jmgoyder

wings and things

Nostalgic nuances

These pictures are of Woodroffe, the youngest of our three Sebastopol geese. He and his sister, Diamond, are about a year old now. Woody was only a few days old, but Diamond was a few weeks old, when we first got them, and it has made a huge difference in terms of my relationship with them. Woody is pattable and very tame but Diamond is quite shy and aloof.

Woody is on the far left.

 This is Woody now!

When Woody was a baby, Husband still lived here at home. Woody’s name was inspired by Husband’s family’s famous ancestor, George Woodroffe Goyder.

The trouble is, I am beginning to think Woody might be a girl!

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Cheer up!

Emery 1: Is Julie okay?

Emery 2: Shut up, Emery 1, and eat your dinner – I’ve saved you the crusts

Emery 3: Those funny little chicks out there yesterday were rather cute weren’t they!

Emery 2: (munching) Well they’re gone now aren’t they?

Emery 1: Oh, poor Julie

Emery 2: They were just guinnea fowl – get over it!

Emery 3: You really are callous aren’t you and you’re the female of this group!

Emery 2: I am not a female!

Emery 1: Actually, I think Emery 3 might be right, Emery 2 – you could be a female

Emery 2: Hell, I hope not!

Angelina: Where’s Julie?

Bubble: I’m not sure. I think she’s out there somewhere looking for those chicks.

Angelina: I hope she finds them! I’ve been looking for them too, you know, just out of curiosity.

Brad: I hate to say this, Angie, but I think a fox might have taken them.

Angelina: If so, I think we better gather around the back door and make sure Julie is okay.

Brad: Good idea – let’s go – let’s cheer her up!

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Around in circles

Peacocks love to show their plumage and in past posts I have talked about King, our big adult peacock, and shared pictures of him in all his glory. Spring seems to be the time of year they do this the most and it’s fantastic to watch.

So the above photos mystify me a bit. Firstly, this is not a peacock (male), it is a peahen (female) and, secondly, it is Autumn here in Western Australia, not Spring. Nevertheless, this wonderful peahen pirouetted nonstop this morning, just outside the back door.  None of her sisters and brothers were around; it was just the two of us.

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Wrong way – turn back!

A long time ago ( several weeks at least) I had an early morning routine. I would bring lettuce and stale bread, with my first coffee, and place everything on the picnic table pictured. Then I would let the gang out and we would all meet at same picnic table.

Well, I have broken this routine many times now, due to various circumstances. The gang, however, still live in hope, and  sprint, or soar, towards this picnic table every morning regardless of whether I have any treats for them or not!

They are so enculturated into this routine that, even when I am behind them with tidbits galore, they always go to this picnic table first! Just after I took this photo, I said, ‘I’m here, you sillies!’ and they turned around very speedily!

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Momentary

Many millions of moments ago,

I didn’t recognize what a moment was.

Many millions of moments later

I couldn’t catch it – this moment,

and, even if I could, it would probably flit away like an imaginary butterfly.

So I have had to put up with other moments,

stale moments,

injured moments,

stray moments,

bloody moments,

because I have lost that moment where everything fell into place …

that perfect apple crumble,

that perfect kiss,

that perfect fish mornay,

that perfect child,

that perfect everything ….

Next moment please!

I have my butterfly net ready

to catch the next millions of moments

and set them free….

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Waiting

There may, or may not, be some subliminal, symbolic significance to this crooked photo of Tapper sneaking away from her eggs to have a quick dip, but I probably just had the camera the wrong way around. In fact, as this photo took itself some time ago (because I’m sure I didn’t do this intentionally) and I just found it on my desktop, I thought I’d put it in this post just for the hell of it!

I am waiting for the hospital to ring me to confirm that Husband is now okay enough to go back to the nursing lodge. I have tried ringing him twice but no answer so I’m not sure what is going on exactly and I’m not very good at waiting.

If you aren’t already familiar with Samuel Beckett’s famous play, Waiting for Godot, it’s worth a google. If you are familiar with it then you will know why I feel like I am inside that play, not in a horrible, negative way, just in a waiting-for-nothingish way!

Like Tapper’s eggs – are they ever going to hatch?

I had a lot of birds waiting this morning outside the back veranda but eventually they gave up on me! It’s okay, I will get them some cabbage a bit later in the day….

Ah, the hospital just rang but it wasn’t what I expected; it was the physiotherapist saying she couldn’t continue to treat Husband unless I paid the bill from last year. I was so embarrassed and admitted I hadn’t opened the mail lately, then I paid it immediately on the phone with my mastercard and apologized for keeping them waiting! Argh.

I wonder if there is a philosophy out there that helps people to wait in a way that is fruitful rather than frustrating….

Still waiting but unsure of what exactly I am waiting for – hehe!

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Emus and doudou!

Due to the interest shown in doudou’s bird sculptures I herewith copy/paste a more direct link to her site http://doudoubirds.com/

I have never met doudou in person, so have only gotten to know her via the blogosphere but, ever since she made these emus for me, I have followed her work and her blog. Sorry, doudou, if you didn’t want the attention!

I think you can see from the pictures of my very first emu (Emery, who got killed by a fox, which devastated all of us), that doudou’s sculptures do a pretty good job of replicating the real thing.

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Returning good for evil

Some time ago now, doudou, a fellow blogger (doudoubirds.wordpress.com/) sculpted me some birds, and they were brilliant – three emu chicks, one galah and a bluejay.

Now doudou is going to sculpt Tina Turner! In case you don’t know who Tina is, he is one of our roosters. Another thing you might not know is that Tina attacks me all the time (possibly because, until he grew up, I thought he was a girl). So, in good-for-evil mode, I have decided to allow Tina’s entrance into doudou’s hall of fame because I am hoping that giving Tina Turner a turn will endear him to me – ha!

The only problem is that Godfrey finds this very difficult because, as my only other attacker, he feels it should be him who is sculpted first but as I told him this morning, whilst extricating my ankle from his biting beak, Tina was here long before he arrived!

I do try to pat him with one hand and use my other hand to fend him off but it isn’t working very well so please, doudou, could  you sculpt Godfrey first? He is terribly jealous….

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Whispers

When the birds alter the position of their wings and feathers

little whispers of breeze flit across my nightmares and I wake up

to see a gathering outside the window

at dawn,

waiting for the stale bread I forgot to collect yesterday

Their clicks of disapproval dissolve when I explain that I will get some bread later in the day

They peck gently at my hands which I open out into little tables,

then they unfold their tail feathers and practise their flirting in front of each other,

in front of the window,

in front of me,

looking for approval.

Then, whispering off into their day, they lead me to where the best sunshine is,

and I follow them.

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Tina told me off!

Before I realized this Aracauna chook was a rooster, I called him Tina Turner because, well … you can see why.

He just reminded me that this is, primarly, a bird blog!

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