September 8, 2011
from the comments
The tree is a huge native holly, from a distance it looks like a magnolia. And as the ice thaws, the birds swarm their favorite party tree, stripping it of fermented berries. They create a ruckus, but not the high, shrill din the hawk’s appearances bring. More like they’re sitting on bar stools, trying to out-cheep each other. Little drunkards.
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Little drunkards.
Today, as I walked across the street from the office to the shop to get a truck, run an errand, I saw a small flock of starlings having a pool party in two potholes full of water in the middle of the parking lot. They were singing and splashing so much there was a cloud of water vapor flapped up and around them. As I approached, they cut shennanigans, left the pools in a hurry to get away. (Quick! Everybody, out-of-the-pool!) Some were too heavy with water weight to leap and fly on the first try. Some tried running, but even that taxed them. Some ran and jumped a few times before they took flight.
In the rear-view mirror, as I sat waiting for the street traffic to clear to turn out of the lot, I saw they were all back, splashing as if I’d never happened by. Such craziness and joy.
I love it when other animals go all crazy and play.
Yes — Rick’s little friends and their pothole playpool. There was a cardinal in the yard this summer who loved the black plastic drainpipe. It is the ugliest thing, the pipe. It runs from the gutter to the back yard, where I ran it to feed rainwater to the flowers. It creates a little waterfall from the brick patio. So this cardinal would come during the rain and take a shower. He would stare into that pipe and water would come out and he would hop up and down in the little gusher. I haven’t seen him lately. Haven’t seen the hawk either so I am hopeful the cardinal is already flying in warm southern winds. I am considering probably overly ambitious things for next year like an underground rainwater garden. But I want my litle friend to know that as long as there is a hope of his return I will never get rid of the cardinal’s shower.
Today I saw some of “my” hawks swooping and darting in a way unlike their hunting behavior. I am wondering whether the lovely crisp weather just got them feeling frisky.