The neighbor we didn't know we had...

Several nights ago, I was sitting at the table near our sliding glass back door after the kids were in bed when I noticed a movement in the part in the curtains. It didn't startle me. I was sure it was one of the many neighborhood cats that roam our backyard all day long. But as I watched, its tail looked like a huge rat tail! I quickly looked out and still couldn't quite determine what animal it was. It just looked like a giant cat-size rodent. A smaller scale of the R.O.U.S. from "The Princess Bride!" I called Darren over and he said it was a huge possum. He opened the door to get a better look and the possum just looked at us and slowly moseyed his way over to go back under our deck. We didn't get a picture of our possum, but the picture above is the best one I could find of what he looked like. I've been doing some research on possums, and everything I could find says they're harmless, non-confrontational, clean creatures who actually kill lots of unwanted pests: rats, mice and spiders topped my list. So I've decided I kind of like him and want him to stay. Especially since he seems to have run off the raccoons that we used to see going under our deck when we first moved in.
Here are some fun facts about possums that I learned:
-They are not rodents. They are the only indigenous marsupial of the United States.
-They have opposable thumbs that help them climb trees. Although, I can't imagine our fat possum climbing any of our trees.
-They are nocturnal.
-They do not really spend a lot of time hanging from trees like many a children's book I remember. Although, they can do this with their yucky ratlike tail that grips tree branches.
-If provoked, they will play dead with their mouth hanging open and everything. It's their best defense. :)
-They are actually quite cute when they're little, but the our fatty possum is not cute whatsoever. If I ever get a picture of him, I'll post it for you. Hope you enjoyed my little lesson on possums!