Environmental Cleanup Assistance

I cut the grass yesterday. It went well. No body parts fell off and I didn't end up face down in the rock garden gasping for oxygen. After, to celebrate my manliness, I sat out back with a cold drink and some shelled peanuts. After the strenuous physical exertion, my hand-eye coordination was a bit off and a few nuts slipped from my grasp. To my surprise, this guy hopped up onto the deck, bold as brass, and took control of the peanut spill.

"Right then," he stated. "Harrumph. Yes yes. Quite the mess. Step back. Nothing to worry about. I'll have this cleaned up in no time." I could see the wheels turning. He rapidly sussed out the situation, assessed a priority list, determined a removal strategy and set to work.

He is of course, a member of the chipmunk union. I could tell just by the way he carried himself. Having watched every Chip and Dale cartoon in my youth, I was familiar with their industriousness.

He lives in the back corner of the yard. We've seen each other occasionally and waved. But we've never really chatted.

But when he saw something he could help with he popped over to help. It was great. I don't know what I would have done with those peanuts if he hadn't. He was polite, industrious and obviously a pro.

And my deck is all cleaned up. No lives were lost. No thanks required. And no invoice.

Good neighbors are like that.