the rix mix

I watched a jet black rabbit nibbling grass in a front yard late this afternoon. It was a small yard on a busy street. I was no more than 10 feet away but it paid no attention to me. There's a variety of four-legged wildlife around the neighborhood; mice, rats, squirrels, feral cats, skunks, possums, raccoons. Plus bats. Seen them all. Hate the still, humid nights when a skunk lets loose. But hadn't yet encountered a rabbit, & wouldn't have been surprised a few blocks over where the houses are larger & the lawns are much wider & greener. This particular rabbit looked a liitle too black, a little too plump & healthy, & a little too incautious for a naturally wild rabbit. I think someone's bunny escaped a backyard hutch.

The extended family across the street on the corner kept a rooster in their backyard. I could hear it around my side of the building, but it was terribly annoying to everyone with windows facing that house. They'd let the rooster loose around their yard during the day & some nights didn't bother chasing it back into the coop. Roosters are supposed to be good guard animals. At first, I suspected an unsavory intent, cock-fighting. But the rooster evidentally was a member of the family. Then, at some point last summer, I stopped hearing the ugly bird. Good riddance. Maybe they boiled it into broth.

Labels: Elizabeth NJ