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| Playing the innocent Squirrel card. |
I have gone to Queens University of Charlotte for the past
two and a half years. The campus is beautiful, the classes are small, and the
squirrels are out of their flipping minds! I don’t know what it is, but the squirrels
that roam our campus are psychotic. My theory is that they are ingesting not
only our food, but perhaps some illicit substances that may be tossed out of
some rule breaking students' windows. Regardless of the cause, the squirrels
have some answering to do for their uncalled for actions.
To begin with, they are not afraid of humans. This is
understandable seeing as our two species live among each other in such close
quarters. Secondly, the squirrels seem to enjoy it when a human gets really
close, and then they FLIP OUT! I have had numerous occasions were I was minding
my own business heading off to class and a squirrel has frozen directly in
front of me, stared for a few seconds, and then done some sort of back flip
tumble and scurried up a tree. It truly is a site to see. I think my favorite
memory of the squirrels so far has been when I saw one eating an entire slice
of pizza that it had pulled from the trash can near the coffee house.
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| Looking for his next victim! |
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| They are learning how to ride bicycles! |
Now, when discussing the squirrels with friends of mine I have
found that some are convinced that the squirrels are actually “attacking” the
students of Queens. One of my friends claims that the squirrels throw acorns at
her whenever she walks under the large trees. This is completely unacceptable
and frankly an act of war against the Queens students.
You may be thinking that I am over exaggerating, but I
challenge you to ask any Queens student “Hey have you noticed the squirrels?”
and for you not to get a story similar to what I have described for you.
In the
meantime, prepare yourself, the squirrels are here…. and they mean business.
Jenna Buthman
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| They have eyes everywhere! |
I really enjoyed your post because I too get acorns thrown at me whenever I walk under the large tree by the library. Until we as students of Queen's stop feeding them and allowing them to continue their unusual eating habits, the squirrels will continue to push the boundaries.
ReplyDeleteThis post is hilarious! I've been at Queens for awhile as well and I am proud to say i haven't been hit by one of those acorns yet! Although, I have come very close! It is funny how comfortable these squirrels are around campus! They think they run this place! Great pics and captions!
ReplyDeleteI would have to agree this. It has been a thought in my head that a squirrel is going to attack me almost every day. The most noticeable thing to me is the acorn throwing. It's like they are watching you from afar slowly walk under a tree just so they can drop an acorn (or in their mind, bomb) on the unsuspecting person below. The consistency in which it happens makes you think the squirrels are definitely up to mischievous acts in their thrown's they call tress.
ReplyDeleteMike Reed
The squirrels here are insane, and huge! I have squirrels at my house and they are not nearly as large as the ones here (and I only live 35 minutes away). I don't think it's weird that they are not shy; most animals that are used to humans aren't scared of them. Also, the squirrels provide us with endless entertainment. They are fun to watch scurry around on the branches, and my roommate loves chasing them!
ReplyDeleteI agree, the squirrels are insane here. Not only do they flip out as your get closer but sometimes they even come towards you, and then flip out. I have been a victim, walking back to class and an acorn hit my right on the head! I thought it was just my luck, but now that I think about it... There are also chipmunks on campus. The ones I've seen are just about as crazy as the squirrels, so it probably does have something to do with the school and it's students.
ReplyDeleteIf anyone is in doubt about squirrels attacking people, they are wrong! My husband was attacked by a squirrel when he was on a job site. He walked into the house and heard a noise from the second floor. He looked up and saw a squirrel staring at him. He slowly started to walk through the house when the squirrel flew towards him. The squirrel landed on the back of his neck. Naturally he freaked out, trying to get the squirrel off him. After several seconds of wrestling with the crazy critter, he grabbed the furry animal and threw it in the air. The squirrel landed on the stairwell. My husband and the squirrel made quick eye contact before my husband ran out of the house. Who would ever think a squirrel would attack them? I believe your theory on squirrels attacking students. Good luck with your mission.
ReplyDeleteThese Squirrels have quite the reputation on campus. Whenever I talk to a visiting student or recruit the topic of these squirrels come up! Whether it be me bringing them up and joking about them or the person makes a comment about the squirrels which sends us off into story time about all the crazy things these animals have done. My team always talks about the ninja squirrels, they throw things at us and can be seen eating full meals in the quad. The squirrels have it good here on Queens campus and I don't see them leaving the cushy lifestyle they have created here anytime soon. So I guess all we can do is warn future students about the squirrels and hope for the best!
ReplyDelete-Stephanie Yocum
The squirrels on this campus must think they're ninjas or something. I remember standing directly in front of a squirrel once. He looked at me like he had some sort of problem! What's even scarier is that when I made a sudden stepping move in an attempt to make him run away, he didn't move. Not at all. Their audacity must come from the food or something. There is no other logical explanation as to why they act the way that they do
ReplyDeleteI totally agree! The squirrels in Charlotte are insane. You think the squirrels on campus are crazy you should deal with the three at my house. They climb the tree near my driveway, leap from the tree onto the roof of my house. This happens every Saturday morning and it sounded like someone is knocking a hole inside the roof. All you hear is feet running across the top of the house, I called them Curly, Moe , and Larry.
ReplyDeleteI agree, I think the squirrels here are crazy. I also grew up in a neighborhood with a lot of squirrels but they are no where near as crazy as the squirrels here. I often times see them screeching and chasing each other, or doing backflips whenever I get closer. My theory is that it has something to do with the number of large birds of prey that I have also seen on campus. The other day I saw a red tailed hawk fly away with a dead squirrel in his talons while a squirrel friend watched and shrieked. I have also seen grey owls on campus which is another animal that enjoys squirrel for dinner.
ReplyDelete-Anna
I completely agree with you! The squirrels on this campus are insane. There have been multiple occasions when squirrels have "attacked" me or my friends, by throwing acorns at us. They are also extremely tame, and not afraid of being close to humans, which is something I have never experienced with squirrels before.
ReplyDeleteMy favorite run in with the Queen's squirrels is when I spotted one in a tree with a whole cookie in it's hands. Classic.
ReplyDeleteI'm SO GLAD that I'm not the only one who think the squirrels are out of their minds! I know they've thrown acorns at me before and I think they enjoy causing a ruckus. Actually during my freshman orientation, Dean Downey talked about the squirrels and how insane they really are. It was so hilarious. I wonder if you would be able to catch one; thats something I've always wanted to try.
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with you that the squirrels are nuts (ha, bad pun). I have this feeling that the squirrels on campus have learned to ignore humans. They have no need to hide from us anymore. Honestly, we dump uneaten food in trashcans all over campus and we generally ignore them. There's also nice warm crevices in the old buildings for them to sleep in. I wouldn't see us a threat either. I wonder if there's a way if getting them to leave campus without killing them all...
ReplyDeleteI agree with you! I was just talking with my friend the other day and how every time I walk by a tree a squirrel hits me with an acorn. At first I thought well maybe it was just the trees, but NO. These squirrels are still standing in the spot on the tree that I got hit by the acorn. It is not acceptable that I do not feel safe walking under the trees every day. It is kind of funny as well that they are attacking us. But I guess it is something that is going to be on going. Ha Ha
ReplyDeleteIt is completely true, you think, "Hey maybe it was just a tree." But there they are enjoying our silly human reactions to their attacks! Haha In all truth, the poor squirrels probably can't help themselves. They have to watch us go to class and do crazy college kid things. They probably think that they are helping us, smacking us in the head to say "HEY do something more interesting, the show is getting boring!" I hope you and your friend are able to walk safely under the trees and I wish you luck. :)
Delete-Jenna
When I first came to Queens last year, I had been told about the squirrels but did not receive any attacks. I'm kind of a squirrel-y looking kid, so perhaps they thought I was one of their own. This year though... IS COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. They pellet me with acorns when I walk to class. What did I do? Why are you being so mean to me?
ReplyDeleteThe squirrels are absolutely terrible. I'm halfway expecting them to start picketing outside of some of the buildings because they're that brazen most of the time. That said, I'm also expecting some of the students to start shooting at the squirrels with BB guns and/or other things. But it's like others have said before, there are so many students who leave half eaten food in the garbage cans that some sort of rodent is bound to have a nice meal. I guess it could be worse, because it could always be some raccoons.
ReplyDeleteThank you! I swear every time I go outside it's like there's a squirrel waiting to ambush me. There won't be any wind but all of a sudden I'll have acorns being dropped all around me and lo-and-behold, there's always a squirrel around. I definitely agree with your comment about them eating some not so good stuff too. I've seen two different (well I'm assuming they were different squirrels) fall out of trees at least 40 feet up on two separate occasions... really? You'd think if you lived in a tree you'd be able to climb it without falling out.
ReplyDeleteI totally know where you are coming from Jenna. I am a sophomore here at queens and I have had various attacks on me. I live in Wireman this year and everytime I linger just a little too long under the big trees I feel numerous acorns back to back being thrown at me. The squirrels have no fear of us as humans so I say its time to start scaring them back. Maybe twitching at them after a stare down. We can no longer let them know we have any fear, they can smell it. So then we can say the Queens students are here....and WE mean business too!!!
ReplyDeleteGabrielle your comment was wonderful! The squirrels are apart of Queens and while they may be cute/evil acorn throwing creatures, it may be time for us to give them a taste of their own medicine. Next time a squirrel decides to stare me down, I may just stop in my tracks and stare him down as well. Perhaps even beat him to the punch at the crazy back flipping flip out and go run behind a bush myself! Thank you so much for the comment, and don't linger too long outside, we must protect our student body!
Delete-Jenna
Haha, I love this post! I'm glad that I'm not the only one who thinks that the squirrels here are nuts! Christine is right when she says how Dean Downey talked a lot about them during our Freshmen Orientation, which was funny because they really are a crazy, yet well-known part of the campus here at Queens. Whenever it seems I am walking to class, a squirrel will erratically do some sort of flip and hide behind a nearby tree; I'm sometimes afraid that it will jump out in front of me as I walk by! However, I do think that the squirrels are blamed for more than they're guilty of; since it's Fall, acorns and leaves fall from the trees anyway, so I don't know if falling acorns are necessarily the squirrels' doing. I wouldn't put it- or anything else for that matter- past them though!
ReplyDeleteThe squirrels are rampant on the this campus. They add a whimsical vibe to our already eclectic and eccentric student body. Some of my friends have felt personally victimized by these petite creatures of terror. I say this because these little animals like to partake in throwing nuts off the trees at selected students. All I can say is to always respect the squirrels.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely love your term, "petite creatures of terror". Thanks so much for the comment.
Delete-Jenna