Saturday.

Everything is running to plan.

Perhaps, though, not my plan, ha ha.

🙂

All three magpies appeared together, this evening.

What this means in terms of nesting or eggs, I don't know, and I'm not about to ask. This isn't a good time for that.

Little girl magpie was her usual fluffy, cheerful self, looking around for something to eat.

Mother magpie was very puffed up, and looked grumpy, to say the least.

Father magpie amused himself by alternating eating, and chasing the currawongs - wings out, run at them, clacking his beak.

I didn't see what led to him chasing, with, it would seem, the intent of inflicting harm on a baby currawong, but he managed to reduce the poor bird to terrified shrieks, as it tried, and eventually did escape him.

Keep in mind that not even three weeks ago these birds were my placid, easy going friends.

Now I have a little girl magpie (I've told her that she's welcome here any time. I know I'm not much of a substitute for a magpie, as company goes, but her parents are a little preoccupied at the moment, so if she just needs somewhere quiet and friendly...),

And two birds that I keep an eye on, all the time.

My friends aren't quite themselves at the moment.

I have absolute faith in their knowing, remembering and behaving as though they're my friends, but I'm not going to take any chances.

When this is all over they will still be my friends, regardless of what may happen in the intervening period.

But that doesn't mean I don't keep my eyes open, ha ha.

😉

I said I liked the collection he'd gathered.

He said Yeah, I'm thinking of opening it up for public display...

Right, I said... a sort of bower to the people kind of thing...?

Ha ha ha ha

🙂

I was contemplating the frozen bird bath, as the Sun struggled to rise.

Thump! on the roof.

Followed by lighter, and more rapid, thump, thump, thump, thump....

Somebody's late getting home... ha ha.

The big girl with the big bulging belly dropped by last night.

She's discovered that a certain brand of mixed fruit has small pieces of chopped up glace cherry in it - so she very carefully spread the fruit out, and ate all the cherry pieces, first.

That was after she'd eaten the macaroni.

She's a girl with varied tastes, ha ha.

If I played the probabilities game - It's quite probable that she's related to Takeaway. She looks to be about a year or two older, simply based on body size; she's a decent sized girl, bulge aside. She could, for all I know, be Takeaway's Mum. She makes her way round with quiet confidence; not as though she's a possum who's strayed in from another territory.

Of course, the possibility is that she found here accidentally, and it's the confidence born of years of experience that gives her that air of familiarity.

Either way, she's here, she's happy, and she might bring the little one when it's old enough to tag along with her.

Then I'll get to say Tee hee hee look at the baby possum.

(I just have to remember to keep putting the right kind of mixed fruit out, ha ha).

🙂

I think these are eagles, but if you close one eye and look at them sideways, or stand on your head, they somehow become black cockatoos flying upside down?

You are one of my favouritest people, Tas.

🙂

You are mine too ecar, I love your refreshing, funny, descriptive and meaningful posts .. wonderful ....  

Late, late afternoon and mother magpie turns up.

Not fluffed up, not grumpy, she seemed more amused by not knowing which piece of bread to pick up, first.

I don't think I know what's going on, any more, ha ha.

My thermal/insulated mug needed a wash, so I picked up a cheap and cheerful "replacement" insulated mug at Bunnings, to use while the other one's in the wash, so to speak.

It's the rules - you can't go to Bunnings and leave without getting something that you didn't intend to get, when you went there; went in for one thing...

It's a good little mug, plastic case (ooh, shiny red, ha ha) with a stainless steel cup/insert. It does the job.

Except for the stirring the tea bit.

It's not quite nails on a blackboard, but it has got me scouting around for a plastic spoon.

There are few things that can induce a flashback of a small motor running without oil, none too quietly self destructing, and stirring my tea, in that cup, is one of them.

Good cup, though. Holds a decent amount of tea, ha ha.

Somewhere in the past, when the cherry trees on the promenade at the edge of the city had come into bloom, there was a beautiful girl with whom I was very much in love.

When I see those tiny flowers, I think of her, and sometimes wonder 'what if' of a future that never was.

🙂