Jungle Sprite

Joanna Burger, a biologist, wrote The Parrot Who Owns Me about her relationship with Tiko, a Red-lored Amazon. Of his arrival, she wrote:

..so far as Tiko was concerned, we had entered his world, not the other way round. ...Our suburban home had become, in a sense, the wild tropical forest of Tiko's ancestors, the pair of us pressed into service as the flock of his generational memory.

When the AGP came to live with us, I thought we were getting a pet bird. Not so. On Tiko's first night, Burger, sleepless, lay awake thinking that their "dark quiet house felt different, inhabited as it was by a strange new spirit, a jungle sprite." We felt the same way on the AGP's first night: She doesn't just live here, she inhabits here. Her presence filled the house that first day, even after she had quieted for the night.

We have always been dog people, owning up to three at once and fostering others for a rescue organization. We had a cat once, too, who lived with us for about 17 or 18 years. The AGP is altogether a different dynamic. For one thing, she is an independent sort. She may not want to come out of her cage, or step up (or down, for that matter) when we think she should. She has strong preferences for one toy over another. She will reject out of hand a perch we thought was awesome when we brought it home for her. Yet she is very bird-like in her connection to us, her flock. She verbalizes constantly if we are out of sight (we of course call back).

For another, although she was supposed to be "my" bird, she chose to bond with The Birdfather. That is probably because I made the mistake of leaving town for a week shortly after we brought her home, but I sometimes think she might have chosen him anyway for her own inscrutable reasons. She is at her absolute happiest sitting on the back corner of the couch a few inches from his right shoulder.

The Economy

Well, I went down to the bird fair today to restock on snacks and stuff for the AGP. It was noticeably less crowded, in terms of vendors, stock, and customers, than usual. It seemed small and listless. There were some beautiful birds for sale, including lots of "bonded pairs" and "proven breeders" compared to previous fairs. The vendor who makes the AGP's favorite snack food was not there.

I think the economy is hurting bird people.

The Birdfather is in bed today, and didn't get to go. I picked him up a cool t-shirt for his birthday this week. For the AGP, I brought back a bag of pumpkin seeds (her absolute favorite snack), a sack of mixed nuts (for very, very rare treats because of the fat content), a preening toy, a sack of dried bell pepper, and some Harrison's.

She knew I had food when I came in the door--she started saying "Mmm" right away!

Favorite room in the house

I've discovered a great blog to visit if you like to write: The One Minute Writer. Every day there's a new writing prompt, and a little timer that beeps when you are done.

Today's prompt asks about one's favorite room in the house. Mine, of course, is the Bird Room. The Bird Room is not what you might think. It was originally designed to be the dining room. Keep in mind that this is a postage-stamp sized house and already has a breakfast room. Just the two of us living here, we sure don't need both!

Besides, it has this great picture window that looks out on the front yard. It made the Birdfather feel like he was dining in a fishbowl, since we are so close to the street. So we made it a sitting room. As it happens, the front yard is also where the birdfeeders and the Bluebird house and the bird bath are. So I quickly discovered that this was an ideal place to read, sip coffee, and birdwatch. I've gotten some lifers here, including the Brown Creeper I saw when I returned home from an entire day of hiking around a local park looking for one. I was cold, tired, stiff, disappointed, and discouraged. I had no sooner sat down with a cup of coffee to warm my old bones, when I glanced out--and there it was, on one of our pine trees not 20 feet from the window!

I have an original, antique Morris chair in here, and this cool table with inlaid ivory that folds up for easy packing on your camel, should you own one of those, and a good reading lamp. In no time flat, it became my favorite room. I started referrring to the Morris chair as my birding chair.

Now, of course, it also houses the AGP, so it really is a bird room in the usual sense of the word. As I write this (and it's taken a lot longer than one minute), the AGP is on top of her cage, grinding her beak.

Only In America

This is Waldo, lead singer of Hatebeak. I kid thee not.

How does the band get him to perform? According to their official website, "He gets very hyper and talkative when we play music he likes and we usually record his outbursts following an extended listening period. We take the best parts and track them with the rest of the music."

You can buy this from Reptilian Records.