I’m originally from Minnesota, so some of Colorado’s wildlife is new to me. I was chatting with my surly neighbor (and I use that term loosely (“neighbor,” not “surly”), since I consider everyone within a twenty-mile radius to be my neighbor) shortly after I moved to the mountains. Our conversation went something like this:
Me: What are those bright blue birds that I keep seeing?
SN (Surly Neighbor): Bluebirds. [It is safe to assume that everything said by SN is done so in a grunt.]
Me: Huh. That makes sense, since they’re really bright blue.
SN: [Grunt.]
Me: So, what are those deer-dog things I see running around?
SN: [Squints.]
Me: Um…they kind of look like deer, but they’re little, like dogs? With, um, antlers? [Uses fingers at side of head to demonstrate antlers.]
SN: Antelope?
Me: Oh! Really? Antelope look smaller in person than they do on a Nature special.
SN: [Shakes head and spits some chew juice.]
I don’t think he was impressed with my intelligence.