Unseasonably Warm and Windy with a Guest Wasp

Today has been unusually warm for an autumn day. All day long the wind has been whipping at the leaves.

Bow asked to go outside in the morning and enjoyed expressing himself.

He let everyone know exactly how he felt: strong and important and powerful.

He talked to the dogs in a gentler tone.

He watched the wind whip at the leaves.

And he settled down into a quiet contemplation of nature.

Bow settled down into some deep thoughts that he did not share with me.

We are close, but even in closeness not all is revealed.

After lunch I went for a walk in the pasture in the hot breezy air. When I returned, I found that Bow had an unexpected guest in the inner pen with him: a wasp.

The wasp was walking around on the floor, and Bow was ignoring it. I went to get a container to put over the wasp. Bow was singularly uninterested in what I was doing.

I then needed to get a nice stiff sheet of paper to put under the container, so I could transport the wasp out. The laminated newspaper account about the signing for "Theodosia and the Pirates" that Representative Ross had sent me earlier this year came in handy for that.

I slipped the laminated newspaper under the container and the wasp was trapped and ready for transport.

Bow was not interested in the wasp still. Something else on the floor caught his attention.

He did not object, however, when I took the wasp outside to release it. The wasp did not seem in a hurry to fly away, though.

When I went back to Bow in the inner pen, he did not mention the wasp at all. He just wanted me to get him his rug.

Too Cold Out to Play

Today is the first truly cold day of the season. Even the woolly worms have all disappeared. It's too cold to play out. But Bow insisted on going out, anyway.

He sat there for a moment under the swing, shivering, and then he asked to go right back in. Once inside, he asked for his rug, which at this point is a very small bundle of rags.

He sat there looking dejected and cold and sad. But then I had an idea that would cheer us both up on such a chilly day. Hot chocolate! I told Bow about my idea, and he immediately perked up. He kept cheering me on with positive grunts as I prepared the hot chocolate in the kitchen. I served it with a spoon and warned him it was still quite hot.

Bow took delight in every aspect of his hot chocolate, handling the cup and the saucer and the spoon with care.

He took careful sips with the spoon at first.

Later, when he determined it was safe to do so, he started sipping directly from the cup.

He was very delicate and careful throughout the process.

Bow drank his hot chocolate slowly and deliberately until there was none left. Even after he had handed me back the cup and saucer, he still kept on slurping contentedly, savoring the memory of the warm, sweet treat. He was no longer upset about it being too cold to play out.

Bow Still Sometimes Lies to Me -- But not as Much

Now they say that nobody tells the truth all the time. When we catch someone in a lie, we should not get all judgmental about it, because we should remember those times that we ourselves have lied.

As a child, I did tell some lies, but the lies that I told in my first decade of life could be counted on the fingers of one hand. They were rare and happened under very dramatic circumstances. Normally, I was an unusually honest child. That is why I tended to be much harsher than most when I caught someone else in a lie. Especially an obvious one that seemed to serve no purpose.

While it may be true that it is very hard to find someone who has never lied, with the possible exception of those who also never communicate, some people do lie a lot more frequently than others and under circumstances where the lie does not help them at all. There are circumstantial liars who when cornered will tell a lie to protect themselves or their family or a friend, but who would not initiate a lie as a tall tale just to get a reaction out of somebody.

Bow used to tell tall tales. He would invent people who were coming to get him. He once said there were eight men and a female dog who attempted to kidnap him when I was away, and that he needed me to stay home on Wednesdays to protect him from them. This was when he was getting used to a new intern. I asked him if he thought maybe I had better call Lawrence to protect him from those eight men and a dog, since Lawrence is much bigger and stronger than I am, but he insisted that only I could save him from the band of kidnappers. Of course, when he said that, I knew it was a lie. He just wanted me to stay home.

These days Bow does not lie as much. He actually  does not talk as much period. There is not a lot of drama here, as we are usually alone, and he has long since stopped trying to cause trouble between me and Lawrence, since we have made it clear to him that we don't keep secrets and we don't tell lies. He used to have it in for the new interns, so he would try to foment distrust. And early on, if Bow told a tale about a new intern, no matter how unlikely, I had to keep an open mind, just in case it might be true.

Because lying has not proven efficacious, Bow has stopped lying -- for the most part. But the other day, when there was a tiny bit of a mess in the outer pen and I asked Bow about it, he told me it was "another guy" who did it. (דוד אחר).

"What other guy, Bow?" I asked him.

This was an opportunity for him to make up another of those fantastic stories. But he just looked into my eyes and could see I was not falling for it. So he didn't answer.

Bow is not talking as much as he used to, because there's just a lot less to talk about.

We Are Still Here

This is just a little note to let my loyal readers on Notes from the Pens know that we are still here. We have not gone away. Bow and I still continue with our daily routines, and I still write about some of the things that happen, but for financial reasons, I do most of my writing on a site that actually pays me to write.

There has been a financial upheaval in the online writing world. Amazon has closed its affiliate program to Missouri associates. This means that all the Amazon sales that used to come in November and December are a thing of the past. This year, there will be no Christmas sales for us. At the same time, Google has made it almost impossible for new readers to discover my blogs, so Adsense is also not a viable source of income. Unless someone already knows about Notes from the Pens and has subscribed, then they are unlikely to find out about Bow and me just by searching the internet.

So I have started writing on Bubblews, a site that pays generously for participation, is not subject to a Google slap, but unfortunately does crash very frequently. Their business model is intriguing, and they remind me of Wozniak and Jobs in the good old days. So I am indulgent of their growing pains, and I don't mind that they are not entirely stable, as long as they continue to pay. I am taking this opportunity, when the site is down, to let you know that is where you will find me most of the time.

Here is a link, which will probably not work just now, but will be helpful once they get their jury-rigged equipment back in gear:

http://www.bubblews.com/account/62970-ayakatz

I will still be posting here, from time to time, but until I see some revenue flowing to us from this blog, my first priority is to keep Bow fed. And if you want to read about what he ate today, you can try both The Feast Before Us and my blog at Bubblews.

Shine the African Grey Parrot- A Bird for All Seasons

by Sandra Gallimore, Guest Blogger

Intoducing Shine with a bone the size of his head. 

Parrots love bones to chew on, and Shine is no exception.  He loves to gnaw. and it's good for his beak, plus keeps him occupied.  

Shine was born January 8, 1998 making him 15 years old, and I have had him for 14 of those years. He was born on Elvis Presley's birthday so it looks like they would have named him Elvis -- but they chose Sunshine.  He's just happy with 'Shine' though, and he does shine when his winning personality comes through. 

I have been lucky, as Shine's friend, to be able to work all that time at home before I retired.  He has not had constant attention in these years, but much more than the average parrot would have with working owners, so there are many bored and lonely parrots in the world . I think it affects being happy or unhappy and how long they live.  

It took Shine a while to start talking, but then I was surprised to learn he had been listening all along!  Shine has a large and varied vocabulary, including sentences when he so desires.  Some of these are as follows: "I want to go outside and see birds",  "I want to go for a walk",  "how's my boy?, "I want a chip",  "Get outta here!"(to the dogs and cats), together with phrases such as "come on", "go on", "stop", "quit", "scratch my head", and many more.  

While it is true that most birds and parrots mimic what they hear, it is also true that they learn.  As an example, I think of when my husband and I would run to get Shine when he flew into a wall or window. "Are you all right?" we would ask and see if he was.  One day I was in the kitchen and a lower cabinet door was open. When I turned around, I hit my leg on it and yelled.  When I did, Shine yelled "Are you all right?" 

I love that story. So as smart as he is an owner must realize that a parrot, especially a Grey, has the mental age of only about a 2 1/2 years old.  So he has moods and little patience and a short attention span. 

Recently, I had Shine outside for fresh air. Somehow he had gotten out of his smaller cage and had flown away.  Of course, I was in a panic. Birds in captivity cannot care for themselves -- may not find food or water, and many die.  So it is of the utmost importance to start looking for them immediately --just as it would be for a child.  Time is the enemy of a lost animal or child.  We started immediately, first looking up and down the highway in front of our house to see if he had been hit, as he would have flown low.  But no Shine.  To make a long story short, we looked all day until dark with no luck.  Too many trees and too much noise.  So I spent the night having to think the worst. 

I started again at first light the next day. I went back for the third time to an area I felt he might have gone as it was a straight flight path from our house.  Just as we gave up and pulled away, a lady came running from her house.  "I have it --I have it!" she yelled.  And she did!  Her family had done yard work until dark that day before, and when they went in her little boy said: "Mom, there's a big bird on the porch!" The lady went out, and it seems she looked enough like me that Shine immediately walked over to her and climbed on her shoulder to her surprise.  Then her husband said 'That bird belongs to someone if it came to you." So the family made a makeshift cage and tried to care for him all night.  When she saw us looking she knew we were looking for him. Needless to say, Shine came home unscathed after his night on the town -- and the next day I treated that family to pizza and ice cream! 

As I am older I must plan ahead for Shine when I am no longer able to care for him.  He will live another 30 or 40 years.  Since he is pretty much a one person bird, I am going to try to find him a bird sanctuary since he knows birds are like him.  So one day, if you happen to see many birds together you just might hear them say to each other, "Are you all right?"

The Many Faces of Bow

Sometimes Bow is very active. He is a young chimpanzee with lots of energy and he goes outsides and exercises and releases his pent up strength.

A picture of Bow outside this morning, being active

When Bow is feeling especially active, he sometimes engages the dogs in a game of chase. He can be so active that some of the best pictures of him taken when in this mood are kind of blurry. That's how active he is!

Bow vocalizing this morning

Then, when Bow has had his fill of activity, he calms down, and sits on his bench, and becomes very thoughtful.

Bow seeming thoughtful this morning

After he feels he has been outside enough, Bow asks to go inside. He asks for his rug. And he curls up for a nap.

Bow napping this morning after being outside

When he wakes from his nap, Bow is lazy, but affectionately playful.

Bow lightly grasping my hand with his toes this morning after a nap

When he wakes from a good nap, Bow has a happy smile on his face, and in no time at all he is ready to get up and be active again.

This cycle repeats itself many times each day. It is the normal way of life. When you see Bow active, it means he is having fun. When you see Bow napping, it means he is recharging for more fun. Bow has many, many different faces and moods. They are all equally a part of who he is.

Some readers remark on how daintily Bow eats or on how gentle he can be while grooming me, but are taken aback when they see a display or a vocalization. But all these behaviors are normal and natural for Bow, and it is precisely because he is not hampered in expressing his true nature that Bow can feel happy and secure. I think many little boys in America are a lot less free to show who they truly are than Bow is.

Rain, Rain Go Away

Taken this morning 8-6-2013

For days now it's been raining every morning. It starts before dawn, and often it does not stop till the afternoon. Then it resumes again in the evening or at night. The effect has been very good for our fruit, so I am not really complaining, but for Bow it has been a trying time. A thunderstorm woke him in the night, and he was upset for a while. This morning, while it rains, Bow naps.

Outside the gentle drone of the rain's pitter-pat drowns out any other noise.

It has been raining so much that everything outside is getting greener and greener, like something in a tropical paradise. Even Bow's bench is turning a little green.

When he goes outside in the afternoon, during lulls in the rain, Bow is careful not to walk on the wet parts.

Taken yesterday afternoon -- 8-5-2013

He looks for safe place to put his foot down, on that is neither wet nor green.

Taken 8-3-2013

No matter what else is going on, Bow wants his feet to stay dry.

taken 8-3-2013

Puddles are starting to form everywhere. The ditches at the sides of the road on my property are full. A friend reported 2.5 inches of rain yesterday and another 2.5 this morning so far.She said the fish in her pond were hanging onto weeds to avoid being swept away.

A puddle on my property

Last year, we had a terrible drought that killed fruit trees and caused a shortage of hay for cattle and horses. Let's hope that this year's rain does not turn into a flood. It's good to have plenty of rain. But we don't want too much of a good thing.