BIRDWATCHING

(NO, not those kinds of birds; the ones with wings. And feathers. Roger Tory Peterson would approve.)

I'm home alone. G3 and Dragonfly have gone to the opera. It's a mother/daughter thing they do from time to time. It's from the Metropolitan Opera House in New York, but actually shows at the local theatre (cinema, movie-house). There's some kind of audio-visual link from MOH to here. Since I'm not responsible for the link, I don't think about it.

My attitude towards opera is somewhat like that of a certain Mr. Smorgus:

Mr. Smorgus went to the opera,
Where he sat and snored.
Mr. Smorgus hated opera;
Boy, was Smorgus bored.

Which is why G3 and Dragonfly go to the opera without me.

So, I'm home alone, except for the birds. We used to have a dog -- a standard Poodle. She got sick as she got older; very sick, actually. We did the humane thing for her. It's the thing you cannot do for people (at least not legally, in Canada -- but legally in a few other places). (If you want to see more about that, check my blog, "The Ethical Pilgrimage" -- with the story about the Latimers.)

As for the birds, "the regulars" have come to Rob-bear's B&B (Bird and Breakfast -- with all-day breakfast). There's a mixed flock of House Sparrows and House Finches. A few Black-Capped Chickadees. The Chickadees always give me "what for" when I go out to fill the feeder. But because they've figured out that my presence is somehow connected to a full feeder, they tend to not go very far when I'm out there. (They may be bird-brained, but they know a meal when they see one, or see the meal provider.) I'm hoping to see some "irregulars" -- Downy Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Red-Breasted Nuthatch, White Breasted Nuthatch. Or maybe something totally different. (I heard a Raven when I was out, but didn't get to see the "trickster.")

The birds we will not be seeing are "The Eagles." They're having a concert in town. After a few years off (say about 14), they're back to their old habits. Tickets are $200 each. That's way too much for our modest budget. Even if they are going to sing "Hotel California," which isn't guaranteed.

But G3 and I will be going to our local Theatre (as in live theatre) tomorrow afternoon, with our friends, the Couple from Out-of-Town. We've had season's tickets for the Theatre with COT for years -- the one luxury for which we budget. The ritual is the same. We meet at the Theatre. After the play, we come back to our place for supper. After supper and good chat, COT hits the road for home (a drive of about three-quarters of an hour, mostly on a four-lane highway).

Speaking of feeding, I'll need to go shopping for a few things. Then I'll come back and
a) watch the birds some more, or
b) read the book G3 and I are reading (we have our own, two-person book club), or
c) have a rest (which is usually part of my routine, especially when I haven't slept well at night, which is often), or
d) a combination of the above.

There's also a report for our Health Region's Ethics Committee (on which I have served for years). I probably won't get at that until tomorrow or Monday -- likely Monday, as tomorrow seems full already.

Tonight, I may meander through the blogsphere. Or may not. It will depend on how tired I am.