I wonder the same thing with my DD's woods bear.

What keeps it on the right side of the screened door??
I am cooking a meat sauce for lasagna...what if the damn things got some Italian in it?? People aren't the only things that traveled over the ice into the americas!

I'm thankful I have a backup plan for the failed pineapple cake

Just make sure you have extras Rosie

billyporter said:Lyn,
A bear in the trash scares the bejeebers out of me. How can you trust them to not just bash in a door or window if they smell food? Apparently they don't lol, but I see how they can rip off a car door.
Your tree sounds magnificent!

I am taking a break from eatin' bear, so if this post is too long ... just skip it ...

Sally ... I live in an gold mining town in the mountains of northern California which is in the second mother lode of the California gold rush. Altho' the town was established in1850, it is still just a wide spot on the highway going from central California over to the coast.

There is a meadow across the road from my house which is a park that was donated to the town by one of the original founders, so there is no development between my house and Main Street, which I can see from my front door ..



The bears live in the trees on one side of the meadow



They never got into my trash until I got new neighbors who did not know how to bear proof their trash and who could afford trash pick up .. I take mine to the dump myself .. and they put their stinky trash out for pick up. The bears have learned that a trash can has food in it, so when they see one, they just have to do what bears do ... go for the food.

I know how to bear proof my trash, so when they get to my trash, there is nothing for them, so I usually only have to clean up after them once in a while. It's only when there is a new bear in the group that I have to do the clean up chore.

My house was carved out of a slope and the trash is located down on the street level and all entries to the house are up stairs. I have never had to worry about bears coming up the stairs.

You will have to open the photo to see the trash cans in the carport. Sorry about the weeds. It was a rainy spring when I took that photo and I had not gotten to that bed yet ...

There IS a rose in there ...



Rosie ... We have what we call "Problem bears and problem cougars". If there is any chance of a child being hurt, the animal is "dispatched". In other words, killed. Children are sacred. They used to relocate the cougars, but there is no money in the County budget any more for animal relocation. The County doesn't even have sufficient funds for law enforcement for the two legged predators. That has a higher budgetary priority.

If a homeowner has a problem bear or cat, he or she is given permission by USF to kill it. Some folks take care of the animal themselves, others hire a hunter. One of my girlfriends had to carry her rifle with her every time she went to her greenhouse because she had both a bear and a cougar hanging around her property for a couple of months.

btw ... I am more afraid of the two legged predators.

I am thankful I allowed myself to take a break .. now back to eatin' bear ...

Rosie,
That meat sauce sounds SO good!

Ronnie,
Sorry about your cake, but I sure laughed!

Lyn,
I imagine bear meat is pretty hard to swallow, lol!

Oh wow! What a magnificent view and to have no devlopment is awesome! I would love to walk in there, but not with bears. Can you smell the pines?
Love the screen door to your steps. That must keep the little critters out?
Living with nature. That is more than I do with my little squirrels, rabbits and occasioal fox, coyote or raccoon.

I'm thankful to only live with scardy creatures.

Sally ... The bears in the park actually stay away from people. They are not what we think of as "problem" bears ... None of them have shown any aggressiveness towards people in the park nor any friendliness. They stay hidden during the day and the town continues to hold functions and concerts in the park with no bear problems. They just come out at night and mess with people's trash ... This has been true for the last 12 years. Of course, they are monitored just in case one of the bears doesn't follow the rules ...

The gate to my fence, along with other fencing does keep the deer out of the house pad garden where I grow my roses. I consider the front of the house to be deer territory and try to grow deer resistant plants in front. I have caged the roses Mrs. J, the previous owner, planted, but I haven't planted any deer candy out there. I have another gate on the other side of the house and a deer fence at the top of the slope behind my house.

Half of my back yard is taken up by a steep slope and the owner of the property above me. The people that own the property are the heirs of the founder that donated the meadow to the town for the park. Their property will also be donated to the town for a community center in the future. So there will be no development above me.

I do have all of the the critters, but I throw my kitchen waste, very little gets wasted, over the cliff because there isn't enough to feed the garden so they can go through the blackberries instead of my garden to dine.

There is a seven foot cliff across the road and the meadow slopes gently all the way down to Main Street.







The slope in my back yard ... the deer go back and forth along the top of the slope:









So far, the squirrels stay in the oaks at the top of the slope, the racoons dine across the road and no rabbits. I do have a fox that passes through and now and then a cougar that passes through, but neither stay around. I have never seen or heard the cat. I've just seen his or her tracks. The fox is a lovely thing to see at night as he drifts like a shadow through the garden and up the slope on his way to another part of the mountain ... I have heard the coyotes on the other side of town, but not on my side of town ..

More about eatin' bear later ...

I am thankful to have slept late this morning ...

I decided this cold stuff was making me too grumpy so I decided it was better to switch over here and be thankful! I'm thankful I had a great time with my daughter and grandchildren - my DD and I even got to take a couple of hours on Sunday to go for a Sunday brunch with just the two of us. I'm thankful that I had a safe drive home. I'm thankful that I have a job to come to today (kind of ), and I'm thankful my one boss told me I can leave any time since I still sound like crap

And after reading about Lyn's bears and cougars, I'm thankful they aren't in my back yard

I'm thankful my husband is handy and he made me windows for the little room he added on to the kitchen to keep the cold out...more plants to save

Wow ! This sentence didn't read right in my post above "Half of my back yard is taken up by a steep slope and the owner of the property above me."

Sorry about that ...

I think you know that it should have read, "Half of my back yard is taken up by a steep slope."

Just stopped in to say "Hi" and to say that I am so very thankful for a sunny day.

Either way Lyn you have a gorgeous back yard

The whole area there is gorgeous!! I wish I had a view like that!

I'm thankful for a day spent with my hubby, doing productive things in Calgary, then going for lunch at a place I've heard about but never been (nothing to write home about, but some people seem to like it - it's homey), and that we've paid everyone back that we need to, plus got some stuff in the stores there that we needed and still have funds

Lyn.. a rugged landscape for sure. Beautiful. Can see why folks fight to preserve it. Beautiful view from at deck. A lot for you to take care of...no wonder you are so busy all the time. At least you are never bored and idle.

Lyn,
I'm glad the bears aren't a problem. I'm leery of all wildlife bigger and faster than me. Heck, I'd scream if a raccoon chased me. Otherwise I enjoy wildlife, lol!
I am so glad I don't have a deer problem. Even tho I'm right next to a gravel road and treelines, I rarely see deer. Sometimes I do see them cross the field to the north of me. In the spring, every house in town seems to have a rabbit or two. I looked out the bedroom window last night and there was one sitting by the house, lol! We occasionally get to see a fox, but it was years of living here before I ever did. Coyotes we have to the east of us. I rarely hear them.
Wow, what a spectaclular place you live in!
Got the steep slope just fine :o)

Ginny,
That is a lot to be thankful for. You must have been really grumpy, lol!

I'm thankful I have a treadmill I hate to use. But baby, it's cold outside and I need to walk for a half hour. On the treadmill I can at least read.

I am thankful today is ANOTHER warm day..autumn fiery...in PA..Where I usually freeze

House is spiffed and I am on the deck!

Bronchitis went from viral to bacterial. Dr gave me antibiotic and day and night cough suppressants. Also have sinus infection. I'm thankful it wasn't pneumonia

The bacteria take advantage when the immune system is kicking out antivirals. That is how flu gets us....pneumonia ( bacterial ) sneaks in

I'm thankful I don't have (known) bad bacteria in me........ good bacteria is fine!
I'm thankful that the exercises the knee Dr's office gave me are loosening my knees up and I'm doing them well. Of the 12 exercises, only ONE gives me grief, and that will pass too once I do it enough.