We at the Johnson house have a soft spot for animals...well...pretty much. I thought I was all about pets...minus the creepy-crawly-slithering-hard-shell-rodent...types of pets. So we have two dogs that we absolutely LOVE! Player and Max. Player's the smart one...Max is well...Max. Anyway, in May we found ourselves guarding a cage containing two birds at our church auction. The kids pleaded, Scott agreed and I was all over adding two more friends to our household. Until we got them home. Birds are extremely messy! Barely get the cage cleaned and they poop in it. Give them fresh food and they somehow get it on absolutely everything within a foot of their cage. Fill their water dish with fresh, clean water and within minutes, they've pooped in that, too! Their sounds, however, are music to the ears and they are very cute! That's how they hooked me in the first place and kept me, even with all the pooping and food flinging.
Unfortunately for the kids, Faith's bird, Sparkle, died about a month ago. Of course, Faith being Faith, when we told her about the passing of her bird said, "Oh..." and went off to play. Parker was sad, but not too sad since it wasn't HIS bird. Scott and I wondered how long Parker's bird would last without her friend. On Wednesday this week, Parker's bird, Starly, died, too. Again, Faith being Faith said, "Oh...not again!" and went off to play. Parker came home from school and when told about Starly cried for about 30 seconds and then got over it.
When I discovered Starly on Wednesday morning, I didnt' tell anyone. It was right before school and I didn't want to give news like that before sending them off for the day. However, once Parker and Faith were at school, I told Scott. Then I did something horrible. I did a happy dance that the birds are now gone and I no longer have to clean their cages and their surrounding areas. How awful am I? I don't CARE if I'm awful because I'm just so happy that I don't have to clean a poopie bird cage anymore!
Fly high and free, Starly and Sparkle! Fly high and free!
Peace.
Jeanine
6 comments:
I wish I could say I don't relate....alas, I do. We have a dog (Cowboy), he's the best dog in the world, I swear. We live right in town with no fence and he never strays out of the yard except to greet people walking by. He doesn't potty in the house, he doesn't bark unless there's a reason. The best dog, truly. However....(you knew that was coming didn't you?)....he is SOOOO hairy!!! Summertime is not so bad as he is outside much of it, but when winter comes he is inside alot and unfortunately he brings his hair with him (I wish he could take it off like a coat). Needless to say, I spend alot of time chasing down little bundles of hairfluff. You know the ones, all you have to do is breathe heavy and they whiz under the couch, where they attach themselves to the feet resisting every effort of the broom to free them. And then after working the broom at every angle possible they finally do pull loose only to take up residence on the end of the broom where you end up having to clean them off with your hand anyway?! Pesky little creeps!
Anyway, Cowboy has been with us ten years and murphys law says he will probably be with us ten more. Which is good I suppose, because life would be strange without him. He really does bring us alot of joy. I am, however, going to count my blessings and be thankful that he doesn't poop and fling his food on everything within a foot radius! I'll take bundles of hairfluff over that any day!
I just realized how long my comment was! Sorry, I got carried away!
Joy, I loved your comment! I can certainly relate to the dog hair issue, too! Player doesn't shed quite as much and he gets haircuts at the groomer. Max, however, sheds an unbelievable amount of hair and he's really not the type of dog that can have a haircut. We have light colored carpeting and both dogs are black. There are days our carpet looks like it's covered in dirt...but it's just dog hair! Both dogs sleep on our bed with us, too, so our sheets get washed quite regularly and there is always a second set waiting in the wings so I can change the bed without having to wait for them to be washed in the laundry. The dogs, though, as sheddy as they can be, we wouldn't give up for anything! We all love these dogs so very much! They are members of our family, each with their own personality, temperament, and communication style...and yes they communicate...especially Max!
Glad to hear I'm not the only one with a house full of doggie hair fluff!
Oh, can I relate. I admire you for letting the birds live out their lives in your house. I love animals! But, I do have to say as I get older I'm not as willing to have pets that make a mess. I'm ok if they're outside or in a cage where I can't see or smell their mess!
That's understood. I can relate, it happened to me, too. I had a pet that kept me from staying away from house for too long. I have to get home to feed them, and clean their house. Seven puppies. Six of them we give away. One remains to me... but after 4 months, she died of food poisoning. I was so sad and had a hard time getting over it. My consolation was that, I am free... I can go anywhere and anytime at all. :) But I still miss her though...
Oh Jeanine...your posts always make me smile and laugh (and sometimes cry!). It's so evident that you need to author a book!!! Have a Happy Thanksgiving and I'm sure we'll see you this weekend with KIM!!!
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