Art of the Odd

A few minutes ago, I saw a furry grey streak out of the corner of my eye. There was a rodent. On the kitchen table. I thought it was a rat, but the long, long tail was furry. Almost… fluffy, even.

NovySan jumped. I jumped. Our tiny visitor jumped. Off the table, onto the chest freezer, and from there onto the child gate we use to keep Schokie out of the living room. When it jumped, we saw the tiny “wings.”

It was a flying squirrel. In our kitchen.

It let me take some pictures, then we discussed our next move. I offered it a piece of freshly-baked banana-walnut cake (plus blueberries, minus the caramel, and with the walnuts mixed in). It seemed interested, but wary. I remembered the day a hummingbird stumbled into my study, and our former housemate John captured it with a towel. “That seems appropriate,” I thought, “given that it’s Towel Day.” I tried, but the towel slipped off, and our squirrel (soon to be christened Fidget) gave me such a dose of the big sad eyes that I didn’t dare try again. I picked up the banana cake, which I’d set on the floor, and held it up very near Fidget’s twitchy little nose. After a moment, he set a delicate black paw on the edge of the plate, and used his new leverage to launch himself into the darkness of the living room. I realized he was headed for the front door.

“Oh, good,” I said, and picked my way across the room to open the front door and screen, praying I wouldn’t step on him. I needn’t have worried. He’d scaled the WaterRower – the tallest object in the room. A moment later, he launched himself toward the front door, and I realized he’d seen his escape route.

“Oh, clever baby,” I said, just as he scrambled up the inside of the door and crawled through the little security window. I peeked at the outside of the door. Little Fidget was clinging to the outside of the door, considering his next move. I closed the window carefully, and then the door. When I opened it a moment later, I heard him scrambling through the jasmine on the front porch.

Goodnight, Fidget. And good luck.

***UPDATE*** NovySan’s friend Jen said Fidget’s not a squirrel – he’s a sugar glider. Which means he’s was definitely someone’s pet, and an illegal alien, too, since you’re not allowed to keep gliders in California.