A Tribute to George

I'd like to dedicate this post to George, our newfound vagrant lizard who lives in our front flower bed.

Last weekend my husband and I were both out doing yardwork (read: first time mowing the lawn...EVER) and I heard some rustling in the tall desert grass next to me. Low and behold, it was one of the small Lazarus Lizards who have made this area of Cincinnati their home - they're frequently called Ault Park lizards because there are roving packs of them who love to sun themselves at beautiful Ault Park on a warm day. We have dubbed our new friend "George":


He's quite a looker - a mini Kimodo Dragon of sorts. I was immediately tickled and took George as a sign of good luck for my future gardening endeavors. I felt the same excited spark I used to feel as a child when I would be wading in the creek catching frogs and crawdads, or finding turtles in the forest.

Well, today we spotted George out sunning himself again. While trying to get close enough to get a good look, we spotted a crack in the steps at the base of the house. Upon closer examination the harmless looking crack turned out to be quite a hole. My husband stuck a stick in and it went in a good 6 inches - not a good thing.

We went back inside and discussed what to do - we can't have insects, snakes, or other animals crawling into our house. We decided to head over to the hardware store and get some concrete filler, and just as we stepped out the door, we glanced over to the hole and saw a quick rustle. We looked at each other - "Please don't tell me the lizard lives there." As we stood discussing the ethics of holing the poor lizard's home over, little George poked his scaly snout out of the hole. Rats.

After much deliberation, we decided that there were plenty of other appealing holes on our property and that George was just going to have to pack up and relocate. As much as I hate displacing the little guy, I would hate it even more to have a snake sitting on our sofa one day. We chased him out of his hole and duct taped it over while we made a trip to the store. It's now patched over.

I sure hope that George can forgive us for chasing him out. We still want you around, just not shimmied into our foundation...see you around little buddy!