The Burrows Aren't Safe

Hello everyone,

The library is more crowded now than it has been all semester, but I enjoy studying around a lot of people.

A few weeks ago I discovered by accident a field of chipmunk burrows. On several occasions, I've noted chipmunks darting in and out of the holes in the ground. I haven't told anyone the location, as they could easily be disturbed.

Unfortunately, the chipmunk field has been discovered, though not by word of mouth. The past few nights that I've left the library around midnight or 1 am and walked past the field, a small, black and white cat crouches under an oak tree, carefully watching the ground full of holes.

It locks eyes with me as I go by. The cat looks soft and friendly, and I have tried unsuccessfully to pet it. I have seen this cat a few times on campus- always late at night. Once was in a flower bed by Coulter, another was on the steps of the One Stop. And it surprised me one night by popping its head out of a ditch as I walked by.

"What are you doing in there?" I asked. But it only watched my eyes.

If my dad knew this cat, he would have already named it. He is the best person I know for coming up with great animal names. The cat is yet another character- another friend even- that I have met at Cullowhee. It helps make the place special. I do not wish it luck, however, in its quest for a midnight snack on the field of chipmunk burrows.

Until next time,

Nathan Marshburn