Sunday, February 10, 2008

Oh Deer!

The weather in NH continues to be something to talk about - we have had some form of precipitation every day since Tuesday.  I'm getting used to looking out my window and watching it snow.  No, we are not buried, because we're just getting these annoying little storms that make the roads slick and leave us with between one and three inches of new snow -- daily.

Diva is taking skiing lessons for the third year.  We have a great little mountain about 40 minutes North of our house, and the school takes the kids there every Friday after school.  Weather permitting, that is.  We've had three of five weeks rained or snowed out.  

Last Friday the weather cooperated beautifully.  It snowed all day, giving a couple of inches of new powder.  The temperatures were in the low 30's and there was no wind -  perfect skiing weather.  I actually strapped on a pair of skis myself and took a few runs with Diva and her friends.  I'm pleased to report that I have no broken bones or torn tissue.  

We've been hearing a lot in the news lately about the deer situation.  Because the snow is so deep and much of it is now crusted over, they are being chased by dogs and other animals who don't break through the snow, while the deer break through and flounder around.  People are being asked to keep their dogs inside or on leash.  We've had to put wire around all our shrubs to keep the deer from eating them down to nubs.  It is a sad situation, made worse by the fact that our area is so densely populated that few hunters hunt here anymore.  

On the way home from skiing, about a mile from my house, two deer ran out in front of my SUV.  I drive like an old lady, so I slammed on the brakes and missed them easily.  Then BAM, a third deer runs into me!   Looking out my driver's side window I see this wild eyed version of Bambi staring in at me as he bounds off, apparently a bit battered and bruised, but not broken. 

At first I was hopeful that my SUV was not damaged, but when I tried to open my door to get out and look, and it wouldn't open, I realized that was a vain hope.  The deer was uninsured, so my insurance gets to pick up the $1800 of damage he caused.  

Diva asked me after this happened, "Mom, if I had rode with Dad instead of you, would you still have hit the deer?"  Seems her mind was thinking I would have been somewhere else at that time if she had picked Dad to ride with instead of me.  I quickly explained to her that no, it wouldn't have mattered.  It is amazing how a child can assume they are to blame for something like this.  I hope most parents wouldn't blame their kids when something like this happens.      

1 comment:

Hula Girl at Heart said...

Ouch! Hey, if it makes you feel any better we're getting freezing rain today.