Friends?

Don't believe everything you see!  Max and Calypso were peacefully on their cages.  I was studying on the couch.  Calypso flew over to her cage, when I snapped this picture.  But he just wanted to be a bully!  After ringing her bell of disapproval, Max climbed down to walk over by me, and Calypso reigned happily until I put him back where he belonged.

Well, hello there!

And June comes to a close...

Less than three months behind now!

June ended with a whirlwind of concerts -- Lady Gaga, Brad Paisley, Luke Bryan, and Outkast: four days straight!  I actually don't listen to contemporary country music (though I can talk about late-90s country for days...) but my motto is that you don't turn down free tickets!

My recommendations, for what it's worth:

Brad Paisley -- a big MEH.  If you are offered free tickets and don't have anything better to do OR if you are a big Brad Paisley fan, then you should go.  But I wouldn't pay money to see him or go much out of my way.

Luke Bryan, on the other hand, put on a great show, even for someone like me who knew none of his music.  Still not sure I would pay, since I don't know the songs, but I'd rearrange my schedule to go if offered free tickets.

Outkast (disclaimer: I have been a HUGE fan for years) was AMAZING.  The crowd was so into it, and since they don't have a new album out, they just played the hits.  If they are coming to your area and you love them, please go!

It was definitely the most diverse audience I've ever been in (which I love) and it's put me into nostalgia (I can't tell you how many times I've listened to "B.O.B." and "Ms. Jackson" over this summer!)

It's my birthday in July, and I received this fabulous package in the mail!  I had to post on facebook to see who sent it to me; my wonderful cousin.  I've been so busy and haven't made it yet, but what a fun surprise to find at my door!

My best friend and her husband (also a friend) went out with me for my birthday.  We went to a Vietnamese place and I had pho.  Perhaps it's a lot better if you eat meat, but I really didn't see what the fuss was about.  Glad we went and the company and conversation (as always) were great.

Since Max is obsessed with flying to my stained glass window and chewing the wood, we have been spending a lot of time in the kitchen lately.  That's where I am right now, in fact!  Here is a picture of the two of them.

Max, as always, is begging for head pets.  Calypso, who had been wandering around my counter, wound up settling on my stick (which I keep handy in case I need to remove Max from the stained glass: so high up!) and doing the parrot-equivalent of the barrel-roll.

Fun times!

Lazy Days

I purchased a hammock to go on my porch this summer, and have spent many lazy hours reading outside. I love it! Sometimes, I take the parrots out with me so they can enjoy the breezes:

Short stories

Still working my way through the summer...I figure in 30 years I'll be glad these pictures are out there.

My friends were hosting a gala to raise money for LGBT charities.  I received an invite, and had to find the perfect outfit...

Unfortunately, I was having too much fun and didn't get any pictures taken of me wearing it; I just have this one I was taking to send to a friend for advice on which dress to wear:

The gala was the most successful one ever, and I had a great time.  I can't tell you how many times I was told that I looked fabulous!  This will definitely become an annual event for me -- I'm already on the lookout for a dress for next year!

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I was driving along a busy road when I saw something that just didn't look right.  On second glance, I saw a baby robin -- way too small to be out of the nest -- right in the middle of traffic!  Again, I stopped my car, so happy that he didn't get run over until I could get to him.  I wasn't able to locate his nest (he'd fallen from a tall tree), so I put him in a planter.  I don't know what happened to him, but I am telling myself that his parents were able to find him and keep him safe.

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I have always wanted a globe.  While at a consignment furniture shop, I found one!  I think it looks really nice in front of my fireplace.  This fireplace is currently not operational, but in the near future, I will attempt to convert it over to gas.  It was at one point, but apparently something happened.

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Sometimes when I'm cooking dinner, I feel a gentle pressure on my foot, and look down to find a friend:

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Pina coladas!  These were so amazing, and someday I will figure out how to perfect this recipe!

RIP, Beeps

As I briefly mentioned earlier, I made the very tough decision to euthanize Beeps on June 15, 2014.  This was a very tough decision, and I still miss him every day.  I probably will for the rest of my life.  He was only 16, and should have lived to at least 30.

I adopted Beeps almost accidentally.  I'd adopted Calypso in 2004 because he appeared to love Thomas while we were at the rescue.  If I'm being honest, at the time rescue caiques were quite rare, and I wanted to adopt Calypso partly because of that.

We got Calypso home, he recovered from his abusive home, and, once settled in, strongly preferred me.  (Perhaps he can sense sociopath?)  Thomas broke his femur when, in December 2005, Calypso latched on in a terrible bite.  Thomas walked over to the couch, pried Calypso off of him, but Calypso took an unfortunate bounce, landed on the floor, and broke his femur.  He was terrified of Thomas after that, even though I can't blame Thomas for prying off a bird who was grinding into his skin.  He even had the presence of mind to go to the couch to pry him off so Calypso would be cushioned.  This is not evidence of his sociopathy -- I have plenty of that!

In any case, I kept reading about how caiques get along with other caiques.  At the time, I was not as discerning about believing what I read on the Internet, so when another black-capped caique -- and one about the same age! -- was surrendered to the rescue in 2006, I decided to adopt him, too.  I had idyllic visions of the two of them sharing a cage, preening each other, etc.  But all of my grand plans were dashed when I got Beeps home and I realized that not only did he not get along with Calypso, but he also didn't get along with Max!

I had Beeps for just shy of 8 years, and much of that time was spent making sure that he neither attacked another parrot, nor was attacked by them.

Over the years, I grew to love him greatly (he was so adorable!)  I learned his quirks.  For example, he would launch flying attacks at me when I'd read a book on the couch.  I could read a magazine on the couch.  I could read a book anywhere else.  But when I'd grab a book and read it on the couch, he'd attack.  He'd also attack if anyone lifted their arms above their head.  He'd attack if I carried a Tupperware container in front of him.  The list of his triggers kept growing, and I abided by them in order to have a happy bird.  He was something else.  I loved him so.

He had a distinct whistle.  At the end, he'd shout "Pretty baby!"  If I did the whistle, he'd shout, "Pretty baby!"  This was the only way I could get him to speak on command.  He also had a demonic voice in which he'd start chanting, "Babycakes, babycakes..."  He only knew three words -- "pretty," "baby," and "cake/s," but he knew how to use them for full effect.

I'd noticed that he had trouble pooping.  He'd try, but nothing would come out.  Sometimes, poop would stick to his vent.  I took him to all of the avian vets (certified or not) in the city, but no one could figure out what was going on.  He still seemed to be his normal self, but parrots are masters at hiding illness.

One day in May, I came home from work, and he was listless and had prolapsed.  It looked like a red balloon was hanging out of his vent.  I rushed him the the emergency vet (who happens to be certified avian!)  She cleaned him up, fixed his prolapse, and stitched him close.

I moved him to a small, sleep cage so that he could recover.  I put the cage in my room, and we had a great last month.

He'd fly to my laptop as I was on the computer in bed:

He was not happy about the antibiotics and pain killers he had to take, but he dealt with it with aplomb.

We went to the vet several times a week, trying to figure out what was going on:

In the car, I'd play a CD of his favorite music and, when he wasn't too scared, he'd whistle along with me.

In the morning, I'd let him out to explore as I got ready for work.  Many times, I found him hanging out on my pillow:

After several weeks, and several thousands of dollars, his prolapsing kept continuing.  The vet said I could try a surgery with a less than 10% success rate.  I knew that he was suffering, and it wasn't fair to keep him alive for my selfish desires.

I made the very difficult decision to euthanize him.  As I'm typing this, nearly three months later, reliving it is bringing many tears to my eyes.  I'm so sad this his parents were captured and that he was born in captivity.  He deserved to live in South America, in a large flock of caiques.  He deserved to be able to have a family and fly free.  Instead, because of selfish humans, he wound up in my home.  An unnatural environment for a parrot, and an environment that eventually caused his death.

Here is the last picture I took of him. The vet allowed us as much time as we needed to say goodbye.  I had grabbed a tissue and placed it in the palm of my hand.  I was trying so hard to be strong for him; so that he wouldn't sense my sadness and feel sacred or sad.  Inquisitive as ever, he found the tissue and made a toy out of it.

I called my parents to let them know what had happened.  They drove the hour to see and comfort me.  My mom had brought a special cloth to use as a shroud.  My dad dug Beeps's grave, and I placed him in my back yard.  I put a paving stone over where he lay.

They also helped me to clean his cage and move it to the basement.  I wasn't up to the task alone. I had Beeps's toys in a bag, and parts of his cage still in my living room.  Calypso paid Beeps homage by walking over to the debris and making sad sounds while ritualistically bobbing up and down.

Since Beeps's untimely death, Max has started making his whistle.  She never did this when he was alive.  Even though Calypso and Max didn't get along with him while he was alive, Beeps was still  part of their flock.  I showed them his lifeless body, hoping they'd understand.

I miss Beeps so much.  I know I made the right decision -- I consulted with my most bird-savvy friends/acquaintances.  I couldn't keep him alive and suffering just for me.  Yet sometimes I am still overwhelmed with sadness that I couldn't make this right.  A feeling that I failed him.  I loved him so much, and I truly believe that he was as happy as a captive parrot can be.  I will miss him every day for the rest of my life, and I always look where he is buried and think about what an amazing being he was.

He survived some of the most horrible abuse I'd ever heard of (before he came to me.)  He was a survivor.  I am so lucky to have known him.

Please? Step Up!

As is probably obvious, I have a super special soft spot for Calypso.  Of course, I love all of my parrots, but there is something special about Calypso.  He is so sweet, and just perfect.

This is one of my favorite things that he does -- I'm so glad I was able to get a picture of it (especially as he hates the camera!)

Sometimes when I put my hand in his cage to give him a quick scratch before leaving, he takes my fingers in his beak, pushes them down, and then steps up on my hand.  Even though I am on the outside of his cage and it's closed.

I'll usually let him stay like this for a bit, and then I leave: a few minutes later than I would if I didn't have the cutest parrot ever.

January?

To start January, one of my best friends and I went out to the trails for a run.  We've done many of these since then, but this was the first one.

Getting ready to get out in the cold:

So snowy!  So beautiful!

Back at home, Max continued to be adorable and to beg for me to pick her up:

I try to tell her that she is an independent grey and not a needy cockatoo, but she doesn't listen.  As soon as I put the camera in front of her, she pretty much lifts up her foot -- her way of asking to be picked up.

Calypso, as adorable as ever.  This year, he turns 19, and he celebrates his 10th anniversary with me.  Our bond just keeps getting stronger and stronger.

And Beeps continues to do well.  Here, he's showing off for the camera: destroying his phone book (who knew they even made those anymore?)

So excited that he rolls over on his back!

Max, again:

Eating peanut butter on a spoon.  She loves showing off how smart she is; I had several friends over when she did this.

Earlier in the year, I had my internet tech stop by to figure out why my service had ceased to work properly.  She yelled "Hello!" as soon as he walked in, and later insisted on performing her tricks for him.  What a show-off!  As it turned out, he had a Grey at home, so delighted in her tricks.

Calypso gets revenge

Last month, I was reading on the couch, and the parrots were hanging out on their cages.  Max apparently was bored with behaving on her cage, so she decided to fly to Calypso's cage.  And throw things at him.  At first, he was hanging out on the floor, playing with toys he'd dropped.  Once Max started aiming toys at him, Calypso climbed up to the floor of his cage, as shown here:

But that wasn't enough for Max.  She continued to try to throw things at him.  Finally, he had enough.  He marched up his cage and chased her back to her own cage:

Made me laugh!  (Of course, I would have intervened if it had become necessary, but I knew they'd be able to figure this out among themselves.)

Swing!

I cannot even express how much I love it when one of my parrots is hanging out on their swing.  Usually, it's one of the caiques.  In this case, it was Calypso.  Even though his door was open and he could have been hanging out on the outside of his cage, he chose to perch on a swing.  He has several in his cage, and I love it every single time.

When I see this, I fawn all over him, pick him up, and we make kiss sounds at each other.  So I'm probably reinforcing it, but I also like to think that it brings him happiness thinking about being free on swinging branches.

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Life continues to be extremely busy.  I just broke things off with the last guy I was seeing.  He was just too weird, and I had enough of that in my marriage!  However, I think that he has (inadvertently) convinced me to write a book.  It may be a book that only my friends read, but already, "That's gotta go in your book!" is being exclaimed frequently.  So many funny stories!  Right now, I'm thinking it will be fiction, but pretty much based on my past few years.  A lady who thinks she's in a fabulous marriage to her best friend, but actually he's a personality-disordered loser who cheats on her with a clone of his mom.  Then her subsequent reaction and journey into a great new life where she realizes that she was culpable in pulling the wool over her own eyes.  We'll see what happens.

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On my run this morning, my running partner and I saw a downy woodpecker.  Or maybe a hairy woodpecker.  I can never tell them apart unless I'm looking at pictures!  But it was a lot of fun and I love that my running partner loves to look at birds as much as I do!

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My dad and I have season tickets to our local NCAA basketball team.  This evening, I went to a game with him, my best friend, and my best friend's husband.  They love my parents, so we had a great time.  And, while the team was not very good last year, they are doing really well this year!  The last two games have been so well-played.  Tonight, we had great seats.  We could hear the players trash-talking and really see the physicality of the game.  I love it!  Unfortunately, the next home game isn't until next year -- nearly a month!

Catching Up!

Despite what it may seem, I have not forgotten about this blog! I am still a bit angry with myself for not posting more often, as I'd love to be able to look back and see what's been going on in my life! Yet again, I will try to post more regularly...starting NOW!!!

But, first...I must catch up with the past few months. I'll miss a lot, but hit the highlights relating to pictures I took.

In September, I ran a 50K race with one of my best friends.  She's someone I knew before I found out about Thomas's cheating, barely.  We both volunteered for our local marathon, but I never became friends with her due to Thomas's weirdness and the fact that since he didn't have any friends, he begrudged me mine.

She really stepped up, and we've become so close over the past two years.  In fact, tomorrow we are going trail running, touring a winery, and watching our NFL team at her house as her boyfriend makes us vegetarian chili. Score!

Usually, I run my own race, but we agreed that we would run this 50K (31 miles) together.  It was so much fun!  Here is what we saw near the beginning:

It turned out to be a gorgeous day, and we became even better friends due to this experience.  We crossed the finish line holding hands and collapsed in a giant hug.

Two more pictures of what we got to see during our run:

In early September, Steve Earle came to town!  I've been a big fan ever since I saw him on The Wire (best show ever to appear on TV, in case you're wondering.  I am watching Season 1, episode 4 as I write this post.)  As an aside, on a terrible first date, I met George Pelecanos, one of the writers on The Wire.  He was absolutely amazing, and made me love the show even more!

Steve's live show was every bit as wonderful as expected.  I went with my parents; I've become much closer to them throughout this ordeal, which is one of the many silver linings of finding out I was married to a sociopath and getting divorced:

This is the dessert at one of my new favorite restaurants.  I first shared it with one of my best friends (and fellow parrot-enthusiast) a few months back -- brownie with salted caramel gelato, nuts, cherry, etc.  I went back with another friend, and once I showed them the picture I had taken of my dessert earlier in the summer, they agreed to make it for me, even though it was no longer officially on the menu.  Yay!

Here's my good friend near finishing her first triathlon!  Surrounded by geese, which I loved.  Another one of our friends and I chased her around on our bikes with signs, cheering her on.  It was such a great day!

I had been on yet another bummer first date, followed by a lake cruise with friends.  I feel so lucky to live in such a fabulous city!  The views more than made up for the bad first date!

I cat-sat for my good friend and her husband.  Sprecher was watching me!

And the two of them, eating their food:

This blog was originally started to chronicle the antics of my parrots, so we will now enter that portion of this entry!

Here's Max, eating something (shocker!)  Andreas's tank is in the background.  Speaking of Andreas, he has become so much more personable recently.  He asks for me to pet his head!  I'm starting to think certain animals really can recognize evil people, which is why the parrots and Andreas are so much happier now!

And, Beeps: eating some food as well.

Calypso had climbed into Max's cage and was eating her food!  Since I always supervise, this situation was resolved without bloodshed.

Max, perched on some blankets on the couch.  She likes to be near me as I read after work.

Beeps, again.  He's actually not done as well in our new life.  I had begged Thomas to take him, since he never got along with the other birds and would prefer to be solo, but Thomas refused to take any of the parrots, or (not so shockingly), any responsibility for anything.  I had to figure everything out alone, and made what I thought were the best decisions for the parrots were at the time.  I think he feels abandoned, and hasn't rebounded as much as Calypso and Max have.

I'm still trying to eat healthy; here's a pan full of zucchini!

At my new job, I frequently have to go to fancy fundraising events.  This is a shot from a recent one.  The local professional hockey team were our servers; it was pretty exciting to be out there, sitting on the ice!

The meal (vegetarian option) was pretty, but not as tasting or filling as I'd hoped...

Also during the fall, I dog-sat one night for my closest friend and her husband.  They live only a few blocks from me, which is so convenient!  They currently have two boxers (sadly, one is nearing the end of his life.)  They have adopted me as one of their favorite humans, which is so fun!

I was trying to take a picture of Hans, but he jumped up on me and made a good picture impossible!

He always grabs a toy and tries to get me to play tug-of-war:

He wanted to go inside, but since I wanted to make sure they didn't have any accidents, I kept them outside a little longer!

So he decided to rest on their patio furniture, waiting until he could go inside again:

I tried, rather unsuccessfully, to get both of them in the photo.  The older one was coming in for some attention when the younger one pushed him out of the way:

HELLO!

A few weeks ago, some friends and I ran a 5K race that took place entirely inside a corn maze!  It was a lot of fun (though a bit hard on my knees, with the twists and turns), I ran into an old friend I hadn't seen for a year, and I won first place in my age group!  To celebrate, we went to a fabulous Mexican restaurant:

On yet another bad first date, I had some more macaroni and cheese:

I am not even kidding that I could write a blog about all of my bad first dates.  I've had some good ones sprinkled in, too, so no worries!

My dad and I have season tickets to a local NCAA team; the games started recently.  We went to almost all of the games together last year, and it was so much fun!  We're hoping to make all of the games this year:

Last week Saturday, I ran another 50K -- my third of the year.  I wound up third woman!  The race was established in honor of one of my friends who is dying of cancer.  I took what I hope is one of many annual pictures with my friend and his wife (another one of my friends.)  The wife (also my friend) and I will probably run Boston together in 2015.  I have run it before, but was with Thomas (aka "The Dark Cloud of Doom and Gloom") so it wasn't much fun.  Next time, it will be for sure!

Gorgeous picture of me and my race partner running up a hill, at about mile 30.7:

After this recent 50K, there was a campfire to warm us and make us smell delicious:

After the race, my plan was to hang out at home, drink beer, and sleep in.  But one of my friends had another idea in mind.  She's in the process of leaving her abusive partner.  Since I have recent experience with this, I have tried my best to be as supportive as possible.  We went to a haunted house (even though I am terrified of them) and then did a zip line, pictured below:

Today, my parents came up and helped me to winterize my house.  We cleaned the gutters, put some plastic on windows, took out my window air conditioning unit, and played some cards. It was a great evening! 

More to come, on a more regular basis!