21 July, 2020 - The Neighborhood Skunk Family Strikes Again & Dragonflies

Dear, Mom -

Good afternoon, Mom. I hope you have been able to enjoy some sunshine, but also are staying nice and cool with your friends. We had our little air conditioner on all night last night and it was just right. Tonight we don’t have it on and just have the fans going. It cooled down pretty fast once the sun went down. Yesterday, I meant to share with you a really amazing picture I took of a very big dragonfly. When the sun hit it, it was the most beautiful lavender color. You can’t really see that in the picture so much. It was pretty neat because I took Elsa out back to patrol the perimeters for squirrels and there this big guy was, flitting around. Then it landed right in front of me. I didn’t have my phone with me to take a picture, so I ran back in the house thinking, “Please, please, please don’t fly away...”. When I came back out, it was still there, but it flew away when I got close. I said, “Oh, I wanted a picture.” It flitted around some more than rested right back in the place it was before and voila! I got a picture! It never hurst to ask :)

A Male Twelve-spotted Skimmer (Libellula pulchella)

These insects are “large, robust skimmers” that are found “near the water’s edge by lagoons, creeks, ponds, and lakes”. It is interesting because we are near the Willamette River and a few miles from the Smith-Byee Wetlands, but not really close to a water source where they are found. I have seen a few of the smaller damselflies (dragonfly) in the yard, too, but the skimmer was really a treat!

When I was walking Elsa this morning, my neighbor Lauren was sitting outside with her dog and youngest son. She told me that Boba (her young, German Shepard dog) got sprayed by a baby skunk early in the morning. She said they had no choice, but to bring him inside into their downstairs bathroom to give him a bath, therefore making everything downstairs smell like a skunk. It will for a while. This we learned the hard way last year when Elsa got sprayed in the front yard right in the face. It was horrible! When we take Elsa out at night now, we have to put her halter and leash on because she won’t remember what a skunk is and what it does unfortunately. The skunk smell has been very thick around her lately, too. If there weren’t so many people being urban farmers with their darn chickens in tight spaces, we wouldn’t have the skunk problem that we do. They want to eat the chicken feed and scraps. I’ve blocked lots of holes around the perimeter of the yard where they were coming in. I once laid in bed and watched a huge skunk meander around the backyard. It was so loud I could her it grunting and sniffing around. It came within a foot of where the window was open and I stayed perfectly still. Once you hear them or see them stomp, that’s when it is time to high tail it out of there (if you can). That is their warning sign that they are getting ready to dose you with their foul spray!

Don’t be fooled! A baby skunk is pretty darn cute, but it can spray at 6 weeks old!

When I got home from work, Holly told me I should take over our Skunk Out solution for out neighbors so they could start wiping things down. It’s also good to put in the laundry. I can’t say it works 100%, but if definitely helps a lot. They were really appreciative because I think they were still in a bit of shock about what had happened. I told them they had now been initiated into the “My Dog Got Sprayed by a Skunk” Club. Elsa, Stella, Rusty, Rosie, Roxie all sprayed within the last year. I’m sure there are other dogs that I don’t know about, too. I hope it’s a once only thing, although that is left up to fate and luck!

I took a walk with my client, and your old housemate, Bob today. It was pretty warm out, but we had a mission to find some special flowers to take pictures of for you. Bob helps me pick out flowers that he thinks you will like. Look at this Hot Papaya Echinacea! So unusual and pretty.

It is like they have crazy hairdos!

Pink Spotted Bellflowers

An awesome Texas Prickly Pear

A strikingly red Garden Rose

Variegated pink and white Gladiola

An Annual Honesty or Silver Dollar plant

Gorgeous Petunias! Look at that magenta color!

Amore King or Queen of Hearts variety of Petunia

Lily of the Incas. My favorite shades of orange!

Last, but not least, here is Elsa the dog who wants to tell you to have the best day EVER! She sends lots of licks and cuddles to you and your friends. Some day she will come see all of you in person for pets and treats! She loves you!

I love you, too, Mom. Have a great day today. I will think about you as I see the flowers blooming and deciding what pictures to take for you. Take care. Do art. Have ice cream. Do all the things that make you smile and laugh. ——-All my love to you, Your Youngest Daughter, Sally Ann❤️