going native

sorry about the long absence, but I'm back for better or worse

I think I am starting to be an aspen native.  Really you may ask?  Really.  Why?

1.  I can smell bears on the trail---they smell kinda like like ripe berries mixed with elk crap.  I was walking the dogs up the ute the other day and thought---humm that smells like bear, and around the next switch back the race was on between a bear and my dogs---lucky the bear won

2.  I found myself having a conversation with another local at a bar about how last year the limited rain resulted in a late and limited acorn supply along with low berry yield resulting in hungry bears eating drywall, hot tub covers and anything else that might contain calories.  This year the heavy snow resulted in limited chokeberry fruit which also made for hungry bears.  Yup, I've gone from talking about funding rates, execution algos and credit spreads to crops for bears.  Bottom line Aspen has a bear problem.

3.  I found myself calling a friend to ask if he has harvested his hay yet.  My daughter's bunny prefers locally grown all organic hay and he is a great supplier and $3 bucks cheaper than the Co Op, and 95% cheaper than the crap you big city bunny owners buy at Petco.  Yes, I can have an informed conversation about hay and I do buy it by the bushel.

PS I have seen a bear each of the last 4 days (since my return from Cape Cod).  Today's sighting included a very small mom and 2 cubs who couldn't have weighed more than 30 lbs.  Clemmens scared one of the cubs who scampered up a 3 foot tall Aspen sapling.  Very cute, and I would share a pic but I was too busy keeping the dogs under control so as not to piss off momma bear.