(Reprinted from the Nov. 2, 2001 Suburban News)

As I started down the cellar stairs, a sight met my eyes. There at the cat’s dry food dish was a red squirrel eating away.

I grabbed a nearby broom and chased it away. My cellar is typical of all New England hoards; so the squirrel had plenty of safe places to go.

I called two helpers, my wife and my cat, Annie. With the outside cellar door open to freedom I started banging on this and that until Mr. Red Squirrel made a dash out the door under my wife’s watchful eyes.

I felt good like any warrior after a successful battle.

Sad to say, about two hours later I descended those stairs again. Out of the top of the fifty pound sunflower seed bag appeared another red squirrel. I yelled again, for my wife so she could reinforce the troops. Again, the back cellar door was opened and again with North Korean army yells and banging away on anything that would make noise, we watched. Out from under the freezer on a dead run with tail hung high, the critter moved with great speed out the door and under the new woodpile.

A close examination of the cellar disclosed a small hole that had been enlarged slightly by a squirrel’s teeth near where the outside water pipe passed through the cellar wall. Quick work with tin and wood repaired the spot so that the cellar would be a safe place for us to keep the cat and bird food.

A little later a couple of red squirrels were seen robbing the bird feeder. Can’t be sure if was the same two; but it could have been.

Well! it sure added a little excitement to a rather dull fall day.