Friday, October 30, 2009

More gurgles from the coffeepot

That coffeepot is at it again, just gurgling away. What a flirt! It gurgles so loudly, you can hear it all over the house. Sometimes when I’m relaxing in my cage enjoying a nice quiet preen, I hear that gurgling sound coming from the kitchen. “I’ve got water! I’ve got water!” it seems to be saying. And of course, I’ve got to drop what I’m doing, even if it’s something important like holding a walnut in my beak, and go check it out. I am a parrot, after all. As I’ve mentioned before, the sound of moving water is very hard to resist. But then when I cozy up next to the coffeepot, it just gurgles coyly and doesn’t let out even one drop of water. Humph! Next time I hear that old gurgling sound, I think I’ll just plug up my ears!

Sunday, October 25, 2009

What’s a parrot to do?

This afternoon I was confronted with a dilemma while I was helping my person hang the laundry. Regular readers of this blog know how much I LOVE laundry. The good part about helping to hang the laundry is that I get to perch on top of the drying rack. Not only is it a comfortable perch, but it’s also covered with laundry. What could be more fun than that? Well, today, just as I was getting ready to perch on top of the clean, drying laundry, I heard a gurgling sound coming from the kitchen. I looked over and saw my friend the coffeepot staring at me with its bright red eye and making the most inviting noises. What parrot can resist the sound of gurgling water? But then there was the drying rack all covered with fresh, clean laundry. Laundry or coffeepot? Laundry or coffeepot? What’s a little green parrot to do in a situation like that? Well, finally I just couldn’t resist all that gurgling, so I flew over to the coffeepot and perched on the counter next to it. Of course, that coffeepot still hasn’t changed its selfish ways and won’t let me anywhere near its water, but it’s still pleasant to snuggle up next to it, feel its warmth, and enjoy the gurgling as the hot coffee drips into the pot. Believe me, I never thought I’d see the day when I’d choose the coffeepot, or anything, over laundry. But we parrots are such unpredictable creatures. Sometimes you just can’t tell what will strike a parrot’s fancy next, even if you are the parrot yourself.

Friday, October 23, 2009

Headlines

Do you read newspapers? I don’t very often, even though I have plenty of opportunity because my person uses them to line the bottom of my cage. However, I don’t generally find them particularly appealing unless, of course, they happen to mention interesting personages such as myself. And that’s just what happened this week. My person’s friend, Judy (who, by the way, is really nice and always lets me sit on her shoulder when she comes over to visit) writes a column for the local newspaper, the Vermont Standard. This week she just happened to mention me and my friend, Trouble (who is already a familiar figure to regular readers of this blog). Actually, she brought up a very important point—that now that the weather is so cold, Trouble and I are stuck inside for the next several months. Neighbors will not be seeing Trouble in her outdoor cage or me in my carrier for a while. But I know both us are looking forward to getting back outside next spring. Oh, fame! First a book inspired by me, and now my name in the headlines. If I weren’t such a modest bird, I’m afraid all this attention would go to my head.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Drinking

Now that the weather has turned cold and I can’t go outside in my carrier anymore, I have lots of time to sit inside and think. Recently I’ve been thinking about drinking. I think this is interesting because there are different ways to drink. Most of the time I drink water out of my water bottle. It hangs on the side of my cage and has a tube with a little ball inside. I push up the ball with my tongue and little drops of water come out. This is an OK way to drink, but not nearly as entertaining as drinking out of a glass. When my person is drinking from a glass, I pull on her ear until she lets me have a sip. Then I stick my head inside the glass and sip up the water with my tongue. It’s fun to drink this way. The other way to drink is when there is a cup of tea. I stand on the brim of the cup, dip my beak into the tea, and suck up a few drops at a time. It’s fun to try different ways to drink, don’t you think?

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Story Time

As I’m sure I’ve mentioned before, I love to have stories read to me. My favorite book, of course, is If You Were a Parrot, by my favorite person, Katherine Rawson. But I like other stories, too. Recently my person has been reading Beatrix Potter stories to me. I just love the story of Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle. You wouldn’t think a smart and beautiful parrot like myself would have anything in common with a hedgehog like Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle, but it turns out that she loves laundry just as much as I do. Of course, she likes the washing and ironing part, while my favorite part is climbing the piles of folded laundry and messing them all up. Still, laundry is laundry. Also, I think Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle is very brave to iron. Me, I’m really scared of the iron. It looks like a very mean and vicious thing. I suppose all those prickles Mrs. Tiggy-Winkle has one her back help her feel safe. Anyhow, I’m looking forward to hearing more Beatrix Potter stories and meeting more interesting creatures in them. What about you? Do you like Beatrix Potter? What are some of your favorite stories?

Friday, October 9, 2009

Snack Time

Don’t you just love snack time? Today it’s peanut butter and raspberry jam on a bagel. I like the jam part best. I usually just eat the jam off the top and leave the peanut butter for my person. I like dunking pieces of the bagel in coffee, too. It’s a parrot thing. We love dunking. What about you? What kinds of snacks do you like?

Thursday, October 1, 2009

Troublesome Poetry

My Friend, Trouble
by Shadow

Trouble is a parrot
Who’s very, very gray
Her face is white, her tail is red
She often comes to stay

Trouble is a parrot
Who’s very good at talking
She whistles, beeps, and chatters
But you’ll rarely hear her squawking

Trouble is a parrot
As such, she likes to chew
She passes time by splint’ring wood
Or shredding a book or two

Trouble is a parrot
Who really likes to eat
She’s happy when she starts the day
With peanuts in her beak

Trouble is a parrot
Whose beak is sharp and strong
And though she’s big and scary
One day we’ll get along.