The Skunk Stunk!

We can really tell that fall is coming! Every other night during the last week, we have been awakened in the early, early hours after midnight by the disagreeable effluvium that only a skunk that is aroused can emit into the atmosphere! There is a wild scramble to close all the open windows in the house, and attempt to rid each room of the horrible smell. Ever since Walt Disney promoted the "cuteness" of this dirty, smelly animal in the movie "Bambi" with the cute little skunk, Flower, the animal has enjoyed a remote popularity. (Remote, as in cute from a distance.) Actually, as we live near Creamery Hollow where lots of wildlife lives, we are subject to the depredations of this obnoxious black and white animal. Growing corn in the garden was chancy, because a skunk (or even a racoon) can tell when it's ready to eat, and can knock down the entire plant. I can remember my inborn fear of this animal, since, as a child, I was often out and about in the summer, and sometimes ran into one of the fat, waddling black and white smelly animal. It would have no fear of me, but I would turn and run, heart beating faster, hoping to avoid the inevitable tail lifting and ensuing smell. No picture accompanies this posting, because I certainly am not going to attempt to find a subject to photograph.