Once again, I face a worthy opponent

It's not like I'm a stranger to this. For years, I've been at the mercy/beck'n'call of four-footed creatures. They either act like they own me (the cats and I suppose they do, as in "dogs have masters, cats have staff") or they trample all over my efforts to maintain some sort of decorum in the back yard. Raccoons, possums, squirrels.

And now I face a new conundrum. I know the raccoons are back because the cats' water bowl is periodically tipped over and I have a new photo of them on the game camera. But I'm not sure the raccoons are up to this latest bit of deviltry.

Let me explain.

After losing several patio table umbrellas to high winds/ice, I have finally learned that lesson and keep the current one tied down unless we're under it. Also, I love mandevillas and have three of them spaced around the patio. Two are climbing up torch poles and then to the fence. One I am trying very hard to coax up the arbor piling. To that end, I tied garden twine around the pole and the mandevilla. All was going well until I looked and the twine was gone. And the patio umbrella tie. No evidence of either.

Not on the ground, not blown to the other side of the yard. Hmmm. Now, who would take them? So, I tied twine again and a slight piece of rope I half-hitched around the umbrella. (I knew macrame knotting would eventually come in handy.) Two days later, they were gone.

I can cross several suspects off my list: neither cats, possums, or squirrels are capable of this. Raccoons are dextrous enough, but why? And then a friend suggested that most clever of birds, the crow.

We have crows. I've heard them. I've tied that green elastic garden stuff around the pole and the umbrella this time. Double knotted. And the game camera is aimed at the table.

I'm ready. Bring it on.