Birdbrain

Love and Hope

2010-08-14T20:42:00.002-03:00

After all this time it is necessary to say this:I have had my heart broken for the third time in 5 months. First my wife died in March then I met someone that I thought was my second chance at a life with someone.Then after the first time i got close she pushed me away .This is the third time and I am finally through.
It is too bad because i do care deeply for her but it seems it is all one way and i am not a fool .
I am hoping that she comes to see how I feel and sees that we have a special connection that won't go away easily.too bad that it worked out this way but it was her choice.

Selling a House

2008-09-10T10:25:00.002-03:00

Is a very traumatic thing.Specially when you don't really want to.It is a situation that more people are running into.In our case it is simply too big and requires more maintenance than I can give it.
Downsizing will be a major undertaking.After 22 years you collect a lot of stuff that is just not worth keeping.We never thought we would be leaving here.
A year and a half ago our barn blew down in a storm.someone complained about "unsightly premises" so the county had no recourse but to force a clean-up.I have been giving away the lumber from the barn but there is still a lot still here.Now we are in a situation where there is no choice but to sell the house in order to pay for the cleanup.The person who complained is anonymous--to us.I would really like to say THANKS A LOT.You have ruined our lives.This is not something the county wants to proceed with and they have been very good in giving us time to get it cleaned up.Unfortunately,neither my wife or myself are physically able to do the heavy labor required to do the job,and we can't afford to pay for someone to do the job.So we sell.
It will all work out in the end bet I have to say this is not the way I thought we would end up.

2008

2008-01-02T15:16:00.000-04:00

well,we made it through another year.
This has definitely been a year of make or break.A real test of love,patience,and in the end acceptance.
There isn't much good that I can say about 2007 except my wife is still here.Not an easy year for health problems overall.
I think I will likely post more often this year-at least I'll try.

August 2

2007-08-02T15:45:00.000-03:00

It has been a while since I have been here.Most of the time I just don't have much to say so I say nothing.I wish more people would follow this advice,and put their brain in gear before they open their mouth.
It seems that alcohol can turn the most loving person into a raving maniac at the slightest provocation-a problem I used to have.It seemed prudent to quit drinking almost 15 yrs. ago.I do believe it saved my life and marriage.
Over the Canada day weekend I had a few beer and realized that I no longer have an interest in getting drunk.Enjoyed the taste,Hated the result.
I so badly would like to see a few people who are close to me to realize they are killing themselves.,Unfortunately,as I discovered from my own experience,you cannot convince someone they have a problem until they see it for themselves.
Perhaps this will change,but likely not.It is so sad to watch loved ones on this slippery slope and realize I can do nothing to slow the down hill ride.

Happy New Year?

2006-12-31T11:10:00.000-04:00

Last night Dec.30 my car decided to die.We were finishing up our new years shopping and had to make 1 more stop.Naturally I shut the car off,picked up the last few things and went back to the car- NO GO.
After trying for a while it became necessary to try and get home.At this point I called a friend(I thought) for a ride home.He was 5 mins. away but said he was to busy working on a computer to pick us up.At this point I called a friend who lives a mile away from us and although she NEVER drives at night or in town-she is 73,she said she would still come and get us.Fortunately a young friend was home and he drove her car to get us.
My so called friend called a few times after we got home--not in the mood to talk to him last night.
First thing this morning he called and instead of being concerned about the welfare of my ill wife he wanted to tell me about the computer problems he had last night.
It seems to me that the welfare of my friends is a good deal more important than an old computer.
It is disheartening to find that this friend is just another self centered moron. Oh well,life goes on.

Christmas

2006-12-12T13:00:00.000-04:00

or how to alienate everybody.
There seem to be a large number of people that appear to have nothing better to do than try to force their religious views on the most important of Christian holidays.If we were to try and get any other group to change the icons of their religion to suit our views there would be an uproar of biblical proportions. Come on folks,we celebrate Christmas.You are free to celebrate any way You choose-or not-let us have our tree,Santa Claus,the nativity on our lawn and all the other trappings that go with Christmas.
I promise not to bother you when you observe your mid-winter celebration whatever it may be.
Although it may be politically correct right now,I will still continue to wish "Merry Christmas" not merry x-mas or happy holidays or whatever other foolish pc greeting that is popular this year.
So to one and all
MERRY CHRISTMAS

Reality

2006-07-23T10:42:00.000-03:00

No matter how strong you think you may be,there is a time that you WILL have a complete breakdown.When you meet that moment let yourself take the time to face the fact that life and death are the two things we have no control over.Let yourself cry,and let your friends and family help you through. Never think that you are alone.There is always someone to offer help if you are prepared to accept.
Men -myself included-are quite often unable to accept emotional aid in times of crisis so we suffer in silence and develop ulcers,drinking and drug problems and wind up in an even worse state than the original problem.
This I have learned recently and it is something I will never forget.If not for a few really beautiful people ,I would likely have gone the way of many men that wind up living an empty life filled with loneliness and despair.
To all the people that offered help and support through the most terrible time I have ever known"THANK YOU" from the bottom of my heart.

Where Have I Been?

2006-05-16T01:22:00.000-03:00

At the hospital.Every day for the last month.It was the hardest time of my life. To watch the one person in the world that has always been there for me die,return,then lie in a hospital bed thinking I double crossed her.She was terrified thinking that "this is it" a lump on a bed with no chance of recovery.The full time sedative was causing amnesia,so no matter how many times I told her that was not the case,she forgot.After 5 days I had the doctors stop the sedative and wake her up. This was so necessary to let her know that she could recover and that I didn't authorize the tubes.The chanfe was instant and obvious.Her love of life kicked back in and she started to improve almost instantly.
It is now a month later and she is home-with a tracheotomy but home.Every day is a little better,a little stronger.
Now we start to change our lifestyle.For the better.I think we will do a lot more just for fun as well.Day trips,picnics,and fishing eventually.

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Here I'm Is

2006-01-21T16:34:00.000-04:00

I'm here,I really am. Things have been a bit upside down of late,but it does seem to be settling down.Tony the african grey got a new cage for Christmas and boy,does he love it.The single thing that changed the most is his attitude towards me.He has tolerated me at best in the past and now we are actually having a relationship!It is great to see him blossom from a scared,timid bird into a very happy,busy member of the flock.
As soon as possible Paco will have one just like Tony's. He seems to have always been in the same round cage and could use more room.
Today-Jan.20-Is more like late March!temp.in the low 50's,sunny and clear.This is the mildest winter I can remember since we moved to N.S.
Time to go watch the Barrett-Jackson classic car auction.This is a dream day for me,since I have owned so many of these types of cars(long before they were collector cars).If I knew then what I know now!!

Crows

2005-12-02T11:45:00.000-04:00

Yesterday,while driving in town I almost ran over a crow! It was in the middle of the road and looked for all the world like it had been hit by a car. Flapping wildly and jumping around.After slowing down to make sure it was o.k. we watched it hop to the sidewalk towards another crow.When it got there the first thing it did was open its mouth and start squalking "feed me,feed me".A young bird learning to fly and still being fed by the mother.Odd for the time of year.
Well it looks like we are in for an election in Jan. another thing that we don't want,at a time of year that will likely keep the voters away.In all honesty we will be going from the frying pan into the fire.The minority Liberals will likely get back in because of a lack of a real adversary.The consertives are led by a real right wing ultra consertive redneck whose religious leanings affect his politics.The NDP leader reminds me of a used car salesman that I wouldn't by a car from and the Bloc Quebecois-Well who really cares?They have their own agenda that does not bode well for the rest of Canada.It would not surprize me to see the consertives lose like they did a few years ago when they lost party status and the NDP pick up some seats. We all still lose

Have You Ever

2005-11-16T13:05:00.000-04:00

set you're computer on fire? I did! While doing a routine interior cleaning,I had to unplug my floppy drive and re- route the power cable. When I powered up the first time WOW clouds of really foul,thick clouds of smoke.It took a while to rewire but after a bit of soldering-here I am.
I think I got lucky this time.
Winterizing the house is on the agenda for the next little while,a necessary thing here.This is a 150 year old farmhouse that has very little insulation and older style storm windows,so blocking drafts is essential,particularly with the birds.We have found that they don't seem to mind cooler temps. but drafts are a real problem.Banking the house with bags of leaves(100 bags) covering the front porch with plastic and shrink to fit window covers make a huge difference.The birds all get warm cage covers,except Paco who refuses to be covered.I believe he thinks he'll miss something.
Take a look at this blog www. thetimewarp.blogspot.com/ I think you will really like it.It is a very enlightening and meaningful site.
O well back to keeping the house warm.

Life on Earth

2005-11-07T10:07:00.000-04:00

Over the past few years,I've noticed something really shocking.People seem to be getting stupider at least from my point of view.The use of language has become a series of shortcuts-no not internet shortcuts although they are creeping into everyday conversations,but the type of conversational english used by all of us.Teenagers seem to be the worst at losing the art of conversation.4 letter words have replaced almost all other methods of descriptive speech,along with LIKE.I recently asked a teenage girl to talk to me without any foul language or LIKE and she was almost tongue tied!The amount of time taken to form a thought was remarkably long and turned into a form of torture. I guess schools and parents have no control over speech outside the home or school.Of course the 60's and 70's created a similar problem and we seem to have come through relatively unscathed.
I do wonder though,what do they say when they hit a thumb with a hammer-all the best words are used all the time so maybe we'll hear Darn or drat,gosh or golly, in place of the daily flow of all the crude 4 letter words that make malls sound like pool halls of old.

Finally

2005-10-26T13:40:00.000-03:00

The sun came out for the first time in a week! It's been rainy and miserable for so long that I feel like I'm starting to mildew.It is remarkable that the weather has been the no. 1 topic of the news for the last 2 years-hurricanes,floods,earthquakes,tsunamis,volcanos and just about any other kind of geologic and weather disaster that can happen.Do you suppose that world governments just might start to put 2+2 together and notice that we are finally seeing what we have done to our planet? Not bloody likely!!-
Money and convenience will always win over common sense.
The recent outbreaks of avian flu are causing a tremendous amount of fear within the bird owner community.Can the powers that be really storm in and confiscate our beloved pet birds? These are creatures that NEVER get outside the house and never have contact with wild birds. For most of us, it is as distressing as losing a family member(sometimes more so).Common sense would tell us that there are exceptions to every situation.I guess time will tell .
Let's hope and pray that a vaccine will be found that is 100% effective. God help us all if not.

Wilma

2005-10-25T14:25:00.000-03:00

Today we are waiting for Wilma to sweep by us.Fortunately,we will only get a taste of what the Carribbean and Florida have been hit with.Unfortunately,the kitchen roof still leaks!
All of the birds are being very quiet today.They seem to be very aware of the weather.I noticed last year when we were hit by hurricane Juan, that they were very quiet and still while it was building up then once it started to blow ,all was well.Our attitudes seem to affect how they react to the situation.Fear begets fear,so we must stay calm.
Trying to quit smoking is possibly the hardest thing that I have ever tried to do.It is essential that we clean up the air for ourselves but more so for the birds.As careful as we try to be,they still get some second hand smoke and we feel that is totally unfair to them.Large air cleaners aside it is still there.The only thing that works for me is to have NO access to tobacco.No tobacco can't smoke.
It seems strange that government spends tons of money on stop smoking programs but we still have tobacco all over the place.Yet many things much less harmful are illegal. Liquor,the single biggest addictive drug is acceptable but an innocuous weed will put you in jail!! Bogus.

Birdbrain: Going to the vet

2005-10-23T14:42:00.000-03:00

Birdbrain: Going to the vet

Sunday

2005-10-23T14:19:00.000-03:00

Although there is no sun today.Rain,wind and cold.
Mr.Cheeseball forgave me right away(one bite)for getting his beak trimmed.This time the vet did a bang-up job.No pain no blood so cheesie was finewith the trim. For a 35+yr. old bird he is in excellent health and looks great.
Got a flu.shot the other day and I still feel a little under the weather.The shot gives me a taste of the flu for 2 or 3 days but I don't get the real thingso it's worth it.
It is time to put my motorcycle away for the winter.Not so hard this year because I haven't ridden it this year. Actually I've been trying to sell it and no action.At least none with money!If you're selling it is solid gold,if you are buying-pure lead.Oh well,next year it will be 31 years old and maybe the collecters will want it.
Time to go look at the leaky kitchen roof.Depressing as hell when you think that I just put 4 gallons of tar on to fix the leaks. When it leaks I can't fix it,when the sun shines it's as good as any man's roof.(Pa Kettle)

Going to the vet

2005-10-19T01:46:00.000-03:00

Today,I have to take Cheeseball to the vet to have his beak trimmed.I hate having to do it ,but it would be easy for him to break it by accident.He always has a hard time forgiving me ,but he does(eventually). Having to take any pet to the vet is a bit traumatic but birds are so different.
They are much more fragile than most pets and require special handling.There isn't a real avian vet locally,but we found one who has some experience and is willing to listen and learn. A rare trait with most people.
The picture is Tweety,a 12 year old budgie.Tweety came to live here when his people got 2 large birds,and couldn't keep Tweet out of their cages.He is so tiny he fits between the bars of the large cages so he was in great danger.He is just not afraid of anything.A very busy little guy with quite a vocabulary but hard to understand because of the tiny,high pitched voice.
Once again it's winterizing time for the house--OH,JOY

Sympathy

2005-10-14T02:58:00.000-03:00

Why is it that there are some people who make it impossible to maintain any level of sympathy for them?They will whine and moan about what is usually a real problem but refuse to take any steps to change the situation. For example,a friend with a bad back that refuses to see a Dr.because of a perceived wrong done by a physician 25 years ago. This is a really serious back problem that requires prompt attention but complaining seems to be as far as he will go to treat it.
Damned counter-productive if you ask me!
I just saw a short article abot prison conditions and just about lost it.They have t.v. in their cells,stereo's and just about anything they want---EXCUSE ME!! I thought prison by definition was a Punishment, not a holiday at the spa.If the administrators try to take away these priveliges,the cries of human rights violations rears it's ugly head.Well didn't they violate OUR rights when they committed their crimes?
It is about time the justice system started to make these people pay for there crimes,insted of catering to them.

Saturday

2005-10-08T16:51:00.000-03:00

and it is still raining.
Sitting on the front porch watching the rain and listening as it washes down through the trees.It is easy to forget that we are into October.Lots of color in the trees,fall flowers on the roadsides and lots of small animals having a deep sleep in the middle of the road.
Why do some people find it necessary to go out of their way to hit them? Many do run out and get hit,but a porcupine doesn't RUN anywhere.It only seems fair that they sometimes get a skunk!!
Meet Peppi and Spike. They are normal grey cockatiels and live together.Peppi lived with an old man who loved him dearly but passed away.He was rescued by a friend and came to us.Spike was found by the same person outside her house on a power line and coaxed down. she saved his life.

Tuesday Morning

2005-10-04T15:19:00.000-03:00

It's raining.It's cold.
Over the last 4 days the leaves have started a very rapid change.Lots of yellows and oranges.The bright reds are starting now because the nights are very cool.
This time of year is the most beautiful but also the hardest-WINTER-I even hate the sound of the word!Cold,colder and Oh my God!
I just got a load of firewood for the furnace so along with electric heat it might be bearable.
Having birds means you have to be aware of the temp. and drafts,so winterising is an absolute necessity.
This is Toni the Timneh african grey parrot. Toni has been here just over 2 yrs. Another rescue. He is in love with my wife and tolerates me but he is changing.

Alone?

2005-10-01T16:28:00.000-03:00

Today,for the first time in a few years,I am alone in the house for the weekend.You would think I'd be happy,but oddly enough,I'm feeling rather sad.
It just seems empty
It is a good thing that my birds are here to talk to or I'd go nuts.
This is Paco,the goffin cockatoo.He is about 10 years old as near as I can tell.He came here as a series of odd coincidences about 3 years ago and has been an absolute lesson in what a bird can be like if given a chance.He is clever and a real escape artist.We have to use small padlocks on his cage because nothing else worked!
He is also the sweetest, most loving creature you could ever meet. BUT he will bite hard if he feels he is threatened,or if he is playing an gets to wound up.
I think with most birds it's not a matter of if you will get bitten,but rather how hard and where it is.
Time to feed the critters.

Mr. Cheeseball

2005-09-29T16:13:00.000-03:00

This is a pic. of my peach front conure Cheeseball.
He came with the name!
As far as i can tell he is appx. 35 years old and should have many good years left.
When he first came here he would fly across the room to attack me-viciously I might add.
It took almost 3 years of constant attention,many bags of treats,and at least a dozen boxes of band-aids to be able to interact with him.
Now he is my best bird friend!
Some how,when he finally decided to allow me into his life,something in me changed.I have gone from a quick tempered,no patience person to a much more accepting person-I hope.
I have a small flock of 6 parrots all of them rescues and all of them arriving with various types of problems.
Now after time,patience and love ,they seem like very different little creatures.
On a different note,typing is difficult today-I fell down and hurt my wrist yesterday!
just another stupid people trick.Another cold grey day so I'll go get warm.

1

Birdbrain

2005-09-29T11:58:00.000-03:00

Last night I watched Martin Scorsese's retrospective of Bob Dylan.I found it strange that the memories of that time(60's) were very strong and yet the sound of Dylan's voice was like chalk on a blackboard.Odd how time changes our ears!!
Typing today is a bit of a chore-fell over yesterday and sprained my wrist.Just another stupid people trick.Hopefully it will be better tomorrow.

The First Time

2005-09-27T18:13:00.000-03:00

Welcome to my first ever blog.I will be discussing anything and everything that interests me.
This might be eye opening to me as well as everyone else.
Strangely enough,I have nothing to say right now,except-it's cold,wet and very grey today-so am I.