Evening, JimmyJ,

You made me laugh with your response, Sir!! Funny! In truth, we've had both bears and mountain lions up on the roof of our house, in the past! So, it's not just wandering the woods when you need to be prepared.

Once, we had gotten to bed very late, after getting my wife ready to leave very early in the morning for a work gig. We had to get up at the very crack of dawn to get her down to the airport. But, just as soon as we hit the sack, we could hear VERY LOUD purring coming from the roof just outside our bedroom window!! I whispered to my wife that I thought it was a mountain lion. She asked, "Are you going to get your flashlight and look"? To which I replied, "Hon, we've got to get up in just a few hours, so I'm just going to go to sleep. It's purring, and so not angry about anything". But, I did reach out and pull my Lightweight Colt Officer's ACP just a little closer to me on the nightstand! In a few hours, the alarm clanged us awake, and we headed down the mountain to the airport. When I got back home, after several hours, I hit the sack again, for some much-needed catch-up sleep. In a few more hours, I arose, dressed, and went out to the forest behind our home, to see if I could find any tracks. Sure enough, there they were. Some deep push-off tracks where the cat had jumped up onto our roof! The forest comes right up to our house at that certain place, and it's only a short jump to the roof, especially for a mountain lion! I climbed up there, to see if anything was out of place, and found a large bone that had been gnawed down to far less than what it had originally been!! So, I figure the cat was outside, on the roof, gnawing on that bone, and purring it's contentment, whilst we were trying to get to sleep the night before! Interesting thing: when that cat showed up, and for as long as it was in our area, all our local raccoons were suddenly no where to be seen!!

In any case, I am always armed appropriately when outside doing chores, as I was today, or just walking in the woods. It definitely pays to be aware of your surroundings and prepared to defend yourself, and others, should the need arise. Thanks for the nice laugh, JimmyJ! Take care, and God Bless!

Every Good Wish,
Doc

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Honor God, above all.