"Act of God"

11/06/06 4:59 pm. Late twilight in the northwoods. On my way to a meeting. Warm enough for a bug to splatter on my windshield and leave beige waste: the foreshadowing of what was to come. A few minutes later, I glanced over to see where I had set my coffee mug that morning,and when I looked up I saw a brown furry body hit the right side of my xB. It only made the car move a little, but I pulled over to see the damage, as the native american family did to see if I was damaged. I wasn't, but the score was: deer=0, xB=0.Deer, in rut, probably didn't even know what hit him (or what he hit). I made sure the deer wasn't suffering and then called 911 to report the accident.

In Wisconsin, a deer/car accident is so common, it is considered an "act of God," like when branch falls on your car. This is good news for car owners, because it doesn't count against their driving record and if you have good insurance, you don't have to pay a dime.

I got a loaner from the collision place, which I get to keep until my car is done next Friday. It's a maroon Malibu and makes me feel like a speed demon, expecially after driving the little toaster. I am kind of scared that the toaster just "won't be the same" after the accident, but the collision place is owned by the husband of someone I work with, so I'll just have to see.



Move forward to today's date: the first photo is off of my front porch looking at the still unfrozen lake. It's hard to believe it's the same scene as two weeks ago. Snow, I have to admit, has the ability to cover up unsightly fallen leaves and light the late autumn with it's white crystals....



The second is my Dulsie Bear, pretending I am letting him pull me skijoring (when you have a dog pull you on your cross country skis)I have a belt I hook him to with a bungee so he can have some freedom, but just so I can have hands free to take photos.

Even in the slip-sliding late autumn, when the streets are black ice before noon, the dogs get grins on their faces whenever they suspect they will be going out with me.

Having ancestors from Newfoundland, they really enjoy this weather and the promise it brings for different scents, comfortable temperatures with thier permanent fur coats, and a landscape that must hark back to thier collective Newfoundland=dog memory. It is immediately apparent to me when they are out there. They sniff around more excitedly, dance around with their feet as if they want to take off running (at nine years of age!) and even in this photo to the right, you can see the happiness in their body language and alert faces.

And I am more than happy to give these two the happiness they deserve. They have given me years of enjoyment and complete affection.

"God took great care in creating this creature. He gave him the patience to be my teacher." -author unknown