The Birds Did It

For several years I have had this beautiful wreath hanging on the side door during the winter. I don't have a comparable one for the other seasons and am often tempted to just leave it up year-round. That, however, became an issue in March of this year.


Imagine my surprise when I stepped out the door one day on the way to class and found debris on the porch. At first I wasn't unduly upset--I do, after all, live in the country and lots of stuff finds its way onto the porch. I put the bags in the car and when I turned around, this is what I saw!

Birds, with apparently no taste, had been eating the plastic berries on the wreath! One taste was not enough to convince them that they were not real--oh, no, they had to keep trying. Maybe they thought the really tough, bland ones were just not ripe! But they are the most perfect red berries ever, so let's keep trying!

The clear stuff is fake ice, which they also found fascinating but strangely lacking in taste. I left the wreath up for several more days, hoping the vandalism would end, but...I had to take it down in self defense. A couple times I opened the door to find the birds on the wreath! I think they were house finches--likeable birds, quite nice under other circumstances. They are presently nesting on the back porch support beam. I do think the eating of the fake berries has taken a toll, because they seem to fly into the big window pretty consistently. In one instance the male did a real job on himself--it took several hours for him to regain his balance. The absolutely funniest part, though, was when his bride came down to see how he was and gave him several sharp pecks on the head! OUCH! I'm not sure that really helped.

Hard to believe it is Thursday already. Carol, it was so much fun to read your comments! Don't be a stranger!

Hugs to all,

Sharon