Cecil the Lion

I live 40 miles east of downtown LA, in a city that for the most part has become just like all the rest of southern Cal., one huge metropolitan city (mostly concrete connecting each city to the next). I moved here from a beach city 30+ years ago, to get out of the city and to live in a more "country type" lifestyle. I choose to buy a home in Chino, because there were homes on very large lots (1 to 3 acres), more than half of the city was in a agriculture zone, Santa Anna river and unincorporated land on the cities south boarder, Chino Hills state park and it's 38 mile wild life corridor on cities west boarder, the north side of city is bordered by a narrow (1 mile wide) unincorporated land as well. So in short, it had lots of open space that had not been developed yet!



My first week I lived here, every morning before leaving home and my 1 1/2 hour commute to work, I would need to pickup the trash at the side of my house. Some "idiot prankster", would knock over the can and spread the trash all over. This went on until the first weekend, I decided to stay up all night to catch the "idiot". About three AM, I heard the first can getting turned over, I carefully sneak to the side of the house and peer around the corner to spot the prankster. My surprise three raccoons, one working the can already on it's side and the other two working to knock another one over. It was then that I remembered from growing up in rural Arkansas, just how smart and opportunist a raccoon can be, the "idiot" was me. Wasn't long after that, we had to cleanup a dog after it encountered a skunk. Rabbits and possums introduced me to the neighborhood as well, I wanted country lifestyle, and they were giving it to me Southern Cal. style!