right decision, too. Just doesn't sound right to want a cuppa Pequod's! For some reason, we don't have a lot of squirrels, so I really enjoyed seeing your pictures. I like squirrels, but I suspect our cats may have something to do with their scarcity!

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    1. Holley, can you image if Starbucks had gone with Pequod's? There would be no way they could ever get into those K-cup coffee pods with a name like "Pee Pods". It sounds like potty training supply for puppies.

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  3. I have squirrel-proof bird feeders, but that does not stop those crafty squirrels from finding a way to get a few morsels. I suppose the key here is 'few,' so I won't quibble about that.

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    1. I'm getting to the point where I would be okay with the squirrels stealing all the bird seed if they would just promise to stay out of my pots. But even if they did promise, I don't think I could trust them.

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    1. Exactly! If we saw rats stealing bird seed or crawling around in our trees I think we'd take more action. Are squirrels getting a free pass just because they're cuter than rats?

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  5. Having a chance to do some reading as I enjoy my morning Queequeg. Revenge is dish best served cold; squirrel, I think, is a dish best served hot, most likely with a full-bodied Tempranillo. Check this out: honest-food.net/2008/10/25/on-cooking-squirrels/ Hank KNOWS! My own native red squirrels are small and generally keep to themselves, though they yammer on like Chip 'n' Dale. I would gladly trade you 10 of your squirrels for one of my Mountain Beavers though. Love your stuff! Best, Calvin

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    1. Calvin, Thanks for stopping by my blog. I discovered your blog recently and I've found it fascinating. The regulations that you have to abide by on your property would cripple me with frustration, worry, and annoyance.

      I dislike my squirrels but mountain beavers and other underground pests are, thankfully, not part of my gardening experience and I'd like to keep it that way. Thanks though! ;)

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  6. Squirrels routinely ransack my pots. This year I'm starting my seeds inside to ensure they sprout instead of ending up tossed between the patio pavers. I've had them dig up bulbs and "replant" them in other areas of the garden. I get my vengeance my letting my five dogs chase them when I catch them on the patio in mid-dig. :o)

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    1. I wasn't really sure it was squirrels getting into my pots until I saw your comment. It inspired me to start spying on them and, sure enough, I watched a couple of them venture out from the trees and onto my patio where most of my pots are. My dog is too old to chase them now, but I'm not. I have taken to running outside when I see them and shouting insance threats. My neighbors . . . I wonder what they think is going on over here?

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  7. They're just as dastardly here too. Last year my neighbors lost all of their peaches to squirrels...every single one! We'd drive by their gate some mornings, and out would shoot a squirrel from under the fence with an unripe peach firmly clamped in its jaws. I suspect our own orchard will be similarly raided this year. I know for bird feeders, spraying those dome shaped baffles with cooking oil to make them slick will usually do the trick to keep them off, but I'm not sure how to protect the seedlings without resorting to wire cages...unless you fancy taking up falconry ;)

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    1. I didn't get any peaches last year but I figured it had to do with a really bad case of peach leaf curl. I suppose the squirrels could have contributed to that too.

      Do you spray your peach trees with copper ammonium?

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  8. Here along lake Michigan there are no squirrels - really. Not enough trees close by so I don't have that problem. However I may be in for that in a few years since I planted many trees on this property hen I began to develop it. Hum - maybe not a good idea putting them all in! Enjoyed my visit and will be following you. Love your area of the country. Jack

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    1. Jack, thank you for stopping by my blog. I hope you'll stop by again sometime.

      And the squirrels really aren't too bad most of the year. At least they haven't been in the past. At the very least, they give you something to watch when nothing else is going on in the garden.

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