Blog Archives

Vacation!

9/28/2014

Chloe and I got a vacation last week! Mommy had a work conference in Reston, Virginia. It's close to Washington D.C. and daddy went with her so they could see the capitol of the United States together. Mommy had never been and was really excited. Daddy has been there twice before, and he wanted to go back. They had a great trip. You can read more about it at Into the Rabbit Hole (that's mommy's blog).

While they were on their trip, we had a trip of our own with our grandparents (mommy's parents). I love going there because they completely spoil us! Plus, granddaddy is retired now, so they were with us all day. We got to play all day. We got snacks all the time: popcorn, pretzels, and peanuts (although I did get cut off with the peanuts for a few hours because I kept farting). We got to watch different TV shows than the parronts watch and tons of playtime. And best of all, granddaddy likes bluegrass music and that's what I got to listen to. Yay! I love bluegrass music and got to dance along for 5 days. Music time was my favorite. And grandparents are great. They don't limit your snacks (unless you pass gas a lot). They just keep it coming. It's like hitting the slot machines and winning every time.

Still, we did miss the parronts and they missed us. It's good to be home and we're glad they're back from their trip safely. We all had a good vacation last week and now are celebrating a joyous reunion. And now it's about to get really good because mommy is getting out the Jiffy Pop. Oh boy! That's the best!

So that's where we've been for the past week. I hope you're all doing well, Take care, and have a good week.

Luv,

Zack

Another Restful Weekend

9/21/2014

We're having another restful weekend at home. Actually, the parronts did try going out yesterday, but it turns out that there were two festivals happening, which seemed to motivate EVERYBODY to go out. They said every place they went was crowded and traffic was slow or stopped most places. So they gave up, came home, and cleaned the house instead.

I suppose the mix of nice weather and free community events inspired everybody to go out this weekend. Unfortunately, mommy and daddy don't really like crowds, so that's one way to chase them away. They will make occasional exceptions, and intended to yesterday for one of those festivals. They didn't know another one was happening not too far away, and that's why it was so much more chaotic. So in the end, they said better luck next year. That's just the thing. They always have these events again in a few months or next year.

Chloe and I are happy with the way it turned out. We're always glad to have our parronts hanging out at home with us. Plus, the house is nice and clean and organized now. That's nice. It looks, feels, and smells good! They did a good job, inside and outside!

That's all today. Take care. I hope you have a great week.

Luv,

Zack

Bad People

9/18/2014

Greetings all! I wanted to take a moment to explain my irritated tweets from yesterday regarding the neighbor’s dog. I know they were pretty cryptic, and I think it’s important to bring awareness to this issue because obviously, stricter laws are needed to make sure stuff like this doesn’t keep happening.

Our neighbors (not the family, the ones on the other side of the family lots) chained up their dog outside and let him bark, howl, yelp, and whine for 4 days. Yes, I said days. In rain. In heat. Day and night. Obviously never checked on the dog at all. We even heard somebody firing a gun outside after the parronts got back from work yesterday and STILL they left the dog outside, chained up in brush where he could be heard but not seen.

Finally, mommy called her parents and they found the house number. We noticed that as soon as mommy mentioned calling the police to complain again (because she already talked to them once about this dog being chained up and ignored for days at a time), the barking stopped. It’s been nothing but silence out there ever since. That led us to believe that they have a police scanner and picked up her phone call. It’s really screwed up that gunshots didn’t inspire them to bring the dog inside, but the threat of the police checking on them did. And it also makes us wonder why they have a scanner and are scared of the police in the first place. Logic, folks. Maybe a cavity search would turn up their heads.

It really breaks our hearts to know that the animals next door are obviously being neglected at best, and possibly abused. What’s worse is that we’ve checked with the police and the ASPCA, and nobody seems interested in intervening to do anything about it. I don’t know if it’s because we’re in the woods and it’s so easy to hide or what. Even if they did do anything, it’d probably be a $50 fine and “now don’t do that again.” It’s so frustrating.

There are good humans that really try to take care of animals, and there are bad ones that are worthless pieces of crap and have no regard for life. Zack and I are so lucky we were adopted by good ones.

I suppose the point of this is that if you see animals being neglected, mistreated or abused, speak up. Maybe if enough of you good humans start squawking, legislators and law enforcement will get sick enough of our complaints to actually do something about it, like the story of the widow in the Bible that pestered the judge to give her justice. Don’t give up, folks. Us anipals are depending on the golden hearts like yours to make our world the great place it should be!

That’s all today. Take care. Have a Happy Friday tomorrow and a great weekend.

Luv,

Chloe

Another Edition of Chatter With Chloe!

9/16/2014

Oh my goodness, the news these days. I don’t understand how humans get in such messes. Today, I’d like to chatter about 2 controversies of late.

The first is the Adrian Peterson domestic abuse allegations, and why it took the NFL so long to act. Everybody’s talking about domestic violence and treating women right, which I agree with. However, I think we’re narrowing it down too much. Professional athletes get paid obscene amounts of money, and I don’t care how many hits to the head and concussions you’ve had – you know what’s right and what’s wrong. If you’re in a position to be a role model, you shouldn’t act like a jerk in any sense. I agree with mommy – if you’re paid enough money to have two commas or more in your salary, then you should have a code of ethics. Any violation, and it’s bye bye bye. Talent does not preclude common sense. It’s not just domestic violence, either. If you rob the 7-11, you’re out. If you cook crystal meth, you’re out. If you shoot up the mall, you’re out. And if you hurt animals, you’re definitely out. I think the bigger problem is that they get googly eyes over money, big egos over talent, and think the rules don’t apply to them. They won’t learn any better until there are significant and substantial consequences to their actions. I’m not saying no second chances, but I am saying that there needs to be consequences that speak past the rock that they call a brain.

And by the way: fiancé at the time, now wife? What are you thinking, woman? That money and glamorous lifestyle won’t buy your way out of dead! These ladies really need to learn some self respect. I mean, I’m a sweetheart, but Zack stepped on my tail two times, and I had him pinned and understanding what’s what before mommy knew what happened. No more problems. And I sure as heck didn’t say “aw, let’s get married now!” either. He’s my brother anyway, so eww. We each have our own cages and as long as personal space is respected, it's all good.

Next up is the lengthy Facebook post from our former Governor Mark Sanford about his personal struggles with his ex-wife, and how the ol’ meany caused him pain, suffering, hardship, and to call off his wedding with his “Applichian Trail” buddy aka, the Argentinian mistress, who now claims that she didn’t know the wedding was off. All I have to say is that dirty laundry has a place and it’s the Laundromat, not social media. You aren’t embarrassing us as our Governor anymore, and we don’t care. Hell hath no fury like a hen scorned, so you should have seen this train wreck coming when you left the station, sir. Please, I have enough to deal with having a mommy writing a sci-fi trilogy and a daddy doing website design! I don’t post pictures of my down feathers or the bottom of my cage before mommy cleans it, so there. Get the power of PineSol, baby, and let’s keep living the happy life!

Goodness, humans get in messes, and the higher on the social chain they are, the bigger the messes. I think I’ll stick with simple and silly with our parronts. They keep their noses clean (unless it’s allergy season). And, of course, our online pals, which are the best. Did you know you’re the best? Well, now you do!

That’s it for this edition of Chatter With Chloe. Stay tuned for future episodes whenever the whim strikes!

Take care and have a great week.

Luv,

Chloe

Restful Weekend

9/13/2014

We're taking a restful weekend at our home this weekend. Daddy is recovering from an ear infection, and the weather has turned rainy, so it works out well. It's kind of nice to hang out at home, hang out online, and watch football. Well, if the game gets started, as it's on a weather delay. That's the advantage of watching games on TV instead of actually going. You can watch from the comfort of home, and not worry about crowds and dodging weather (and lightening).

You know, I kind of like this. Slow weekends are fun! We got to sleep in and we're just relaxing and grinding our beaks. Plus, we need the rain and it's making the temperatures reasonable, for a change. It's actually in the 80's - can you believe that? It's the first time it hasn't been hotter than Venus out there since May. It doesn't get much better than this. Sometimes, the best times are doing nothing at all.

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

Luv,

Zack

Remembering 9-11

9/11/2014

So it’s 9-11, and everybody is remembering the shock of the day that changed the world as we know it forever. There’s just one thing with me. That was before my time. I hatched in 2003. So this “post 9-11 world” is the only world I know.

Zack remembers that day. He was just a 1 year old, but he remembers sitting at home listening to the reports on the radio all day, then watching the television footage with the parronts got home from work that night. I think to them, it’s amazing to consider that there’s a generation coming up that doesn’t know the world as it was before then. Daddy said the 6th graders at the school he works at weren’t born until 2002, so it’s the first group of students they’re seeing that weren’t around when it happened.

To me and the others that came after, we don’t know a world where whacky terrorist are screaming “death to America!” blowing crap up, beheading “infidels,” and plaguing us however else they can. To us, they’ve always been around. I guess you would counter that they were always around before, but 9-11 was the first and biggest demonstration of the extremes they’ll go to. So really, we’re both right.

No doubt, the world has changed a lot since that fateful day 13 years ago, and it will never be the same. I bow my head in prayer for those lost on that terrible day and for all affected by it. As for the rest of us, we seem to have adjusted and are moving on the best we can. But one thing’s for certain: we can never go back. I’m not sure we would even if we could.

That’s all today. Take care. Have a happy Friday tomorrow and a fantastic weekend.

Luv,

Chloe

Silly Humans At It Again

9/9/2014

I have to give it to mommy - I do believe she's the silliest person I know. Today, she had to feed the feral cats for her parents, and found a chicken in their yard. What does she do? She decides to see if the old wives tale that you can't catch a chicken once it starts running is rue. And it turns out, it is true. She ran halfway across the yard after that chicken. I'll bet that was a sight for everybody driving by, to watch a woman in a green shirt and grey pants running after a chicken and holding her pink cell phone out trying to get a picture. And here's the thing: she's proud of herself for it! "Well, now I know it's true. Chickens can run pretty fast," she said while making tacos for supper.

And in case you're wondering, it seems that silly is contagious. Now daddy has caught the spirit and is watching "Kick A** II." This movie is ridiculously silly. I love it. Moods really do catch, so why not spread a good one? Maybe mommy is learning from me. She says her goal is to be as happy as I am. I'd say she's on her way. Well, I don't chase chickens through peoples' yards, but I think she's getting it in her own unique way. Maybe we'll get daddy in the spirit, too! He has an ear infection, but he's recovering and maybe as he does, some happy energy will overtake him too!

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

Luv,

Zack

Still Summer

9/7/2014

I'll have all of those who say that Labor Day is the "unofficial end of summer" know that "unofficial" is the verb in that sentence, because it's still summer in central South Carolina! In fact, late August through mid-September is the peak of summer for us. Why? The humidity soars. It's not uncommon for the humidity to soar to 80-90% this time of year. Add highs in the 90's and it's hot. Then it won't rain for 5-7 days, and once it does, it storms. It's been storming this afternoon, and we're actually grateful for that. Maybe we'll get some relief from the heat/humidity, at least for a little while.

Yes, summer still has about a month to go here. We don't start to cool off until October, and it comes at night first. The lows will drop before the highs do. Then one day in October or early November, it'll drop from the 80's to the 60's and people will be like "holy crap, it got COLD!" Yep, that's how it usually goes.

I know fall is already coming to some of you, and I say enjoy it. But if you aren't ready for summer to end yet, come down south. We still have 6-8 weeks to go.

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

Luv,

Chloe

Happy

9/4/2014

Mommy just posted a blog about being happy. Well, why wouldn't she be happy with me and Chloe around? Everything's better when you have sun conures. We're the happiest birds in the world - and why not? We have it good. Good parronts. Good homes. Good food. And now that we have UVerse, good TV too!

Yes, everything's better when you have birds. Birds don't worry. We take life as it is every day and we take it at it's best. Chloe has it right in her Twitter description - our job is to spread sunshine! I hope we do it well. I mean, just look at that picture. The sunny side of life is our natural state!

That's all today. I hope you have a Happy Friday tomorrow and a wonderful weekend.

Luv,

Zack