"She fancies herself something of a twitcha..."

(our yard as seen from the kitchen window)

...she said as she gazed at the bird feeder I'd recently placed in the tree right in front of her kitchen window.

Our downstairs neighbour who is 11 (the daughter of two of the most most wonderful people I've met yet, lucky us they're our neighbours) keeps a running log of the birds she sees in the yard. A "twitcher" is someone who watches and records birds and their activities; a bird watcher in America.

"I'm one, too!" I exclaim and we discuss the goings on of our collective gardens.

This passed week while on our way to school, Elliot and I have been watching a flock of rooks build their nests in a line of trees by the road. Each morning, there are nearly three dozen or so flying around, back and forth over the road carrying sticks and fluff and such. Yesterday, the big truck in front of me startled a few out of the brush. One didn't have a good grip on his stick and promptly dropped it--directly on top of my car. It didn't leave a dent, so mainly I felt sorry for his lost effort. (If it had left a dent, it would've been a different story.)

There are many many birds here; and many new birds that I've never seen or heard of before. Tit Mouses, Chaffinches, Wood Pigeons (which are the size of large chickens!), pheasants, a dozen different gulls and many as of yet unnamed winged friends.

When I was young, I was bored to tears by my Grandmother's stories of bird watching. She would go on trips (to Mexico, Tahoe etc) to "watch birds". When 10 years old, I could think of nothing worse. At 34, those adventures sound very interesting indeed! I wonder if the reason I am so interested in birds now is because of her influence? I hope to hold onto Elliot's fascination and interest in birds and introduce animal loving Julian to the fun and excitement of being a Twitcher.