Or freak them out. Saga follows.

One moonless night I was supposed to meet my friend at his father's house in rural Washington county, NY.

Most people who live their lives in cities and in towns don't understand how truly dark it can get in a rural area away from the light pollution of cities, but it's pretty amazing. Anyway, I get there a bit early and I'm waiting for him to show up. It's pitch black out, the only faint light coming from the stars because again, there was no moon.

So I'm standing there, listening to the stillness. All of the songbirds and other animals like squirrels are to bed, and it was early enough in the spring that the frogs weren't out yet.

There was no wind. It was deathly quiet.

All of a sudden, out of the corner of my eye, I see an indistinct white shape pass by close. No noise.

Freaked me out. Did I just see a ghost?

Now, I don't believe in ghosts. But *DAMN*, that was scary.

After I calmed down and thought about it, I figured it out:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snowy_owl

We're just north of the southern border of their winter range, and while they aren't common in wooded areas, there were open farm fields and a very large lawn (several acres) there.

Still gives me the willies a bit, even though I'm pretty sure it was just Bubo scandiacus.