Colorblind deer ...

I stayed late at work tonight, later than the other cashiers, later than the midshift barista, but just as late as my manager Jen. Today was suprisingly nuts for a Friday and it only took me a few bithcing customers to discover why. On all of the store windows there are 20% Sale signs, on all of the displays there are sale signs but the sale is only for one day and it wasn't today (Friday). The big one day sale starts in about 7 hours. Customers who failed to read the fine print decided that if they complained AT me that I would give them the sale anyway - sorry no thanks, I would like to keep my job. But with all the hustle and bustle during the day and evening and the preparation for an even busier day to follow, closing took longer than usual.

Freezing my ass off on the drive home I wasn't really paying attention directly to the road ahead. I have done that drive in the wee hours of the morning so many times I don't have to look to know which way the asphault will curve. Coming over the train tracks I got distracted by a thought and didn't really see the 12 point buck until we were practically one. What was interested to me, once my heart started beating again was that this large male deer was standing on the 3 foot width of grass and strategically placed trees of the median. When I approached he did not jump out in front of me or run in the other direction but ran parallel to the car. Weaving in and out of the trees moving along with me for about 15 yards. Considering the height of the car, this bizarre animal was eye to eye with me and as bold and confident as I have ever seen. There was no fear and no hesitation in his stance.

This encounter made me wonder about "road kill" specifically of the horned kind. Deer are color blind, hence the hunters in orange jumpsuits. So at night, on a road headlights do not delinate trees from concrete or open fields from open highways, it rather just allows the deer to see its path ... and be hit by its "flashlight". I guess that is the paradox of humans and nature coexisting.