Blog Archives

Clean Bill of Health

3/30/2016

Chloe and I just got a clean bill of health at our annual vet visit. He trimmed our wings and nails, too, so we got a checkup and beauty treatment. Not fun and my dignity is totally shot, but it's ok. I'm ready for the cover of Bird Quarterly (BQ) magazine now.

The vet said he's amazed at how much energy I have for 16. I don't know why that's surprising. One thing I didn't appreciate, though, is that he busted me. He told mommy that I don't have any sinus or allergies - that whistle in my nose is actually me imitating her. I had her going for a good while, there. Oops. Hey, I'm trying to relate to her. You know, make her think we're in it together? Oh well.

In other news, the parronts cleaned up the yard this morning. They got some new bushes planted to replace the old ones that rotted out from all of the rain last fall. Mommy also planted a couple of lavender plants in place of her rose bush that rotted out. She put some in the front yard a couple of years ago to see if lavender really repels mosquitoes and lo and behold, it does - so now she put some by the back door, too. Plus, it smells sweet. I'll have to charge the bluebirds living in the birdhouse out back extra rent for that.

That's all today. Enjoying spring break and glad to have a clean bill of health for another year. You take care and have a great rest of the week.

Luv,

Zack

Grandmommy

3/28/2016

Hi all, and I hope you had a happy and blessed Resurrection Day yesterday. Our weekend turned hectic, as you probably saw on Twitter. Grandmommy went to the hospital early Saturday morning. They think she had a mini stroke, but are still trying to figure it out: one test said yes, another said no, so she’s following up with her regular doctor for more later in the week. Whatever it was, it cleared up quickly. They only kept her overnight and put her on aspirin. And she stole a wheelchair to get discharged sooner yesterday. I’m not kidding. They brought it up for somebody else, and she took it. They fell for it, too, and rolled her right outta there.

Now I know where mommy gets it from!

Now grandmommy is trying to pass it off as nothing, but mommy isn’t buying it. She said that if nothing happened, then she wouldn’t have been in the hospital. Then she says something about you can’t B.S. a B.S.er, and blah blah blah. But mommy told me the real issue: she trusts that grandmommy is alright, but granddaddy had a stroke nearly 14 years ago, and her grandmother had these mini strokes too. Yes, medical science has come a long way, but she notices patterns. Is diet and exercise worth it if genetics are against her? Grandmommy did the diet and exercise, and it happened anyway. Or it might be the B.S. coming out. Mommy’s just looking for an excuse to stop exercising because she doesn’t like it. Well, get up off your fanny feathers and work it, mommy. No excuses. It may be that grandmommy’s wasn’t that bad because she was doing the diet and exercise.

Anyway, thanks to all of you for your prayers and well wishes. You guys are always so good to us, from Ollie and grandpa passing to this. We can always count on your for support. You’re the best!

That’s all today. Take care and have a great week.

Luv,

Chloe

Breaking The Law

3/20/2016

Oh my goodness, the pollen is so bad around here that the junkies are trying to figure out how to convert their crystal meth back into decongestants.

That's a funny I saw on the Internet yesterday. Unfortunately, there's probably some truth in it. At least, I hope said junkies are plenty miserable now that they've made it nearly impossible for the rest of us to get desperately needed medication. Want Claritin-D? You darn junkie. Now you're breaking the law if you have sinus or allergy issues, and prevention through medication is illegal. Politicians are dumb - they haven't figured out that their "crack down" on over the counter medications are resulting in more sick days and higher medical expenses. Now honest folks with sinus issues have to get knocked all the way down with infections before doctors can do anything to help them. Idiots. I think the Capitol needs to be flushed like our septic tank was last week.

Anyway, rant over. Truth is, the pollen is everywhere out there. Yellow dust over everything, and a yellow haze in the mornings. I'll bet the astronauts on the International Space Station can see it. Yep, see that yellow cloud? Must be spring in the south.That pollen is trying to make everything as golden as Zack and me. Aww, shucks. We're flattered you like our look, but, dear pollen, not everything looks good in yellow. Like mommy's car. It's green, so that yellow dust over it looks like plant puke all over the place. While that's kind of what it is, if you want to stay civilized about things.

Hee hee hee! I can be silly!

Anyway, we're sniffling and sneezing through spring here. Funny thing is, it rained and turned cold last night, so now it's cold, wet, and yellow. Gross.

That's all today. Take care, and have a great week.

Luv,

Chloe

Home Maintenance

3/12/2016

The home maintenance efforts for spring continue in our nest. Today, the parronts had the septic tank pumped out. Yes, it stinks, but it's necessary maintenance. Glad that's done! Now they're getting the lawn ready for spring by cutting the weeds (because the grass is still dead) and putting out the turf builder. Mommy tidied up the house, too. They do a good job taking care of the nest.

We also have potential tenants in the bluebird house. There's been a bird out there checking it out this week. We really hope some nice, blue neighbors will move in there. They're a joy to have around, along with our regular visitors to the birdfeeder station. Our back yard is quite the hangout for the wild birds. Even the neighbor's chicken (we named her Henrietta) comes over to chow down and catch up on the latest gossip. We are a bird friendly place around here!

I hope you're doing well and that spring is coming to your corner of the world. Take care, and have a great weekend.

Luv,

Zack

Feathers!

3/5/2016

Ahh - spring! We can tell it's on the way because that fine coat of yellow dust is settling over the world. There are other signs too: the heater doesn't run as much, the parronts are wearing lighter jackets and are sneezy, mommy and grandmommy went to the spring craft show yesterday, the days are longer, and a new season of House of Cards is on Netflix. Tell-tell signs all around. And the most obvious sign of all: Zack and I are shedding these heavy winter coats! That's right, folks. While conures don't molt as "big" as other birds like sweet parakeets, we do have periods of higher feather loss, and we're dropping feathers all over the house. It looks like a golden feather factory around here.

Molting isn't fun, but it's necessary. We can't keep these heavy feathers on during the hot spring and summer, so off the feathers go: all over the cage, the floor, the counters, mommy and daddy - we can make great fun of it! Add some rounds of "Guess Where I Pooped," and you have hours of entertainment. There's something about spring that makes you feel spunky. And you know we have to keep our humans on their toes! Gotta keep them engaged, mentally and physically. If we don't inspire them to action, they'd turn into vegetables binge-watching streaming TV and movies all the time after work. No fun there (although I do enjoy some Kung-fu fighting from time to time myself).

I hope spring is coming to your corner of the world! Take care. I hope you have a wonderful weekend.

Luv,

Chloe

Much Ado About Bamboo

3/1/2016

There’s been much ado about my bamboo plant lately. Mommy got the plant as a wee little twig when I was a baby myself, and sat it on the table beside my cage. I watched it grow so of course, I claimed it as my own plant. In time, the parronts built their home and she repotted it to larger pots so it grew even bigger. She has to trim it down every spring or it would be bursting through the roof by now! It’s not by my cage anymore, but it is where I can keep a close eye on it in the big window in the kitchen.

This time, spring pruning and repotting was a challenge. Unbeknownst to her, the pot cracked. She got up to a nasty surprise of water on the kitchen floor yesterday morning. My bamboo spent the morning and afternoon on the front porch while she got a new pot during her lunch break and repotted it (again) after work. This pot is ceramic so if it cracks, we’ll know immediately. Hopefully, this settles the repotting conundrum, and it will grow nicely and continue to live long and prosper.

Chloe found the whole thing interesting, so mommy decided to have a plant for her too. She saw something on Pinterest about planting lemon seeds to grow a sweet smelling plant. Mommy got 4 seeds from a lemon and planted them in a small pot she found in the garage. Here’s hoping this experiment works. Lemon does smell good, and Chloe likes having a plant of her own.

Of course, we’re glad that spring is on the way. The weather has warmed up. We know there will be some cool days ahead, but the pollen has already started to fly around here, so hopefully the worst of winter is over and the world is transitioning to spring. This is good, because winter sucks!

That’s all today. Take care, and have a great rest of the week.

Luv,

Zack

Clean Bill of Health

Grandmommy

Breaking The Law

Home Maintenance

Feathers!

Much Ado About Bamboo

Niblets

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