Lollygagging or mulling, depending how you look at these things, my mind was on other things--namely the IDNR budget--when we were nearly home this morning.

So I only half paid attention when the meathead lunged toward the gray squirrel on my neighbor's sidewalk.

Cats are his favorite target for lunging. And I consider free-ranging cats fair game for him.

Squirrels, those backyard rodents, are his second favorite target. Most are smart enough to sprint the other way and climb a tree.

Well, not this one. It charged toward its home elm. Which meant straight at Storm. Just about the time, Storm was about to clamp down on it, I yanked him back when I realized it was a young squirrel.

But I thought about letting him carry through. A moral dilemma of a minor sort.

There is something kind of cute about a baby, or should that be adolescent, squirrel.

As to a more major dilemma, though I am not sure it is a moral one, the IDNR budget dilemma goes on.

Even thoughts rattling around my skull on the back side of the town pond can't solve that one.