Dancing Girls: Last Kiss / Red Squirrel Rescue

Now, I have two stories for you today. The first one is a silly one, starring the Dancing Girls and some candy. The second is a serious one, starring a red squirrel whom I rescued from the road. Buckle up, Buttercup. This one has some strange twists and turns.

First, the Dancing Girls. . . . My husband and I went backpacking last week, and I took along some special candy. I discovered quite by accident that I love the Hershey's Kiss flavor called Birthday Cake. Guess what: you can't buy it around here, at least not right now, and it's awfully expensive online.

I have ONE KISS LEFT that I have been hoarding for months, in hopes that I would eventually buy more. I have not found more. I actually take the last kiss out and sniff it sometimes. (Yes, I know this sounds very strange!) I can't condone the price I'd have to pay to buy them online. So I took my last kiss along backpacking last week, as an extra special treat, but I somehow forgot to eat it!

So thinking its end may be near, I decided to let the last kiss star in its own blip, with the Dancing Girls transporting it. This is the result. Here we have Dancing Girls in a late model pink Cadillac, several more Dancing Girls on either llamas or alpacas, and of course, the Crittergators looking on. What fun! And no, I still haven't eaten that kiss yet! Doesn't it look special? *sniffs the kiss* And yes, it SMELLS like HEAVEN!!!!

Now on to the second story. My more tender readers may want to skip this tale and not look at the extra photo. It's your choice. Does this story have a happy ending? We don't know yet. . . .

Well, I had another critter rescue on this day's walk. I saw a little reddish looking squirrel on the road, where I presumed it had been hit by a car. I've seen plenty of little red squirrels hit on the road there, over time and many walks. There are tall pines on both sides of the road. I think the squirrels live in those trees.

The squirrel was lying on the road, so I assumed it had been injured, though I saw no blood or obvious abrasions. But it didn't look squashed at all. And then it MOVED. It was still alive! I knew it didn't have a chance at all on the road where it was lying, but I didn't have any implements with me to pick it up. Now what!???

Fortunately, I was wearing a thick sweatshirt, with long sleeves. So I pulled my sleeves down over my hands, braced myself to possibly be bitten, and reached down and lifted the little squirrel off the road. Here we go!

Well, as soon as I picked it up, you know what happened next: the squirrel came to life, and began making loud chittering squirrelly noises, as it quickly climbed up me! Suddenly, there we were, the squirrel and me, mano a mano, on the road.

You'd be surprised how long it seemed to take, those few seconds, just those few steps to get it off the road. I grabbed on to hold it better so I didn't drop it, and the squirrel bit me on the hand. Not a horrible big bite, just a scratch, really. Poor thing. ("Everybody bites you when you save them," says my husband.) I instantly washed the bite with antibacterial soap. Yes, I'm current on my tetanus shots. No, I don't plan to get rabies shots. And yes, the bite looks fine today.

Then the little squirrel settled into my arms, where it made a sorry, sad, little keening sound, like a whimper. I was beyond the edge of the road now, by the big pines, where I think it might live. 

I placed it gently on the grass, where I left it (see photo in extras). I hope it makes it, but I'm no squirrel doctor or any sort of medical expert. It was Sunday morning. No, I didn't bring it home or drive it to a vet or a rescue. But I did my best in the moment, with what I had. I got it off the road to safety. I gave it a better chance to live.

Now, here is the update as of the next day. Armed with a tote bag, a butterfly net, and heavy work gloves (yes, if you saw a strange woman thusly armed on a walk this morning, just know that it was ME!!!), I marched down the road to where I had placed the squirrel, only to find it was GONE. GONE! No trace of it. 

I searched all around through the pines where I left it. Nothing. Now, this could be either good OR bad news. The squirrel could have been merely stunned, and eventually got up and walked away. Or it could have been dispatched by a predator overnight. 

I have no idea which way the wheel turns. But you know what? I give myself PERMISSION today to believe in happy endings. I do! Let's believe for the best, hope for the best, and work toward the best. Shall we give the little red squirrel a happy ending, folks? I say: Why not?

These two songs are gonna give us whiplash, I think. But here they are. First, for the Dancing Girls transporting the last kiss, here is Pearl Jam, with Last Kiss. 

And for the little red squirrel in the extras, who may have been just stunned and not too badly injured, and who we hope lived to work, eat, and play another day, let's have this one: Earl Thomas Conley and Emmylou Harris, with We Believe in Happy Endings.