Upstairs view

I was sitting at my kitchen table which is on the second floor of the house. A top branch in the cedar hedge that seperates by house from Jim's was moving in the opposite direction as the others. An extremely localized micro-climate? A bird, maybe? The branch waved back and forth vigorously. And then it stopped. After some minutes, it started again. I moved to the window above the kitchen sink which was directly across from this strange branch. A nose needled its way amongst the branches. A blur of brown and black fur. But I didn't think that the lazy cats in my neighbourhood, the ones that don't even bother to bury their mess but just dump it on top of my bulbs as if waiting for some congratulatory praise, I would never have thought that this lazy bunch would have made their way up such a dense and dangerous hedge. But I was mistaken. The tell-tale fuzzy brown and black striped tail whipped across amongst the branches. I clapped my hands and it stopped and peered across at me for a moment, while it listened for the source of the sound. Funny raccoons!

I wonder if it was making a nest there. Jim told me that he found a huge wide nest last year at the top of his back hedge, and guessed it belonged to the raccoons. I thought that raccoons preferred more hidden locales. I suspect that it might have been raiding a bird's nest however. I'll keep my eye out for it as I wash the dishes.