Monday

I returned to Greensboro today. I ate good deli food. I'll hopefully hang out with a lot of my friends tomorrow. My trip into town was fine: sunny and clear, with no tough decisions to be made about driving without working windshield wipers. What a relief after yesterday. I spent all Sunday night walking outside the hotel to check the sky. It seemed very much like the clouds were here to stay when I checked. Then, right after four and just before going to sleep, the sky started clearing and I relaxed a little. There was a slight breeze and I could see stars and moon for the first time all night. I was turning to go back inside when a shadow caught my attention and I stopped. A dark shape was quietly making its way across the parking lot. In the dark, at the distance, I was still able to tell it was an adult fox; but there was no need to guess: in a minute it was very close in the bright streetlight adjacent to where I was standing. There was no question about it. It was a large, healthy fox. Its fur was an even brownish-gray with black tips. It was about four feet long, half of which was bushy tail. When it came closest to me, about eight feet, it stopped, stood very still, and looked me over--I could see its whiter chin and fluffier cheeks. Its ears were very big and its head was very flat. A minute later it moved again, off at an angle that took it into some landscaped brush shadows and out of sight. A minute later I moved again, too, going inside and to bed. After tonight, these postings may not happen again regularly until after Friday. [Cavin]