Nature in the city

There is this small parcel of vacant space next to the pocket park down the street from where I live. It's owned by the city of Boston and people use it to exercise their dogs and sometimes to dump things they don't want to properly dispose of. Sometimes the kids get in there and play soccer (good for them!).

The other night I was walking home from the local pizza place with dinner talking with a friend on the phone. I saw something moving out of the corner of my eye and what did I see? A skunk. When they are sufficiently far away, skunks are kind of cute. They lumber as they walk. I wouldn't want to get close to one, not out of fear of getting sprayed, but because they have claws and could theoretically take my face off. Especially if it was a female and she had her young nearby. I didn't see any young'uns, but I wasn't about to get any closer than I already was.

Still, it is neat to see nature in the city like this. As you can see from the map below, this is a pretty urban area. Who knows where this creature lives, but I hope it manages to do well here in Eastie.