Lucky Squirrel

This is a few days late, but I forgot all about it until today. We were on the way to church on Sunday. We usually drive to the carpark near Milton Keynes college and walk the rest of the way along the Redway or take one of the Plus Buses which are specially laid on to take people. We decided to go via Chaffron Way and park in the M.K.C.C. car park because when we started the car it was being somewhat stubborn starting. Actually, since it's been MoT'd and had work done on it, it makes very little sound when it's being started hence Carol not being able to hear it running, and then over-starting it and it not starting, if that makes any sort of sense. Anyway, as we drove along Chaffron Way near the college, a squirrel ran out into the road from the verge. Carol saw it in time and slowed down, but the stupid creature seemed to do a sort of double-take in the middle of the road, seemed to reverse it's direction of travel and ran under the car, and ran out and back onto the verge, without coming to any harm. Carol squealed, as she didn't want to run it over. But it was a lucky escape for the crazy little thing. We have a running gag about pheasants because we see so many of the stupid birds when we're driving around, most of them looking totally stupid, with no road sense whatsoever, ambling along on the side of the road, generally looking stunned as the traffic roars by, and when they do actually attempt to cross the road, it's so you have to slow down in the car, they seem to stare at you as if they expect you, the driver, to stop just to let them amble across. Then, generally on some winding, open country lane, you see a dead pheasant laying on the side of the road, one bird which hasn't been taught the dangers on the modern highway, how cars a fast and dangerous and it's been squished by a large heavy goods vehicle or some high-speed speed freak who doesn't slow down for the wildlife. As for rabbits, you see quite a few of them hopping around on the side of the road or in the long grass of the verges along the grid roads around Milton Keynes. They do have a habit of running into the path of your vehicle as you run along and when they see you coming, probably at night when you have to use your headlights, they do the old 'staring at the headlights and freezing' when they see you coming, a rather perilous form of self-defence, and as a result being run over and killed. The same way that hedgehogs roll up into a spiky ball when they sense danger and most likely in the middle of the road and also being run over by passing traffic.