Even The Varmints

Nobody likes to run over animals. Even the varmints. But it happens all the time. Granted, I am sure that there are some people who could not care less, and yet others who actually gun for them when they see them in the roadway.

But I am not one of them.

And I feel bad every time I see one lying in the road, or on the side of the road dead. I wish there was a way for them to be more aware of their environment, and of oncoming cars.

But they are animals, and their minds do not work the same way as ours do.

I did pest control for about 4 1/2 years. Maybe one of these days I will tell the story about how that came to be, since most of my career after a 4-year stint in the United States Navy was in the manufacturing sector.

These days I am in sales.

But even during my time working as an exterminator, my job being to dispatch many things including mice and rats, and of course bugs and insects, I still had a heart for a lot of the animals.

Let's not get carried away. The rats and mice were a necessary kill, mind you. I am not sure what separates them in my mind. But I do separate them in my mind.

One of the parts of my job was as a licensed trapper. And so it was common for me to trap critters like racoons, squirrels, opossums, and even skunks. While some guys in my field were more callous about these creatures and would dispatch them, I always let these animals go in a safe place far away from the location where they were captured.

I like animals. They are just another part of this world we share, and I think they have a right to belong, even if sometimes they find themselves in places where we don't want them to be.

Skunks were the only varmints I chose to dispatch, usually by drowning. But it was never an easy thing for me to do. I never took pleasure in doing this, and always felt bad afterwards, and even still regret it to this day.

But skunks were simply more difficult to release without getting sprayed, and so I had little choice despite my ill feelings toward it.

Funny little story

I kid you not, in the Wisconsin state legislature some years back, there was a debate going on to determine the placement of deer crossing signs. They were trying to determine, through "kill data" that had been compiled, and that is compiled every year, if there were areas were more signs needed to be added, or if some could be removed.

It was somewhere within that discussion that one democrat representative was called to the floor to speak. She had a question she wanted to pose for debate.

She rustled some papers, turned on her microphone, and began.

"Would it be a better part of this discussion to determine not whether we add signs or remove them, but that we put these signs in places where it is safer for the deer to cross?"

There was a moment of silence in the chambers before another representative turned on his microphone. "Can someone inform the honorable assemblywoman that the signs are not for the deer, but for the drivers?"

It was a very funny thing to watch. And I wish I could find the YouTube video, but this was years ago and either it was taken down or never existed. I only knew of the story and got to watch the video as it was, at the time it occurred, reported in the news.

It was one of those moments that served as a reminder that when you vote, it is important to know who you are voting for.

Back to the varmints

Needless to say, when I am driving I am very mindful of my surroundings in any event. I take great care to always pay attention, and to practice defensive driving techniques. As my father always used to tell me, "You are really just looking out for those that will hit you, not necessarily the ones you may hit."

His words were kinder than mine. My interpretation is that all you are doing is simply trying to avoid idiots on the road.

But with that in mind, it's not to take care to be aware of other drivers. But of all other things that can create for a bad situation, or end a life. Again, even the varmints.

Even if I see a squirrel dancing around alongside the road, I am still mindful of his presence, and try to be prepared if he should suddenly decide to make his way into my path. This way I have time to react, and we both go away happy.

To me it is simply that life is important. It's valuable. And I take no pride nor pleasure in being responsible for making a decision (accidental or not) that is not ultimately mine to make.

Lead image courtesy of Pixabay, user videorevive. Possum Rodent Opossum - Free photo on Pixabay