What’s There?

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I’ve been doing more spring chores. I was cleaning the balcony off the bird room the other day and Alex kept yelling “Look, look there. What’s that?” I kept asking him what it was or where it was, but he didn't answered me, just kept asking. I couldn't tell what he was looking at and I sure didn't see anything out of the ordinary.

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After I had finished cleaning Alex and I were enjoying the view from the wicker rocking chair. I noticed the two dogs in the yard a couple houses down, so I thought I’d give Al a taste of his own medicine. I told him to look and asked him what it was.
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He looked me dead in the eye and said: “Woof.” I wondered if it was a fluke, so I asked him again. I got the same answer. He had no problem at all telling me what I wanted to know but I had failed miserably when he asked me the same question! I had no way of knowing what he was looking at. How did he know I wasn’t asking about the kids in the park, which were clearly visible because the trees still don’t have leaves? Lucky guess? I wonder . . .
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Cathy

Spring Cleaning

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I’ve been spring cleaning the bird cages. That means taking off the aprons, moving and scrubbing perches, washing each bar, and cleaning every nook and cranny with a toothbrush. It’s amazing how much stuff accumulates around the nuts and bolts that hold the perches to the cage.

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I decided to do one cage a day this time, instead of trying to do a marathon cleaning. It took 2 to 3 hours to do each cage and the wall and floor area around it. I cranked up the tunes and the birds and I had a grand old time dancing and singing along.

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I finished the last cage yesterday at about 1pm, then vacuumed up the stray seed on the floor and finished washing that. By the time Mark and I went upstairs to watch TV with the birds you would never know that I had vacuumed at all! Not only that, but Alex had decided to play in his papers and there was a huge ball of them in the corner of his cage and strips of paper on the floor. Ah well – at least it smelled clean! There’s nothing like the sweet, kinda fruity smell of a clean bird room – I love it!

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Cathy

Lizard Puppy?

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Emelio said something today that I haven’t heard him say in a long time. Some words and phrases are used on a daily basis, but there are others that the birds will say for a while, then will either forget about or just stop using.
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Remember when Taco Bell had that Chihuahua on their commercials? I particularly loved the one where the dog was calling Godzilla by saying “Here lizard, lizard, lizard”, then when he sees the monster he says “Oh oh, I think I need a beeger box!” I tried so hard to get Emelio to say that last line – he never would. But he did pick up the first part; it was hilarious to hear him call the lizard. Then he started playing with the word and would call the dog a “lizard puppy” and other such nonsense. When the commercial stopped being aired he eventually stopped saying it on a regular basis.

'The same thing happened after both the cat and the dog died. He stopped saying their names or calling for them. Although a couple of weeks ago I was using the computer right outside the bird room – all the birds were quiet and then Emelio said “Hi, ChiChi girl!” in a really enthusiastic voice. It made me wonder if she was back for a visit!

I remember the time I was cleaning Rani’s cage and she bit me (actually one of many times). I called her a bitch in a very loud voice (not one of my shining moments, but what the heck – it hurt!) Emelio must not have heard me very clearly because he immediately yelled out “Doutch!”, with exactly the amount of growling and threat that he heard in my voice. This became one of his favorite words. He used it for such a long time that one day Mark said “Will you please teach that bird the right way to say that word? “

“Well . . . No, I won’t.” I thought it was much more preferable than having him yelling “Bitch” all the time. He eventually began to say it less and less, but he hasn’t forgotten. It’s just another word in his growing vocabulary now; in storage, waiting for just the right time to be used.

Cathy

Saturday Funnies

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Wow, this week just flew by! Spring is a busy time, at last I actually feel like leaving the house. Not that it's been very warm, but at least the snow is gone. It did snow this week, but nothing stayed on the ground. The cold doesn't seem to deter people though, lots of dog walkers have been going by the house lately on the way to the park.

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This morning as Mark was feeding the birds Alex was clinging to the side of his cage, head jerking back and forth excitedly as he loudly exclaimed "Look, look there!"

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Mark asked, "What is it?"

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Alex: "It's a bear!"
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Mark looked out the front window; there was a lady walking a large black dog in front of the house. "That's not a bear, it's a dog" he said.

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Alex replied "I know it" and chuckled.

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Everyone's a comedian!

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Happy Easter -

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Cathy

Road Test

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Ok – so this isn’t about the birds! Did you really think they could even get a permit??
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I took my niece Jorie for her road test this morning and she passed! [Oh Daddy – our girl’s growing up!!!] It’s just so weird to even see her behind the wheel of a car. Not that it’s anything new – she’s had her permit since she was 16 and she’ll be 18 in July – but now she can go out on the road alone. There’s a scary thought. She’s a good driver, but you have to drive so defensively now just to get anywhere safely.
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We’ve had a lot of near-misses because of people on cell phones, whether they were texting or talking. I used to think that was a load of crap until I almost got rear-ended last year. I noticed that the guy in the Mercedes behind me was on a cell phone. I had to make a left turn into a business, so I made sure to turn on the blinker to let him know. Well he apparently was too busy to notice and luckily I had the feeling he would be, so I kept an eye on him as I braked. Sure enough; he had to slam on his brakes. But he wasn’t quick enough, if I hadn’t aborted the turn he would have hit me for sure. I had to hit the gas, then make the turn into the next driveway. Thanks, Mr. Important – you taught me I have to not only watch the road in front of me and to both sides, but now I have to be alert for idiots behind me too.
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Then there was the young girl driving next to Mark downtown. She was so busy texting that she couldn’t be bothered to look up to see where she was going. She drifted closer and closer to Mark’s truck without even noticing. The windows were open, so he yelled at her. She was so startled that she over-corrected and drove up on the sidewalk. Nice. Luckily, no one was there. Hang up and get a clue, Miss Popular.
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We won’t even mention the idiots out there that are eating (I have never figured out how the hell anyone can eat a Whopper and drive too), reading a book or a map or a newspaper, or putting on makeup, shaving, or smoking and drinking coffee (with both hands while steering the car with their knees.) Or what about the assholes that park so close to you that you can’t get in your car? Oh, dear Lord – don’t get me started!! Just when you think you’ve seen it all you find another mindless nut job doing something even more dangerously stupid or annoyingly rude.
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So, Jorie my dear, PLEASE be careful out there!
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. . . AND CONGRATULATIONS!
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Cathy

Thunder in the Morning

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As I was about to get out of shower this morning I thought I heard thunder. That always makes me nervous; I’ve never heard of someone actually getting shocked but I still heed the old warnings from my childhood. My girlfriend’s mom worked at an insurance agency and would horrify us with stories of lightning incidents. Needless to say, I rushed to get out of the water.
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I quickly realized that what I thought was thunder was nothing of the sort – it was Rani playing with her kitty. The kitty is a hard rubber dog toy that we found while searching for a replacement to the soft rubber pig that she destroyed. (See pic posted March 20th)
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Playing is a relative term. What she’s actually doing is attacking and killing it. The toy is on the bottom grate of her cage. When the mood strikes her she will descend to the grate, stalk and pounce on this toy, then grab it in her beak and smash it to the grate, alternating from left to right. Then she flings it, spins around, runs and pounces on it again and repeats the entire process. This is what generates that thundering noise.

I read that it’s the female eclectus rather than the male that protects the nest. They actually kill snakes. No doubt about that – she is one tough bird.
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Here she's on top of her cage with "Shitty Kitty". It's named that because usually when she's done playing the toy ends up under her favorite perch and it needs washing almost every day!

(BTW - Rani doesn't usually look this bad! She is molting and plucking right now!)
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Cathy

Alex Strikes Again

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It was nice enough yesterday afternoon to finally open some windows. Seems like it’s been a long winter and the fresh air was welcome.
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Right after dinner Alex started in. It began with one long low “Oohhh”, then progressed to “Oh, God”, then both; repeated in a lower, more guttural tone. These noises sound so perfectly like a woman having sex that I often wonder if his cage was in his former owner’s bedroom!
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At first I panicked; the windows were open and Alex is not quiet by any means, and when he does this he’s particularly loud. After a second or two I just relaxed – I didn’t want to shut the windows and he would stop soon (I hoped). As his moans increased in volume I started to giggle. I just couldn’t help myself. Soon I was laughing uncontrollably; the whole thing is just too ridiculous. Oh, what the heck! Where else can you get entertainment like that?
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Cathy

Happy Fool's Birthday

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Four years ago we adopted Alex – man how time flies! It seems like yesterday; but I suppose that just shows that I’m getting old. I have found that time seems to slip quickly away, especially since I retired.
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Anyway, we brought him home the evening of March 31, 2005. He and Sadie were supposedly eight years old when KC rescued them and she had them for about 10 months before we got Alex, so we decided he must have been born in 1996. I like to have a date to mark the passing of years, so I decided Alex’s birthday would be April Fool’s Day. It turned out to be the perfect day to celebrate his birthday just because of his silly personality. Some things are just meant to be.

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Happy Birthday Big Guy!
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Cathy