The Oteneagen Scare

While up north I spent some time out at my parent's house with my mom who recently had surgery. (I thought maybe I could help her out with laundry or cleaning or SOMETHING! It's amazing how quickly she's recovered and how well she's truly doing after a total knee reconstruction. Way to go, Mom!)
The half hour trip was going well until I turned onto the Oteneagen Road off of Highway 6. I could see a big black blob up ahead, but I was hoping for a deer or a really gigantic dog.
No such luck.
The closer I got I realized that the big black blob was indeed a buffalo....
bison...
TATANKA!
and he was staring me down.
Of course I stopped the van and tried to assess what I should do. My first thought was to get out the camera because no one would really believe that I had to stop for this. My first shot was a little too far away so I proceeded to drive closer. I still didn't get the shot I wanted so I decided to roll down my window. (Yes, I'm being serious. The proof is in the picture.)
Now what?
After a few moments of hesitation I decided I should inch forward, let our neighbor know his buffalo was out and then finish the two mile drive to mom and dad's house. As I started forward I continued to get the steely glare as well as the heebie jeebies. My plan was working out perfectly until seconds into my slowly inching forward the buffalo, who hadn't taken his eyes off of me, decided to start bucking erratically around. Again I stopped, trying to compose myself and calm down my raised heart rate/urgency to pee my pants. At this point I saw the farmer pull slowly out of his driveway knowing he was on a mission, which gave me just the bravery I needed to finish this last leg of my journey. As I slowly drove by, the buffalo continued to give me his possessed stare-down and started bucking/lunging towards the van. Clearly, he was pissed and contemplating the damage he could cause. My only thought at that point was what in the world was I going to tell Horace Mann when I called in my "accident". Does it really cover buffalo damage?
Whew! Luckily, that became a moot point because there was no need and I safely ventured on.
I have to admit, though, I was a bit shaken up, still had an elevated pulse rate and was trying to focus on breathing and not crying. (Ridiculous, yes I know!)
Hopefully we don't watch Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves anytime soon. I don't know if I'll be able to handle the scary buffalo parts!
Isn't it fun to know that life is always an adventure?