NEVER IN MY ENTIRE FUCKING LIFE!

Even in a flurry of activity, hard work and creative explosion I notice the birds. The first giant, prehistoric looking Pileated woodpecker of the season; flying like a drunken bullet; curling the ends of its “fingers” upward in a flamenco flourish with every flap. The first call of a Mourning dove, who I always hear before I see. The trill that is the opposite of fingernails on a chalkboard. It ignites my soul like the sound of my favorite song unexpectedly coming on the radio. I love iridescent brown-pink feathers and their beauty marks. Also heard before seen is the first Red winged blackbird with their friendly “Muker-JEEEET!” The sound that accompanies freshly thawed black soil and the planting of seeds; the alarm that rouses you when basking in the new sunshine until drowsy. How I missed them all! Their sights and sounds remind me that it’s time to get busy. 

Speaking of birds, yesterday was one for the books. I was with my friends Ebru and Mitchell and ManFriendJeff and we all met up with two professional bird handlers who let me hold… wait for it….