Wild Kingdom

Florida is kind of an awesome place to live minus the endless 95 degree summer days and ever escalating electric bills.

I can sit out on my porch and watch tiny lizards scurry over the screen.  Occasionally when a couple of them are feeling frisky I unintentionally witness lizard sex.  I usually walk over and flick them off the screen because they should be doing that under a leaf somewhere.  We have birds that walk ever so slooooowly across the street causing traffic to stop.  Who wants to hit a 3 foot tall bird? That would make an awful mess.  An occasional alligator can be seen sunning itself on the banks of a quiet lake.  For the most part if you don't bother them they won't bother you.  Unless an idiot neighbor feeds them and they think you are their next meal. I've seen wild turkeys and snakes every now and then. But they are always OUTSIDE.

Why then do critters keep deciding that INSIDE our house is the place to be? This morning I pulled back the shower curtain to start the water and a green tree frog about the size of a golf ball plopped himself right next to the drain. I don't know where he came from but I'm fairly sure if he came in through the door I would have seen it. That's the second frog in a month that is on the wrong side of the walls of my house.  I'm envisioning an orphanage of baby amphibians under my furniture.  I chased him around the tub with a plastic pitcher demanding that he didn't touch me. Sticky frog feet are disgusting! I also didn't want to smash him against the side of the tub. If I would have cut off one of his legs or something I would have had to call in sick to work.  Anyhoo, because I'm mostly smarter than a frog it didn't take me long to catch him between the pitcher and an empty coolwhip (yum!) bowl lid.  I relocated him to our flower bed outside. I sure hope his brothers and sisters find their way outside too. Next time without my help!