My Thoughts

The
Juncos (snow birds) left for the summer and they didn’t even say goodbye.
Insider figures they left on or about April 2 and wonders if they leave every
year on that date. They’ll be back sometime in late fall and the old guy would
love to know if the return date has already been set. The summer population
will continue with Insider’s year-round friends, mainly Sparrows, Blue Jays and
Cardinals, and their unwanted relatives the Blackbirds. Right now there’s so
much activity outside the kitchen window as the business of nest building, mate
selecting and general bickering picks up. It won’t be long before a bunch of
bumbling, stumbling, junior birds arrive on their mother’s wings demanding yet
more seed from Insider. A few years ago, the Cardinal population consisted of
two, and they would arrive daily from a distant forest. Today there are eight,
four pairs, so there will be much red in Insider’s future. The Blue Jay
population has also increased and they number about 10. The year-round boss of
the whole backyard is a single Jaybird who rules with an iron wing. He’ll have
nothing to do with the seed and corn the old guy puts out daily but constantly
polices those birds who partake of Insider’s offering and they pay attention.

Spring
is the most exciting time of the year outside Insider’s kitchen window. Life is
renewing itself and it’s great to be alive. Insider’s only friend is constantly
asking him why he spends so much time over his morning coffee and cigarettes.
It’s not the coffee or the cigarettes. He is literally watching things grow.
The budding maple trees are more profuse today than they were yesterday. The
daffodils are in full bloom, the tulips are popping up as if they were late for
something, too soon the grass needs mowing and the newly planted pansies, God
bless them, are exploding with color. Yes, it’s spring again. Life is renewing
itself and Insider feels younger.

Things
The Old Guy Dislikes: Easter bunnies; overcooked eggs; having to use the heat
in April; those annoying words of wisdom from the Dr. Phil guy; movies that are
inconsistent with the books they are based on; a bad night’s sleep; greedy
Blackbirds; and sloppy newspapers.