PHOTO OF THE WEEK

I stood there quietly with my camera, moving slowly and carefully, so

I wouldn’t spook or distract them. By “them” I mean the golfers in the

Costa Mesa Golf Championships at the Costa Mesa Country Club. At about

the same time I heard the distinctive noise of a golf ball going into the

hole, something hit the ground hard from the tree above.

As I scanned the ground trying to see what it was, something else came

speeding down and “thunked” me on the top of the head. I looked up and

there was a squirrel munching on a nut, trying to act nonchalant. I swear

he threw those nuts at me on purpose...

Now every golf course has its share of squirrels, but the squirrels on

this course seem to be pretty well fed, move a little slower, and do not

give a hoot about people being in close proximity. I was pondering their

tameness as I watched another squirrel searching the ground, doing his

squirrel thing -- you know, take a couple of short hops, pick something

up with the front paws while sitting on the hind quarters, munch on it a

couple of times, toss it to the side and move on to the next treasure

found in the grass. But this squirrel’s search was leading him right in

my direction.

My pondering about this squirrel was distracted by a few golfers

teeing off. But then my attention was hooked by rodent chewing noises

coming from right behind me. There was my squirrel, chomping on a pine

cone. Kind of cute, so I thought I would crouch down and get a photo of

him.

At first, looking through my lens showed only a blurred vision of

colors. I cranked it into focus only to find the squirrel staring dead

back at me. Instead of a sprinting off like a normal squirrel, this

little guy stood his ground and gave me a look like you get from a dude

who just caught you checking out his girlfriend. So I shot two frames and

left before any trouble started.

-- Steve McCrank