Sunday's Sentiment: National Black Cat Day (An Excuse to Celebrate Black Squirrels Too?)

Today is National Black Cat Day. According to many sources, including holidayscalendar.com, this occasion is "celebrated on October 27th, just four days before Halloween... National Black Cat Day is a holiday which celebrates an animal (who) has an image problem. Black cats are not only considered bad luck in the United States but they are also one of the cats that is the least likely to be adopted...

While no one is exactly sure when National Black Cat Day was founded, what is known is that the attitudes about these particular felines are different during different parts of history and in different parts of the world. For example, in Great Britain and Japan, a black cat is considered good luck. However, in the United States, it has come to symbolize bad luck or evil forces. In some parts of the world, if a black cat crosses your path, then it’s considered to be a bad omen. In folklore, black cats are often depicted as agents of evil or even evil itself. In some parts of Europe, they were considered so evil that they were burned alive by superstitious villagers in giant midsummer bonfires..."

I don't have a black cat (or any cat for that matter), but I do have a figurine of someone dressed as a black cat for Halloween.

He/she can be modeling his/her costume in the pictures atop this entry.

In Honor of Squirrel Appreciation Day

Today marks another holiday known as Squirrel Appreciation Day. According to Holiday Insights (HI) this day "is an opportunity to enjoy and appreciate your tree climbing, nut gathering neighborhood squirrels. (And) It's held in mid-winter when food sources are scarce for squirrels and other wildlife."

HI admits that "Not everyone likes squirrels. While they are fun to watch skirting around the yard and trees, they are aggressive at bird feeders. Squirrels tip almost any bird feeder and spill the seeds in search of the particular seeds they want."

This is evidenced in the Mutts comic strip posted atop this blog entry.

It's Squirrel Awareness Month — Learn about these creatures! (Wednesday's Wisdom)

I took a long walk after I published my entry for Tuesday's Truths yesterday. I needed to get the disappointment of what happened to volume three of my book series (Words In Our Beak) off my mind, so I took a long walk in Central Park to pay homage to squirrels since this is Squirrel Awareness Month.

Popcorn Can Be Offered to Squirrels & Birds (Thursday's Testimony)

THIS SQUIRREL IS FEATURED IN MANY BLOG POSTS

THIS SQUIRREL IS FEATURED IN MANY BLOG POSTS

THIS SQUIRREL IS FEATURED IN MANY BLOG POSTS

I recently read, "squirrels eat popcorn and they enjoy it too. Popcorn contains vitamins and minerals such as copper, manganese, vitamin B1 vitamin B3, zinc and others. Popcorn is also a good source of fibre. Leave a bowl of popcorn out in squirrel populated areas and allow squirrels to freely come and eat as they please."

Upon my reading this information I did an experiment to see if the squirrel who has been visiting my garden since July 8th (I know he/she is the same one because of the broken skin on his/her forehead) would nibble on popcorn if I shared mine with him/her; and as you can see from the photographs atop this entry of a squirrel enjoying this taste treat, I apparently did not come across fake news in terms of squirrels liking popcorn.

Attn! Peanuts may not be good for squirrels!?! Let them eat corn? (Wednesday's Wisdom)

THIS SQUIRREL IS FEATURED IN MANY BLOG POSTS

THIS SQUIRREL IS FEATURED IN MANY BLOG POSTS

THIS SQUIRREL IS FEATURED IN MANY BLOG POSTS

As those of you who follow this blog probably know, a alone squirrel, has been visiting my rooftop garden since July 8th 2020. He/she can be seen in the photo-ops atop this entry where he/she is spending his/her time at one of my bird feeders that I have to accommodate the needs of various birds who visit my place.

Squirrel Appreciation Day 2018

The squirrel featured in the photograph atop this entry is one I encountered in Central Park the other day when I was on a mission to catch another glimpse of a Great Blue Heron.

This squirrel seemed to be giving me a special look, as I took his/her picture; perhaps it's because he/she knew I would be writing about the holiday known as Squirrel Appreciation Day, which is today, January the twenty-first.

Certain Squirrels in NYC's Central Park (Tuesday's Truths WK 122)

There is a special looking squirrel (at least to me) who seems to be a loner spending time on the grassy area on the northwest side of Oak Bridge in Central Park; as seen in the photo atop this entry and in the pictures directly below.

As of this entry, I have not learned the exact ID for him/her but here is what the Squirrel Census Commander has to say about it:

"Most likely this specimen is an eastern gray who's color phase is between a cinnamon and black. While I've never seen one exactly like this I'm sure it's possible."

If I find out more re this creature, I will put an addendum in this entry. Meanwhile, a few yards north of this area, near The Shakespeare Gardens (which are in the vicinity of the Swedish Cottage Marionette Theatre)...

Squirrel Appreciation Day was 1/21/2019 (Throwback Thursday)

It is has been one month since the official date for 2019's Squirrel Appreciation Day occurred but it's not necessary to wait for such a holiday or for it to be Squirrel Awareness Month, which occurs in October) to appreciate this animal! These creatures are fascinating to observe at any time of the year.

Monday's Second Memo re Observing Squirrels (It's from Bill Whitehead)

Twenty six days ago,  here on Blogger, I announced that October is Squirrel Awareness Month and ten days later on October 13th, I discussed the fact that a Squirrel Census was taking place in NYC's CentralPark. The census has now come and gone, but when I saw Bill Whitehead's 10-27-2018 cartoon (a copy of it is posted atop this entry), I thought about those involved in the squirrel counting event.

"A Walk in the Park"

Cambridge Press defines the idiom, "a walk in the park," as "something that is very easy to do, and usually pleasant." And indeed, my walk in Central Park yesterday was pleasant. I went there to check out the squirrels since this is Squirrel Awareness Month (as I initially mentioned in my October third entry here on Blogger) and I did not come across the "cinnamon variant" which was the type I encountered last week, but I did meet up with a Black Squirrel who can be seen in the photo atop this entry. In by gone years I've only seen this type in the winter so it was a nice surprise to see this creature frolicking amongst the pigeons...

PIGEONS ARE FEATURED IN MY BOOKS

PIGEONS ARE FEATURED IN MY BOOKS

.... and having some quality time alone.

According to Wiki, "The black squirrel occurs as a melanistic subgroup of both the eastern gray squirrel and the fox squirrel. Their habitat extends throughout the Midwestern United States, in some areas of the Northeastern United States, eastern Canada, and also in the United Kingdom. The overall population of black squirrels is small when compared to that of the gray squirrel. The black fur color can occur naturally as a mutation in populations of gray squirrels, but it is rare. The rarity of the black squirrel has caused many people to admire them, and the black squirrels enjoy great affection in some places as mascots."

Sunday's Sequel (Re my 7-8-2020 Blog Post)

Squirrel Visiting My Rooftop Garden
(which is the setting for my book series)

Squirrel Visiting My Rooftop Garden
(which is the setting for my book series)

As I mentioned in a recent entry, A Day in the Life of my Pyracantha coccinea (7-8-2020), here on blogger, I've had a new visitor to my rooftop garden and he/she can be seen in the images atop this entry.

During all the many years that I've had my garden, I've never seen a squirrel here, nor have I seen one in the trees within my courtyard. Upon my seeing this quirky character, I did some research to see what poets as well as scholars have said about squirrels, and I was thrilled to come upon the following words of Saint Francis of Assisi:

Squirrel Appreciation Day 2021

Today, January 21st, is the annual day to celebrate Squirrel Apppreciation Day. I've written about this holiday within a number of venues including entires on this blog.

These animals can provide a lot of entertainment when you observe them as I've done in both Central Park and Riverside Park over the years when I've encountered various types including Cinnamon Variant squirrels, Black squirrels and Eastern gray squirrels.

On July 8th 2020, shortly after NYC started to begin easing up on lockdown restrictions (many of which were subsequently put back in place) which had been in effect since March due  to the devastating consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, I had the chance to watch squirrels from my window for they began to visit the Ailanthus Trees in my buildings courtyard and as you might surmise from the photo-ops atop this entry, their antics gave me many reaons to smile during those isolating times.

No matter what life is bringing your way, STOP AND SMELL THE FLOWERS

COMMON GRACKLES ARE FEATURED IN VOL 3

Last Tuesday when I went to Central Park, I was on a mission to get a disappointment off my mind by observing squirrels as away of honoring Squirrel Awareness Month (which always occurs in October). I wrote about that particular experience (and included photographs of those busy-tailed creatures) in last Wednesday's posting here on Blogger.

One thing I did not discuss in the aforementioned entry is that while on my way to take in the antics of such entertaining furry creatures, I came across numerous Common Grackles and I shared some of the peanuts that I had intended for the squirrels with them.

A "representative" for this bird type noshing on one of my peanuts can be seen in the image atop this entry. I am aware that grackles like peanuts because I've often seen them in my rooftop garden, munching on this legume.

My Jumping Squirrel (Tuesday's Truths WK 189)

THIS SHRUB IS FEATURED IN VOL 1

In recent blog posts (including one published on 7-8-2020) and one published on 7-19-2020), I've been discussing my observations of a lone squirrel who has been spending a lot of his/her time in my rooftop garden.

One thing I've noticed is his/her's incredible ability to jump. She/he often enters my place by jumping from the trees in an adjacent courtyard on to one of the pole that supports my string lights and from there she jumps on to a stake in the container of my Japanese Larch (Larix Kaempferi) as seen in the photo atop this entry.

NYC Marathon's Fireworks 2016

I JUST went to Twitter to share a link to yesterday's blog post re an adorable squirrel that I encountered in NYC's Riverside Park. He/she can be seen in the first picture accompanying this Blogger entry. If you saw the aforementioned blog post, then you may recall seeing this exact image, as it was included there, along with a few other images of this sweet looking creature. I'm including the picture again today because I thought of squirrels (and other living creatures who might happen to be in the tree tops) during last night's display of fireworks (seen in photos two-three) that were featured in the pre-NYC Marathon extravaganza in Central Park.

Central Park Squirrel Census Ends in 1 WK!

IMAGE CREDIT

I've just been reminded that the Central Park Squirrel Census will be ending a week from today on October 20th 2018.

Because it is Squirrel Awareness Month, I knew the census was taking place, but my mind, as you may have guessed, dear reader, has been preoccupied with the delays in the release of the third volume of my book series, Words In Our Beak...

SEE PRESS RELEASE

... but as I've mentioned here on Blogger in recent posts, I'm making it a point to not get discouraged re my circumstances and to (among other things) focus more than usual on squirrels during their month for awareness (which is always October). 

Saturday's Sequel re The Death of Mary Oliver

It has been eight days since I published an entry re the death of Mary Oliver, the poet I've written about here on Blogger and in social media venues. She is on my mind today as I go through my photos of squirrels, three of which can be seen at the top of this entry.

Here's a powerful poem of hers where this creature is referenced.

Dear Lord, I have swept and I have washed but

still nothing is as shining as it should be

for you. Under the sink, for example, is an

uproar of mice it is the season of their

many children. What shall I do? And under the eaves

and through the walls the squirrels

have gnawed their ragged entrances but it is the season

when they need shelter, so what shall I do? And

the raccoon limps into the kitchen and opens the cupboard

while the dog snores, the cat hugs the pillow;

what shall I do? Beautiful is the new snow falling

in the yard and the fox who is staring boldly

up the path, to the door. And still I believe you will

come, Lord: you will, when I speak to the fox,

the sparrow, the lost dog, the shivering sea-goose, know

that really I am speaking to you whenever I say,

as I do all morning and afternoon: Come in, Come in.

None of my pictures were taken when a squirrel gnawed his or her way "through ragged building entrances," they were taken in NYC's Central and Riverside parks; but I like to think that I have Oliver's mindset re communicating with creatures and communicating with the Lord.

I'm not the best at formal prayers — using words written by others — as they feel false but I do find myself hoping that my care and appreciation for nature and the creatures who dwell in it are my prayer.

So far, it has been a very cold and bleak winter. With no snow to brighten up my surroundings, it looks a bit grim in my garden. But the many reason my garden seems grim is very few birds have been visiting it because there is a Red-tailed hawk in the vicinity.

A Reason One Might Stay "on the fence" (Tuesday's Truths WK 82)

OTHER STARLINGS ARE FEATURED IN "WIOB VOL 3"

OTHER CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN "WIOB"

OTHER CARDINALS ARE FEATURED IN "WIOB"

There have been quite a number of occasions when I've been in Central Park where I've encountered various members of the wildlife community on one of the many fences.These creatures include a European starling, a white-throated sparrow, a female as well as a male cardinal, black squirrels and "ordinary" squirrels (as evidenced in the photo atop this entry).

Whenever I come upon this situation of seeing a creature on a given fence, the expression "on the fence," comes to mind. As you most likely know, dear reader, "on the fence," refers to one who is undecided about a position that  he/she is taking on a given issue.

Paying Homage to White, Oliver and Millay (Tuesday's Truths WK 119)

Welcome to the 119th "episode" of my Tuesday's Truths series. I am honoring it by sharing the mini essay posted atop this entry which was written by E.B.White and published ninety-two years ago today on March 26, 1927.

Follow-Up Friday re 10-20-2016's Blogger Post

This past Wednesday, November the Second, was such an unseasonably warm day, so I went down by the riverside to visit the ducks, geese and seagulls, who spend a lot of time in NYC's Hudson River. (As you may recall, dear reader, I also went down to the riverside on an unseasonably warm October [the 20th] day to take in Shelia Berger's "Bird of Glory and Praise," a sculpture that is currently in Riverside Park, courtesy of The Art Students League.) And like my October visit to the river, once again, this past Wednesday I did see a number of seagulls, some are pictured in the images atop this blog entry.

However, I did not see ducks or geese as I usually do, but I did see squirrels enjoying autumn in NYC. One of them can be seen in the following images.    

My observation of this adorable creature prompted me to recall the following quotation:
   
"If we had a keen vision of all that is ordinary in human life, it would be like hearing the grass grow or the squirrel's heart beat, and we should die of that roar which is the other side of silence."