Lynchburg Living

Editor's Letter

By Johanna Calfee

It was 1 a.m. on July 18. I should have been in bed, but the lure of a good book kept me wide-eyed. As I finished up the chapter and prepared to head upstairs, my cat, who gets a little stir crazy at that time of night, came tearing around the corner towards me. Since this is typical behavior for her, I barely glanced up—until a dark, flying object shot over my head.

“Please tell me that is not a bat!” I thought.

But of course, it was. Contained within the small study where I sat, the bat began doing NASCAR laps above my head as my cat hurled herself off our furniture in a vain attempt to catch it mid-flight. So I did what any other 9-month pregnant woman with an out-of-town husband would do at 1 a.m. I got a broom and started swinging to shoo it out of the house. Ten minutes later, the bat had moved to the living room, where it had originally flown in through the fireplace and had taken to dive-bombing my head. Cutting my losses, I ran to wake the neighbors and then called 911. Yeah, I might have overreacted.

A half hour, many shrieks, an army crawl up the stairs to close the upstairs rooms off and a return call to dispatch later, the bat finally flew out the front door into the night. My mother always said nothing good ever happened after midnight. She was right.

This is the time of year where wildlife seems to get a little closer to us all—perhaps a little too close in some cases. Deer emerge in droves, raccoons find their way to our trash cans and those crazy bats fill the sky by the hundreds. While you may not crave my up-close and personal experience with one of these creatures, attracting and observing them in your backyard can be an enjoyable family activity. To learn ways to lure them closer and what you can expect to see this time of year, check out the “Backyard or Bust” story in the Garden section.

For an even more intimate experience with nature, plan a visit to the Blue Ridge Parkway, which is now celebrating its 75^th year.  From festivals and hikes fit for the whole family, to more strenuous stints via bike or foot for the more adventurous at heart, there’s never been a better time to appreciate the beauty right up the road from us.

Of course, should nature come a little too close for comfort, rest easy in the knowledge that such experiences usually make for funny or memorable stories … even if they do happen to occur indoors instead of out in the wild.

Best,

Johanna Calfee

Managing Editor