Waiting on the Front Step

Now that the weather has finally warmed here in Minnesota--knock on wood--Chip-Chip commonly waits on the front step for me to come home.

Rolling down my car window, I called out "Chip-Chip," and he seemed to get excited, standing up on his hind haunches to get a better look. I parked in the garage and reached for the peanuts. Approaching the front step, now less cautiously than in the past, I reassured Chip-Chip of who I was by talking to him. I'm not sure, but chipmunks are either familiar with my voice or just curious about the strange noise coming from a dorky looking human being.

At any rate, I dropped a few peanuts. After evaluating my intentions, he crawled down the step and stuffed one in his pouch and then, as a treat, ate the second one. Having fed my little critter friend, I began walking back down the sidewalk toward the side door. Much to my surprise, Chip-Chip followed--or at least he ran parallel to my path. What more did he expect?

So I stopped and chatted with him a bit more, checking the neighborhood to make sure neighbors or passersby didn't think I was losing touch with reality. Chip-Chip maybe wonders that himself.

A few moments later I went into the house.

Then a thought occurred to me: Chip-Chip may now be expecting his late afternoon meal every time he sees my car pull into the driveway.

And that led to another thought: Chipmunks can put a lot of pressure on a person.