Kat with a K

Out in the Woods

Now, I don't live in a particularly rural area. My town used to have lots of farms but at this point it's pretty much a standard suburb. According to Wikipedia, the population is around 25,000, and it's the eighth largest municipality in the state. But the specific spot where my house is located is far more "rural" than most of the town, by which I more or less mean that it's the last house on a dirt road, with a bunch of undeveloped (so far) woods behind it, and no other houses in sight. This has its positives and negatives: I love the quiet, but at night it can sometimes get a bit creepy; and I feel most at home amidst lots and lots of trees, but it's virtually impossible to keep the house completely clear of bugs and mice.

But the best part of living out here is what happened last night: I walked into the bathroom, glanced out the window, and saw two deer munching on grass (or something?) in my back yard. Just out there, hanging out. Now, there were deer where I grew up in Connecticut, but there it was more common to see them by the side of the road late at night (waiting to ambush your car) than just sort of wandering around in broad daylight like they own the place. Wild turkeys are everywhere, too, and I've seen other things out there that I thought were foxes (but I'm not positive). Because I'm me, my first reaction is to want to go read Sara Donati or someone. (Are there other good "frontier" type historical novels set in the Northeast?) It's amazing to get these sudden reminders of history and context.