I enjoy a very limited interest in birds. If I'm eating at an outdoor cafe, and some little birds show up, I'll throw them a few crumbs. If a flock of pigeons show up, I call the manager. I remember having lunch with my mother at a nice patio restaurant at Fashion Island in Newport Beach. I started throwing bits of bread over the rail for the birds....My mother freaked! She was afraid of birds, specifically black birds with yellow eyes. I told her she shouldn't watch scarey movies . Rather than watch her hyperventilate, I quit throwing bread.
Late last night I walked out on my teeny little back porch...it's very teeny, but private and the evening breeze was refreshing. I looked up and saw something black in the upper corner under the patio cover. As I got closer something fluttered down towards me, startling me. Yea, like I wasn't scared or anything....not me. ...I ducked back inside. I took a deep breath and went back out to check out the site. I honestly thought there were BATS. All I saw was a dark corner...
The next morning this is what I saw. Black stuff. Was it poop? What does Bat poop look like?
I go back inside and have my coffee, knowing I have to go out and clean up the mess because I'm not having Bats hanging out on my patio. Back in CA I had never seen bats, but this is Texas...Central Texas. We all know that Central Texas has bats , just ask her .
I proceed to head outside, armed with a bucket of hot wather and an old toilet brush because I'm classy that way. This is what I see!
Two birds.....probably the fluttery things that startled me last night. Ok, so now I'm excited..really excited. I love birds who build nests on my patios.
In my excitement one of them.....the dad bird I'm sure, LEAVES! And mom is left to deal with me...but no, I have other plans.
I go to Wally World and buy them this
And I do this.....
During the installation of the feeder....because I want them to eat good stuff...they do lots of fluttering and dive bombing....and I flail my arms while I teeter on the ladder. I know they will thank me for making there life on my patio special!
So I wait....and I wait. They never come back! I am sad....really sad. An hour or so later I look out and a ton of birds are partying on my patio! Of course they scatter when I open the door..but this guy isn't afraid.
A few of these fat guys walk along the rail. A few of his friends are down on the grass feasting on dropped seed.
And..........
Or..........
So now, I have to keep the feed indoors because some of the more aggressive guys will have the bag open in no time....can you say PARTY!!
I miss the mom and dad who were building the nest. I hope they at least come by for breakfast.
7 comments:
Were those first birds mud wrens? They build nests like that, esp. in the underpasses where I lived in UT. - I love birds...not indoors as pets, but outside to feed and watch. Cool pics- Happy Bird watching...and track and George Clooney watching too :)
It is very true. There are bats everywhere. It's a huge thing when they start flying out from under the bridge over the lake in Austin every year.
You might need to name your new friends.
lol never a dull day in Grandma J's world. ps hope all is well in heart shaped hedges world (kim i think) she hasnt blogged in a while
-veronica
PSS..maybe the bats want you to be BatGranny. who knows
I love how you write comments and draw on your pictures. That's awesome! - meghann
Beauty and I like to go the Newport Pier with a bag of bread, or torillas, or hot dog buns, or whatever I can scrounge up, and see how many birds we can get to gather around us.
We always pick an empty spot with no birds, and then she does her bird calls, and throws bread, and they start coming over to us (she thinks it's her bird calls doing the trick.)
Soon, we usually have tens of birds.
Sometimes, we put the food on our head or our hand or our foot, just to see if a bird will be brave enough to take it...no takers thus far.
Little One LOVES this activity...but she sort of ruins it, chasing all the birds.
good times.
Post a Comment