h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I keep telling you people: look outside and tell us what you see.

Sometimes, the world away from the computer will amaze you.

Just now - at 1.45 pm on an unseasonably warm, cloudy day in a small western Pennsylvania town, we saw this:

First, a dozen squirrels running hell-for-leather in single file across the back wall that separates our backyard from the minute municipal car park.

THEN, immediately afterward, four young deer peering over the same wall at us. We ran to the back wall, only to see at least a dozen of the marauding ungulants - in BROAD daylight - running around in the tiny car park. For some reason, they got agitated, and a couple jumped over the far wall onto 8th Street. I hope nobody was out walking, but I didn't hear any yelling.

The rest tore off in the direction of Main Street. One clambered over a parked car - I doubt the owner will be happy with the hoofprints. (Or he'll think it was Santa.)

We just stood there in open-mouthed astonishment.

There is almost no difference between town and country around here. We are keeping Doglet on a tight leash: who knows what else is lurking out there? And we'd better spray repellent on the apple tree again.

PS For those who do not have this alien life form in their neighbourhood, here's one about the age of the herd we saw. They are adolescents with attitude:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8QM2K3ihQo

Or, why you can sympathise with the mother in 'The Yearling'.

how odd. when I saw the title of this, appear on 'my conversation's I assumed it must be a 2legs's journal. very odd animal behavior! - is it windy?

No, not windy today.

If you think somebody else is writing in your journal......er, 2legs, have you seen your brain care specialist lately?

It's not that odd here, except for the daytime part. The deer stroll up and down the streets at night, browsing in gardens...in a nearby village, our piano tuner spotted an elk helping himself to the contents of the church's hanging planters...

They are shameless, and everywhere. We still haven't figured out what that large, lumbering beast was the other night that waddled past our porch...it MIGHT have been a giant raccoon...

It's like Jurassic Park out there, only with fur.

As odd asit appears... I don't actually have a brain specialist/doctor! seriously ... yet... I'm due to see a neurosurgin sometime in Febuary... though I honestly have no idea why now

oo... unaccounted fo r beast? - badger!!!!

If we find a badger in our backyard, I'm blaming you.

I've seen deer in the streets here, but early morning - never at that time of day.

If it's a problem I recommend O'Mulligan's "NO DEER!" deer repellent, although you can't use it at the same time as their "BROCK OFF!" badger repellent.

We have colonial products. But those sound fabulous.

sound fabulus indeed... I need neither, but fear I must buy both... just to own them

In the next town over they have a problem with deer entering the cemetery - in the middle of town! - and eating wreaths and flowers and whatnots from people's graves. Last I heard they were going to import wolf urine from Siberia to scare off the deer . Wonder how that will turn out. We haven't had wolves here since the dark ages. How will our modern deer recognize the (fake) danger

It might be hardwired, that pheromone detection.

If that doesn't work, tell them to send to the UK or US for some of our deer repellents. I'll bet they're cheaper than wolf urine from Siberia.

I believe they already tried those. But apparently our deer don't understand UK and US better than Siberian