Fabulous Fall Days

I almost feel guilty about how much I've been enjoying the outdoors over the last month or so.  I mean, put into perspective, the east coast is being ravaged again with the winter storm follow-up to frankenstorm Sandy, and just north of us in Montana, they're preparing for blizzard conditions.  But here in pleasant Hyattville?  It's just beautiful.

Because the weather has been so unseasonably nice and warm, I have been taking every advantage to be outside and enjoy it.  When the sun is out, even if the high is only in the mid-to upper 50s like it is today, that can still be warm enough for t-shirt weather.  In fact, it is warm enough for the south-facing glass storm door trim - which is dark colored - to be almost too warm to touch!

So, this week we have enjoyed temps in the 60s, with a slight downward trend into the 50s for today.  That is all gearing up for the 'cool front' heading our way - namely, remnants of the blizzard-inducing storm named Brutus by NOAA.  In fact, for local Hyattville weather affecionados, the weather service has issued a severe weather warning to advise us that tomorrow we may see a 50 degree drop in temperatures (so bringing us down to the teens or 20s for a high) along with a 60% chance of snow.  So, winter effectively begins tomorrow, it seems!

Why am I droning on about the weather?  Well, it makes for fantastic environmental interesting-ness here in WY.  Just take the sunsets.  They have been breathtaking!  I think part of that stems from the fact that here, you can see the whole horizon, so the impact is that much more noticeable.

Animals

I have to admit, my animals are loving it, too!  Djinni has really behaved well off-leash.  However, in the late afternoon or evening walks, I have decided to put her back on-leash.  The reason?  Deer.  Big ones.  And lots of them!!

I took this photo of a young buck in mid-October - ironically, on the first day of hunting season.  I'm not sure if hunting season is over or not - I'm waiting on a reply from the Wyoming Fish and Game folks - but it would appear this little guy survived, and added two hang-along does to his mini-entourage.  The photo below, taken from my wobbly handed phone, isn't that great - but it shows the buck in an open area across the gravel road from the house here.  

However, it seems this buck has really taken to bedding down at night - with his two does - in the grazing yard next to the house, here!  So, for a few nights, Djinni has awakened me at 2 or 3 am to go outside.  She is a slow dog to wake up  - so I have just opened the door to let her out to do her business.  The other night, though, this buck and his two does were just standing in the side yard looking at us - it was a beautiful moment.  Djinni has seen deer before, but not that close or that stationary.  After a frozen moment of staring, Djinni's dog instincts kicked in and she hauled off running for the deer.  For her, this meant circumventing the little barbed-wire fence between the back yard and the side yard, where the deer were.  

For the deer, however, this just meant two graceful hops and they were bounding deep into the pastures to the east of the house.  Djinni has done this twice, and the deer still bed down in the side yard.  So, as an offer of reconciliation, I left a few old apples out there for them last night, and put Djinni on-leash for our evening walks.  

And now, my beautiful cat, Kathman(du). He has really enjoyed acquainting himself with the lay of the land, and has been getting more exercise as a result - including indulging in the cat mint patch next to the house.  He doesn't mind the camera as much anymore - so I'll take that as a sign of him mellowing out a little!