Saturday, May 24, 2008

A Short (but true) Story

It’s a cool and cloudy day here in Sycamore Canyon. At 7 a.m. I awake to the sound of a dull buzz going off. I rollover in bed and tap Gus on the side. When he doesn’t respond I shake harder and say, “You need to shut your alarm clock off.” Now, it doesn’t make sense that his alarm clock would be on, since this is Saturday and his alarm doesn’t sound like that, but it is the only thing that makes sense to my groggy mind. Gus rises up on his elbow and looks at his alarm clock and says firmly, “It’s not my alarm clock.”



Well, since I am the investigator of all mysterious noises in this family, I jump out of bed and rush to the kitchen where the sound is louder. I hurry to the kitchen window which is over the sink and peer out. The sound is loudest here. I wonder, is someone working in the wash? No. Is my air conditioning unit trying to come on? How could it be; it’s turned off? Still, I run to check the control panel on the hall wall. Nope. It s off. I open the back door and go outside in my nightgown. The sound it duller out here. Back to the kitchen sink. What is it? Is my house about to blow up? I have a gas stove. I feel panic rising in my chest. My mind races. I’m dizzy from getting up so quickly. I want a drink and I need to pee, but WHAT IS IT!

I am standing next to the counter when I feel my cat, Sweet Bonnie Blue eyes, rub up against me. She is not supposed to be up here, but cats do what they want. I look at her and suddenly reason returns. I walk over and shut off the switch to the garbage disposal. How did it get turned on? Bonnie was up on the counter. She squeezed between the dish drainer and the wall to look out the open window at the birds flocking to my feeders this morning. She must have bumped up against it and flipped the switch. I shake my head and calm my heart. I get a drink of juice from the fridge, then hurry to the bathroom. Finally, I walk over and look out the den window at all the quail, doves and finches mobbing my feeders. Another quail family is feeding peacefully at the seed block with 6 little babies filling their bellies. Gus finally stumbles out of the bedroom to ask what was making the noise. I explain and he tumbles back into bed. I look out the back door at the thick blanket of clouds covering the morning sky. Monday and Tuesday we had highs over 100 degrees. Yesterday we had snow on Mt. Lemmon. This morning it is only 60 degrees here at my house, but this is just a brief reprieve before the triple digits return at the end of next week. I stand by the door looking at the new thistle seed feeder I bought yesterday. It is covered in Lesser Goldfinches. They are so thick on the sides that it looks like someone covered the feeder in Velcro and rolled it in birds! I crack up laughing at the sight. Another birdy morning has started here in Sycamore Canyon!

17 comments:

Lynne at Hasty Brook said...

A birdy Salted Nut Roll!!

Anonymous said...

Hey Kathie,

Your cat only wanted to alert you to all the bird life you were missing.
Perhaps you could train her to do some house work like switching on cookers, washing machines and vacuum cleaners at the appropriate time.!! ({:).

Texas Travelers said...

1a. Great post.
1b. Great photograph.

2. Put tape on the switch.

3. That's the way a goldfinch feeder is supposed to look like.

4. Have a great holiday

Troy

Beth said...

That picture of the thistle feeder is priceless. I can't believe how many birds you can see from your windows in your pajamas without binoculars. You are a lucky lady.

abb said...

Darn it! And I thought I had loads of gold finches! You've got me beat by a long shot.

Mary said...

I love that "velcro rolled in birds" description! Great photo!

Amila Salgado said...

That feeder looks irresistible for birds. Great post filled with suspense and drama! Finally back in the cyberspace after 6 days of no internet.

Texas Travelers said...

I am still laughing about the cat.

Alaska Sunday is posted.
Come visit,
Troy and Martha

Marvin said...

And you never wondered what the cat might have disposed of?

Great photo of your standing room only finch feeder.

(Thanks for your visit and comment.)

Doug Taron said...

Apparently you have the same rule that we have in our house. No jumping up on the counters while there are people around to see you. Great photos.

jalynn01 said...

You kept me reading rapidly to get to the end and find out what the noise was!! I laughed, having a cat of my own who does silly things. I loved what you said about 'velcro and rolling it in birds' That sure created a visual!(just like the one you provided) Great post!

Kathryn and Ari said...

Oh, how funny. Thank goodness Bonnie didn't decide to stick her nose in to investigate the hum!

Pappy said...

I hate those beeping midnight mysteries. I keep batteries of all sizes available just in case. I have never known a smoke detector battery to go out during the day. Always well into the night, and usually when you have company. Great story. Good to be back.

Kathie Brown said...

Lynne, I thought the same thing!

Roy, that's a great idea. I'll discuss it with her.

Troy and Martha. You make ME laugh! I'll be by to visit soon. Gus has been sick so I've been missing out on my blogging! He's almost better (I think).

Beth, yes I am. Thanks.

tsannie, There are lots more lately. The new feeder helps, plus, I think there are lots of juveniles here. Thanks for visiting my blog!

Gallicissa, nice to see you again! Thanks!

Kathie Brown said...

Anonymous, thank you!

Ocean, I'm surprised! What do they like to eat instead?

Marvin, you have a devious mind! I never thought of that!

Doug, so you have a cat too? What's yours been up to lately?

jaylnn01, I'm so glad to hear you had a good read. That's the best compliment I can get! Thank you!

Kathryn and Ari, I thought you 2 would like this story. I bet the canine naturalist would have alerted me sooner. My old Blossom couldn't be bothered! And, Yes, I am glad Bonnie did not investigate with her paw!

Texican, glad to see you back! I've had the smoke detector battery experience before also. I'm coming back to read more poems. I'm playing catch-up-on-my-blogging again!

Larry said...

They say some times Lesser is more. I thought this was going to turn into a woodpecker story.-Cats are really entertaining pets.

Kathie Brown said...

Larry, I was as surprised as you are!