Suburban Puma on the Loose!

I met a mountain lion on a walk through our neighborhood.

I was taking a late-summer stroll on one of the many well-groomed paths that snake through the suburbs south of the Minnesota River here in the Land of 10,000 Entitlement Programs...my mind full of TV theme songs and quotes from Gilligan's Island...when the aforementioned meeting took place.

About 20 yards ahead of me, the big cat crossed the path and entered a wooded area to the left that sloped down to a small creek and back up to the back yards of several houses.

As I put my walk on hold, I thought, "Cool!" But then it got unbelievable.

I saw the mountain lion walk along the fence row, and then, with what looked to be an effortless leap, it jumped the backyard fence of a house...a house with a working barbecue grill on its deck. The cat bounded up the steps of the deck, knocked over the grill, picked up the thickest steak of the bunch, and started back down the steps.

About halfway down the steps, the beast did something you'll never believe. It turned around, went back up to the deck, popped open a cooler, snagged a six-pack with its right paw, and loped back down the steps, across the yard, over the fence, and into the trees...apparently on its way to a relaxing evening with friends.

It's at this point that I feel the need to remind you that this blog is called Almost the Truth.

However, it IS true that there's a path near our house with a wooded creek running beside it.