BLAM!!

(Uh, got busy and forgot to do a Monday blog.  Sorry... Eeeep.)

Husband and I took some family to the airport for a flight.  The day after the bombings in Brussels.  That was interesting.  I was along to, quite literally, stay in the car, so it would not be towed.  If your car is not with person, you can't leave it near the loading area.  And since one member of the family has a problem with walking, and uses a wheelchair, we needed to work something out.  Hence, my sittin' and knittin' in the car...

So, we dropped off said family, which went much better than I thought it would.  Heading back home, we decided to have dinner at a local fast food place.  This was just a quick stop.  I was sort of mindlessly eating, watching a bird fly in loops nearby.  I suspect there must have been bugs it was hunting, or something, but it was zipping in little circles, and had attracted my attention.  

This meant I was looking up, actually right at a power pole...  when-

BLAM!!

A tremendous noise, and smoke puff from said power pole!  I couldn't figure out what had happened, there had been a bright flash, too, but I didn't see any power out.  However, there most definitely was, as there were squawks of confusion, and "oh, crap" to be heard from the grill area.  I pointed out the smoke, and asked Husband if a transformer blew, pointing to the smoke.  He glanced up, and said nooo, but it looks like two of the fuses blew to avoid that happening.  Which means that we are on single phase power right now.  

(And for all you who are wondering, so? I shall explain.)  I looked at the lights.  Still on.  Muzak-y stuff was still coming out of the speakers.  However, by the sounds of panic, the stove was off, as were the refrigerator, and things were being quickly put on trays to transfer to the walk in cooler.  There was also a urgent search for tape, to put up a temporary "closed" sign.

I needed to use the rest room.

BLACK AS A PIT!  As it turned out, that was on a different 'leg', one that the fuse went out on, so I was quite happy I had my little goofy heart shaped novelty flashlight.  Looks silly, worked well.  So, as we left, we saw fire trucks and an ambulance go flying by.  Car crash against a pole seemed to be the cause, it conked the pole, which dominoed, causing the flash/bang I witnessed.

Oh, and the little bird?  GONE.  The blast scared it, and it left no forwarding address, it just scrammed!

How to drive Ding crazy(er)...

Had to go to town, my shoulder was giving me fits, and so I received a Cortisone shot, and much info from the doc on how to avoid ANOTHER shot.  So far, so good.

Came home, and Ding was just wild.  Well, thought I, the Martins are getting ready to make nests in the birdhouses near our window, she must just be excited about that...

Didn't pay all that much attention to her zipping back and forth, that's what she does... Until I realized she was not watching the window, but the woodstove...

And I heard, tap tap. Tap tap tap. 

Ah, crap...

So, I quickly put Ding in the big carrier, much to her extreme disgust, grabbed one of my coats to use as a deterrent, Husband closed all the windows, the TV was turned off, and we opened the front door.

ZOOM!!!!!!!

The bird launched out, and I think was doing just short of Mach 1 by the time it got outside!

I then let Ding back out.

It is now 8 p.m. (ish) here, and she is STILL trying to figure out where her new "toy" went...

(On the bright side, there is no 'evidence' it left on the flight out the door.  We have not been so lucky when this happened before....)

The case of the Stuck Starling...

Scratch.  Scritch.  Scrape,skskskskskskkkk. Pt-t-t. Click. 

I dial the phone, because Husband has left.

"Hon,  no hurry, but we have a bird in the chimney again."

He comes home, and listens.  Of course, there is no noise.  He gives me the "humor the crazy woman" look, and goes outside. 

Scritch.  Scritccrriitch. Scritch. 

Some small bits fall from the pipe into the box.  I figure, well, I know it's there.  It will work its way up, or down.  Either way, I will just not worry about it. 

Husband says he can't hear it.  He takes a catnap in the living room.  I hear it just fine.  He doesn't.  BUT, asks I, who wears hearing aid in this house? 

Not I, said the little blogging Cat...

So, I just go into the back room, do some minor stuff of no consequence, then hear Husband has awoken and gone outside.  Great! In time for Dr. Oz.  I sit down. 

Scritch. SCRATCH! SSSSCCCRRRRUUU- POOOF!!!  Suddenly, there is little nuclear cloud of ash in the firebox, a disgruntled squawk, and this...

I told Husband, yep, there's a bird.  I get to take a picture before we let it out! 

Husband closed all the blinds and doors in the house, and turned off the T.V. I opened the door to the outside, and we opened the little firebox door.

ZOOOOM!  Gone!  I really couldn't blame him.  I probably wouldn't have liked to be stuck in a box with bright lights flashing at me, either.  (Guess he knows what the guys at the county jail feel like...)  I dug out the handy-dandy bird identifier, and it is a European Starling.  This isn't one of the areas more popular birds, but I figure, it eats bugs.  If it eats bugs, I am happy. 

I had one sort of bittersweet thought.  My Grandma would have freaked out seriously at this.  Being superstitious to the utmost, she would have had a real problem with a bird in the house.  I would loved for her to be there, just so I could see her have said panic.  Maybe she's sitting on a cloud somewhere, giving the starling what for, for going into our house.  That wouldn't surprise me, at any rate.

This isn't the first bird we had in the chimney, but I am sort of surprised, we have a chimney cover, metal netting that was supposed to stop birds.  It has, until now.  Guess we had a skinny, smart, or just unlucky bird.  Or all three.

Oh, and Husband said this should be the case of the Stuck UP Starling, 'cuz he was Stuck UP the chimney. 

Kibitzer.  :)