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!

Beeps explores the house

The parrots and I are so happy in our new house! We've been here about 7 weeks now, but we're settled in and things are great! They love to fly around and explore different parts of the house. At least Max and Beeps do. Calypso walks around to explore, even though he can fly. Strange guy, that.

The other day, Beeps was flying around, and he landed on one of my front windows.  He was pacing and saying "Babycakes" in his demonic voice; unfortunately, his behavior changed once he knew I was filming him, but if you listen closely, you can hear him say it once at the very beginning of this video:

If you watched the video, you can understand why we named him "Beeps"!!!

Here is a still picture.  He loves looking outside at what's going on.

A different day, he'd flown around the house and it took me a little while to find him.  Just a little while, though, as his ubiquitous beeping gave him away!

And we're in!

I just got the Internet in my house -- finally -- so have quite a few pictures and videos to post over the upcoming days. The parrots love it here! They have adapted really well and love exploring their new place. Here they are, at the apartment, ready to make the trip to their new home:

They were all a bit nervous, but since their cages stayed the same and we're all there together, they were just fine.

Here's a picture of each of them exploring.

Calypso walks around all the time, usually to find me.  Sometimes he's just investigating the house or looking for some excitement.  There is a giant mirror in the entryway that he will occasionally go to:

It took me a while to first find Max here!  She sometimes flies up to the second floor, but is more likely to be found on the rail heading up there:

Beeps like to fly to the mantel of the fireplace in the living room (where the parrots' cages are) and pace in front of the mirror.  I've since put some things there, so he's taken to flying into the dining room instead.  Videos and pictures of that soon -- I think the dining room is the caiques' favorite room in the house!

More updates - no pictures

I had the final walk-through on my new house this evening.  Things are looking good, and I am scheduled to close tomorrow.  The parrots, Andreas, and I are about to own a house again!  Perhaps the most exciting thing about this is that the parrots can be as loud as they'd like, and it won't matter!

In a fun development, the previous owner left some stained glass panels on the 3rd floor for me.  It will be fun to figure out where they were and to see if I can reinstall them.  I love stained glass!

The past few weeks have been filled with studying.  I had to take some securities exams over the past year, and I just passed the third (and hardest) exam this morning.  I wanted to get it done before I moved.  I wasn't sure I would pass, so I was ecstatic to see the results.  Now, on to packing.  Except instead of packing tonight, I am drinking a celebratory beer and posting on my blog!

I'm hoping to move a few things over myself tomorrow (my new house is about half a mile from my current apartment.)  My mom is coming up on Saturday and she'll help me clean things up and we'll move things in our cars.  Then, on Sunday (Father's Day), my dad is coming up with the van he can borrow from work, and we'll move some of the larger stuff, including the animals.

I have hired movers for July 5 to move my bed, the couches, bookshelves, and other heavy things.  My dad is getting older and I didn't want to be responsible for throwing out his back!  One exciting part of this is how many people have offered to help me move.  Even my downstairs neighbors, the college kids, have offered their help.  There are so many good, kind people in this world.

It still amazes me how different my current life is from the one I used to live.  Better.

My house - sneak preview

I am in the process of buying a house. All hurdles have now been cleared, so it's just a matter of waiting (less than two weeks!) for the closing date. It is essentially my dream house. I feel so lucky to have found it. I can't wait for the parrots, Andreas, and I to move in!

I'll post tons of pictures in the upcoming months, as I adjust to being a single homeowner.  I am going to pick up a lot of home improvement skills!  One of my new good friends and coworkers is married to a handyman.  How lucky am I?  I get along really well with him, and the three of us go out to dinner and are forming a real friendship.  He has promised to help me out and show me how to do things myself.

It's an old Victorian, with tons of character and charm.  I didn't take a lot of really good pictures, as I was mostly concerned with the pretty parts!  Luckily, my handyman was there to handle the mundane mechanicals to make sure I wasn't making a huge mistake.

The neighborhood is exactly where I want to live.  It's only a few blocks from where I am now, and I'll still be able to bike to work and walk to most places.  My best friend lives only a few blocks away, and it's by the best scenic running area I've been able to find.  Just amazing how things work out!

It has quite a bit of stained glass; here is what's in the entry way, by my fireplace:

My staircase to the second floor, complete with little room under the stairs.  It's currently coat closet, and I'd hoped to turn it into a bathroom, but it's too small.  All of the people I've shown this to who are Harry Potter fans are particularly delighted with this detail!  It's hard to tell from this picture, but there is more stained glass on the landing:

My butler's pantry.  This place is just so charming; I love it!

In my apartment, the parrots have been living in their own bedroom.  This is not ideal, as they don't get as much attention as they did when they were in the main living area.  However, given the layout of my place, and the fact that I wanted to try to have them in an area where they'd be least likely to generate a noise complaint on my behalf, that's where they went.

But only for two more weeks, as they'll be back in the living room at my new place.  The windows in the living room face east and south.  I can't wait for them to be able to rise with the sun and me not have to worry about their noises irritating the neighbors.

Many more pictures and updates to follow!

Sleep cages!

It doesn't look like I posted about this last summer when I bought them, but due to the fact that I am living in an apartment and wanted to not get kicked out due to the parrots awakening with the sun, I bought them sleep cages.  Their normal cages are too big for me to properly cover, so this was my solution.

I was a little worried about how they would take to them, but they all love them!  I was also a little worried about putting them together myself, but I am discovering new skills of assembly I never had to use before.

Since they each get a cashew before bed, after they go into their sleep cages, Max will actually climb down and go into hers by herself.  She also knows to open the door on the caiques' cages (I don't latch them when they are unoccupied) to see if either caique left some cashew uneaten.  Occasionally, she is rewarded for this thoroughness.

Here's Beeps:

Max:

And Calypso:

I cover them, so it's dark, which allows me to keep things quiet until I wake them up.

During the day, when they are out with me, they like to play on the cages.  Calypso spent quite a while trying to rip up the cage paper through the grate today.  The reason I went to grab my camera is that Beeps actually went into this cage with Calypso on top.  I had hoped to get a picture of that, but he'd flown back to his cage by the time I returned with the camera.

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In unrelated news, the offer I put in on the house was accepted!  The inspection is on Wednesday May 1, and if all goes well, I will be the owner of a fabulous Victorian -- my dream house -- by June 15.  I'm going to try to remember to take some pictures on Wednesday so I can post them here.

This is all so exciting.  I can't wait to have a guest bedroom.  And, my dad asked if I would be interested in brewing beer with him once I have a house.  That's a hobby that Thomas and I shared, and I'd given it up once I was alone.  Now that I'll have a bigger kitchen, I can't wait to brew with my dad!