Hi All! It was a pretty good week. I took a few days off of work, so that was nice. It was a holiday here, Thanksgiving, which was also good. Although there was rain on Friday and Sunday, the weather was pretty good. I spent a lot of time outside on beaches, in the woods, walking around town and village, across fields, etc. Over all, pretty nice. This was a week where I could pick my smile from several. So, what will I pick?
Animals seen in the wild.
I often see animals when I am out and about and have written about some of the critters here. Today I will talk about three.
On Wednesday I was walking by a cranberry bog when I saw movement. There was something out there swimming. At first I thought beaver. It looked a little sleeker, so I wasn’t sure. I couldn’t see the tail, which is a huge give away with beavers. Also, there were no signs of beaver around, i.e., no chewed up trees or wood. Possibly a muskrat? Maybe. I didn’t get a long view of it as it hid and I didn’t have my camera. Later I looked up these types of critters and decided that it was most likely an otter. That would be cool because I never saw an otter down here, at least not when I knew it was an otter.
Sunday morning when I was walking the dogs I walked tot he edge of a big field. Suddenly something jumped up right in front of me and flew off. It was a ring-neck pheasant. They are not native around here but places stock them every year for hunting. Some escape, and so there is a small wild population. I’m not sure if this was a recent escape or if it was born wild. My guess is recent escapee. Whichever, they are beautiful birds and it was cool seeing one, even if it was imported to be shot.
I try to keep an eye out for animals when I run. You may have read about encounters with bear and a bobcat. Nothing that exciting this week, but I did see a fox when I was running Sunday afternoon. They are not rare and I do see fox at least once a year, but it is still nice to see them.
That is my smile for the week, seeing animals when I was out and about.
What made you smile?
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Come on, I’m sure you smiled at least once last week. Why don’t you share it? I hope you can join in!
Here is list of “rules” and guiding ideas. If you don’t have time to read it right now, just remember that this is an exercise to spread positivity. Don’t smile about the misfortune of others. Don’t smile in a way to excludes others. Make sure a 12 year old can read it.
To join in, write a post to share your smile and then leave a comment on this post with a link to your smile. Or, if you prefer, do a pingback to this post (pingback = have a link from your post to this one) (Note – pingbacks have been very inconsistent – please leave a comment :) ). You can post any time until next Sunday evening (to be simple, I will say midnight GMT, which is 7 PM Sunday for me). Note – I am no longer compiling the smiles into a weekly post as I used to – Sorry, I do not have time.
Trent's World (the Blog) 
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The wildlife you spot on your runs is certainly more exciting than mine – although recently, we’ve had a large family of otters about in the Botanic Gardens next door, so I’ve enjoyed sighting them.
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Even though you have some wonderful gardens to run in, I think you are in a bit more of an urban setting, so… I did think the otter you saw were very cool. I wish I could get a close up of some.
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We are definitely seeking out green spaces in a very urban setting. I have to say I read about your paddles & runs in natural greens with some envy.
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I do love the part of the world I am in for all of the green space :)
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Lovely encounters, just the kind I adore.
I never heard of a Muskrat. Will look it up.
Meanwhile, I am smiling this week at the thought of my Istanbul and Turkey vacation. The most beautiful city on earth. <3
https://natashamusing.com/2022/11/istanbulu-seviyorum-i-love-istanbul-wordless-wednesday/
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Where I grew up muskrats were common, but there were no beavers or otters, so to me they are “normal”. These days I occasionally see beavers in the wild.
Yes, I love seeing animals in the wild. It is is always a huge smile.
I did see your post on Istanbul, but will return for another look :)
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Tell me about it. Heading for some birding jaunt soonish. But I can’t wait to see some reptiles/snakes too. :)
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Reptiles are pretty cool. We have a few snake species around here, but they are boring (except the time I almost stepped on a rattle snake while running, but that is a different story).
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Tell me more 😃🐍🐍
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lol, that is actually most of the story. I was running. I saw the snake beside the road pretty much as my foot was coming down. There was a loud, crisp rattle, just like in the movies but much more real. And my foot picked up and I was away. I looked up the snake when I got home and sure enough it was a timber rattlesnake.
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You mentioned an otter, and I have an Otter iPad case/cover. Supposed to be the best protection, but I can’t get it on.
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I have heard of the otter cases/covers. Odd that you can’t get it on – is there someone that can help? I think for those types of things you need a 12-year-old ;)
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Yes I definitely need someone younger. It is beyond me and I was watching a YouTube video and I got it apart finally, but couldn’t figure out how to put the iPad in and close it all up. Once on they are also hard to get off I hear. One of the young aides said she would try to put it on for me, but she has to work as well so depends on whether she remembers and can do it and has the time while she is working. It is not exactly in her job description. LOL!
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Pingback: The Weekly Smile for the 28th of November #weeklysmile – Tessa Dean – Author
Totally understand this, having lived in a rural area. Always a nice moment seeing an animal:):) There are so many smiles – the biggest one is probably that I am going to show some small Christmas paintings this week:)
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Yes, seeing animals in the wild is always worth a smile or two.
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Pingback: Everyday Moments(#SOL-2022) – Mukhamani
great animals, Trent :)
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Seeing animals is always great :)
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Yay, critters!!
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Critters are great! Love seeing them in the wild :)
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All 3 of your animals are very special and would be a rare sighting around here. We saw a fox in our backyard this fall, in 30 years living here I’ve only seen a fox 1 time before. The one this year was so beautiful!! And I saw an otter at Kensington this summer, never saw one before. I haven’t seen a pheasant in decades. I’d love to see one again. You had a great week!
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Fox are beautiful. the one I saw yesterday was at a distance, so I didn’t get a good look. Even if I see them more than you, it is still special to see one :) I still hope to get a better look at the otter! I am not sure if I have seen a pheasant int he wild before and this was very close. Beautiful bird.
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