A Course for Crows

Recently I wrote about "golf foxes," 

foxes that haunt a local golf course where my husband plays golf.

As it turns out, foxes aren't the only creatures

entertaining the golfers with their antics.

A few crows inhabit the course as well,

and they are very clever at pilfering from golf carts left unattended.

Here are some things my husband says the crows have taken:

straws out of drinks

packages of crackers

sandwiches

sandwich wrappers

a small purse belonging to a female golfer

(the crow eventually had to drop it 

because it was having difficulty flying with the added weight)

bubble gum (which it soon spat out)

candy

a bag full of tees and markers

photo complements of 

http://www.fotosearch.com/photos-images/crow.html

royalty free photos

I googled "crows stealing" just to see if other stolen items would come up.

Here's a partial list:

eggs

chicken feed

golf balls

windshield wipers

coins from a car wash

None of these things surprise me
because I grew up hearing about crows "borrowing" things.

My father was an avid storyteller, 

and one of his favorite stories was about a pet crow

that belonged to his father and his aunt when they were young.

Always at some point in the story, Dad would say:

"It was a pretty smart crow, I suppose."

It seems my grandfather's crow would 

 steal jewelry from bedroom dressers and take it outside.

It regularly pilfered other things around the house too.

But when the crow flew threw an open window

and absconded with a fried chicken leg off of the dinner table, 

it used up its last grace.

And at this point in the story, my dad would say, 

"and Grandma said that crow was going to have to go."

Apparently stealing trinkets could be forgiven,

but inviting itself to Sunday dinner was the last straw.

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