Squirrel

Through my window this resident of my yard that feeds on the bird feed scattered daily, was eating off the bark of a poplar tree. Last fall every morning the sound of falling pecans on the roof was being created by the many squirrels pulling them off as they ripened. There are hazel nuts, chestnuts, and other food sources they have stored and their population is growing every year. When I moved to my home, there were no squirrels, just many rabbits in my yard each year. Finally, several years ago a squirrel appeared, finding plenty of food for the population. Eagles now roam the sky and I have noticed the rabbit population has shrunk. I heard a loud screaching the other day and keep looking to find the source. It was a pair of Eagles with one of them making the noise, as part of male/female courtship would be my guess. Any rabbits that enter the field next to my property are in the open of the hay field that is mown for the cows' that have a large pasture next to the hay field. It is a perfect open area for Eagle hunting. One year a small bird of prey took one of my feeding Cardinals. Usually the Cardinals, Blue jays, Doves, and small brown birds are able to feed under a pine and other trees where they are feed by me. I figure they are safer from an attack from above. The squirrels are welcome to feed on the small amount they find, picking through the grass where I toss the bird mix. I used grey squirrel paint brushes for many years painting signs for a living. Now signs are made with vinyl lettering decals on truck doors as well as hanging signs, created with computer software. The days of hand lettering are something of the past. The sign paint created specifically for sign painters contained lead, which made lettering better because only lead containing paint had the opacity and durability, as well as how it worked to make lettering possible using brushes. Lead containing sign paint is no longer sold in quarts like it was years ago, and is only sold in small pint size containers, still containing lead because sign painters know it is superior to non-lead containing paint. Things are changing making the old way of sign creation no longer commercially practical. Most signage is made of vinyl in today's market. Years ago there was a shortage of grey squirrel hair brushes, because of world wide declining grey squirrel population, for hunters selling grey squirrel hair. New synthetic bristle brushes specifically for sign lettering are being sold.