PapaPaul

&

Hillary

(or, How I Was Captured by a Squirrel)

In the summer of 1995, I began (rather innocently) to feed some of the wildlife from the patio of my home in the Bay Area of California. Since I live in an urban area, I wasn't expecting deer or other large animals, but was content to attract birds and the occasional squirrel.

At first, my culinary temptations were limited to peanuts and sunflower seeds, and the local wildlife seemed happy to have them. They began to show up regularly, obviously expecting that I would drop whatever I was doing and provide a late morning or early afternoon snack.

Over a period of days and weeks, I began to notice that one squirrel in particular - a beautiful Eastern Grey Squirrel - was returning regularly. In fact, she was beginning to chase other squirrels away when the food was put outside. At first, I called her only "Squirrel Girl" to distinguish her from the itinerants that would drop in from time to time. Eventually, though, due to her persistent nature and obvious desire to have favored status, I named her "Hillary."