If There's a Bustle in Your Hedgerow

It just might be a local goofball in a mask, making a ruckus:

Last night, I stepped out of my office for a walkabout and I heard an uncharacteristic racket, and saw that one of our shrubs was shaking as if it were being battered by gale-force winds. Apparently, this goofball got stuck in the middle of the shrub, which doesn't even have any appealing fruit on it. Peering closer at the shrub, I noticed the glow of a tapetum lucidum shining back at me. My close presence didn't make this raccoon comfortable, so it commenced some real thrashings and bashings, to no avail.

I decided that the better part of valor would be conducting my periodic inspection tour while formulating a plan to help my masked acquaintance out of the bush. Luckily, while I was contemplating the use of a long, forked tree branch to push it out, the critter managed to extricate itself.

I don't know what's going on, but the raccoons seem to be even more comical than usual this year... I've got to check the property for unusual mushrooms.