World Series

One of my best friends works as an executive for a local concert venue. As such, I get to see a lot of live music. Tonight, one of my favorite musicians was playing. He was having an off night, so we only stayed for about half of the concert. I got home in time to watch the 9th inning of the World Series. Unfortunately, my only TV is in the same room where the parrots are. And here I confess another deficiency in my parrot ownership (though Max is so happy about this!) -- I woke them up so I could watch what's going to happen. I tried being as quiet as possible, but Max left her sleeping perch to beg to come out:

I have owned Max for nearly 15 years, and I have never seen her sleep.  I'd think she didn't need sleep, except for her extreme silence during the night.  She was ready to party, so I let her out for a few minutes, until the game ended.  Indians win!

Toothpaste!

And this is why I can't have nice things:

Max gets into everything! She loves the taste of toothpaste. I can't imagine that it's healthy for her, so I try to keep it out of her sight. But sometimes I forget, which means she gets to do this, and I get to spend the next few weeks getting sticky as a bit squeezes out the end of the tube through her minuscule pin prick holes.

Quarterly (?) Update

I'm not even sure it's fair to mention me and the word "blogger" in the same sentence, since I have done so little of it in the past few years. But I frequently think about something I'd like to post here, if only so that I can reflect on life in the future.

So again, I am going to try to recommit to posting more frequently.

This summer has been incredible.  I took level 2 of the CFA exam in June, and found out in July that I had passed!  Only one more level left -- I'm taking it in June 2017 -- and then I will be done with tests forever.  I hope.  Which means that after nearly a year of nonstop studying for levels 1 and 2, I've been enjoying myself, mostly stress-free, this summer.

Max turns 15 next week.  I purchased her from a breeder before I knew about the plight of captive parrots, but it is Max that led me into the interesting world of parrots.  She's sitting on the arm of my couch, a few inches from me, contentedly grinding her beak.  We'll probably spend the next few decades of our lives together, barring any accidents or surprise poor health on either of our parts.

Things with my boyfriend are still going well.  I need a blogname for him!  I'm not feeling particularly creative tonight, so I will simply call him J.  We recently celebrated a year together and are planning a trip to Hawaii in a few months.  Where I will run a marathon (along with some friends) and he will relax.  I will also relax.

A few years back, a man who has become one of my best friends gave me a dozen yellow roses for Valentine's Day.  He was delivering flowers to his husband (my coworker and another one of my best friends, though not quite at the time of this story) and he didn't want me to feel left out.  Since that time, I've saved all of the roses anyone has given me.  J knows this, so he gave me a gorgeous bouquet for our anniversary.  I plucked one out and put it in one of my favorite vases:

I bought it from a local potter when my art museum was having an art fair, and it brings me joy every day, even while empty.

As I type this, I'm watching the World Series.  Baseball is so calming, and I particularly love playoff baseball.  There is a movie (you can currently find it on Netflix) called "Fastball" that I highly recommend to anyone who loves the game.  I can hardly believe that the Indians made it this year -- I cannot tell you how many times I've watched "Major League" over the years.

Max has flown back to her cage, and is preoccupied with a toy she found in a bucket I attach to the side of her cage, filled with components that have broken off of other toys, like beads.  Calypso is playing happily inside his cage, even though his cage door is open.  I had to trim his beak a couple of days ago, and he may still be holding a bit of a grudge.  He'll get over it :)

As the days get shorter, and the weather colder, I am finding myself already missing summer.  And I have to wait quite a few more months until it appears again.  I've stocked up at my local bookstore, and am hoping to spend many evenings curled up with a good book.

Max has now returned to the arm of the chair, and is daintily trying to get my attention so I will scratch her head.  If I continue to ignore her, she will become more insistent, so I will oblige her before it comes to that.  It's really quite amazing to me the relationship we've formed over the past nearly 15 years.  I can predict how she's going to behave, and she'd probably say the same thing about me.