This may be the most *apparently* content-free plot I’ve ever posted.



Or is it? I’ve been thinking of box turtles, still snoozing underground.

Sorry about the passive voice, but it’s still true that I’ve seen it said that on warm winter days reptiles in brumation may emerge to bask in the sun, or maybe grab a bite to eat. Well, I’ve hiked our 60 acres in 39 trips since Jan 2, a total of 85.5 miles over 57 hours. There have been some pleasant, warm days, and I’ve seen no box turtles as yet. In fact, yesterday and the day before were both pleasant and sunny, perfect basking days, and I at least expected to see a rat snake or two.

So the plot isn’t content-free at all. It’s negative evidence, which is often considered boring and inconsequential, but that’s only when taken out of context. I am here, with evidence, to refute the notion that box turtles emerge with reasonably measurable frequency during the winter. I think my 85 miles constitutes some measure of reasonable in a climate that produces some degree of warm.

Today, of course, will be the day that I will spot one, after having made such a statement. But in any event it’s only a couple of weeks until the historically earliest sighting, of Reuben, on March 20, 2012.