A Wild Hare, Smoke, Dust, and a Heatwave

I saw a black-tailed hare, a rare sighting in this area, I am told. Probably the fire over the mountain pushed the creature this direction. We were sitting on the circular staircase that leads up to the porch and deck -- me, the kitty, and the dog down at the base. I had just talked to Daddy on the cell and was watching the sprinkler dampen the dirt where my SO has optimistically planted grass seed. A little movement up the hill caught my eye. I saw the movement had already caught the eye of the cat. He was staring up the hill, through the pines. The ground is so thirsty, so dry and brown, that a dull-colored hare was not, at first, easy to see. I probably would not have if the thing hadn't moved. It was as tall as the dog, had ears that shot up pink and shaped like fat exclamation marks. He moved awkwardly, warily. And then the dog turned her attention from the fox-eared squirrels she worries all day, high in the top of the pines. Her shepherd head jerked around, ears forward. She's a sight-hunter and when she saw the hare move again, she was up and on the bound.

The hare took off, looking like a small antelope it moved so fast. The dog was halfway up the hill, and already past our property-lined when I called her back. There was no way she was going to catch that hare anyway. It was up the hill and gone in a flash, a wild thing on the run, an odd leaping gait, ears high, powerful back legs working. Even if I had thought to turn the camera on my phone towards the hare, I would not have been quick enough. The chance to see a black-tailed hare would have been missed.

My neighbor was envious when I told him what had happened. "Those are rare," he said, a little note of disbelief in his voice. He doesn't know me well enough yet to understand that I made sure of what I saw before I reported it to anyone. It isn't my way to make up something like that. For one thing, I don't have enough knowledge of nature and her ways to make it up. But I do have a good memory for unusual markings, for characteristics and body shape. And I have my trusty laptop and know the right "search" words to enter, Now, I find myself peering up the hill every evening at dusk, wishing for the hare to make a return appearance, even though I'm sure it won't. I know how much my SO would have enjoyed the experience, too.

It's hot. Man, is it hot. And it's smoky. Only the mornings are bearable and remind us of the loveliness from the winter and early spring. The fire over the mountains exhales in the afternoon, and continues to release rancid smoke that stops all outside activity. I long for the long evening walks with the dog, but the air is unhealthy. Any outside chores should get done before noon. The smoke, the dust from the road when cars go past, the record-breaking heatwave -- if it would just rain. Rain is what this country so badly needs. Rain, please, God. For the sake of the firefighters over the ridge, for the sake of the trees and the dusty ground, the grass, the dry streams, the wildflowers, for the sake of ME!

We're going to a Trash to Treasures sale at nine. We contributed some items to the sale, and now we're going to see what we might want to buy ourselves, and also to see if the stuff we took over there sells. Funny how you have hopes for silly things like that, for your castoffs to be useful to somebody else. The money made in the sale goes to the homeowners association for things like new lodge bedspreads, and fresh flowers planted in the beds by the restaurant. We simply needed to clean out our basement. The people who were here before had left a lot of what we consider junk down there. The rest of it is fit only for the dumpsters. We try to take a little each time we make a trip down the mountain to the garbage bins.

The boys are coming this Wednesday, flying in to Albuquerque, three hours drive away. I almost wish they could have postponed their trip. I'm desperate, as always, to see them both, but the conditions are such that I hate for this to be their first visit. I so much wanted the place to make a good impression, for them to see right away the appeal of this place to us, why we chose it and love it here so much. But with the fire and smoke, the heat and dust, this is not the green mountains we adore. My hopes were, I guess, too high. But the truth is, for the past two days, I have been longing for my Buffalo Wallow. At least there's air-conditioning back in Texas.

Onward ....