Funny birdsitting story

So... I was feeding the birds Tuesday morning when I looked outside the cage and about had a heart attack!! One of the birds had escaped from the aviary!!! 3 seconds later, the rest of my brain cells kicked in and I realized it was a sparrow. Not ALL the birds belong in the cages. It hadn't gotten out because it had never been inside in the first place!! Until that moment, I hadn't realized how paranoid I had been feeling about losing a bird. Three days later, I can finally laugh at myself. :)

New experience

I'm birdsitting for the next 11 days. That's right, birdsitting. Marlin & Dell Herschberger have an aviary in their back yard. They are on a Mediterranean cruise with several other Trinity members and have hired me to bird-sit and house-sit. They have Lovebirds, Amazon parrots, Gray Cockatiels, Button Quail, Congo African Grey Parrots, and Nanday Conures... I think. I did a Google search and they most resemble these birds. I won't know for certain until Marlin gets back and I can confirm. I know, I should have thought to ask when I was receiving care instructions. So sue me. The birds are quite fascinating. The two Congo Greys are in separate cages in the house and they like to talk. They also imitate sounds they hear. I often hear someone "knocking" on the door or "ringing" the doorbell. I only fell for it once before I realized it was the birds. They are quite good at imitation. :) Day 1 is complete, 10 more to go. Here's hoping and praying that I don't lose any of them. The aviary has a safety zone, so if they get out of their separate enclosures, I haven't lost them completely. They just have to be guided back.

Top 10 Reasons

For your amusement and enjoyment: Top 10 Reasons You Know You're From Arizona When...

10) You can finish a Big Gulp in 10 minutes and go back for seconds.

9) You think someone driving while wearing oven mitts is clever.

8) You think 60 tons of crushed red rock makes a beautiful yard.

7) You buy salsa by the gallon.

6) You see two trees fighting over a dog.

5) You put on fresh sunscreen just to go check the mail box.

4) You know that in July it only takes two fingers to drive your car.

3) You can hear the weather forecast of 115 degrees without flinching.

2) You can pronounce"Saguaro", "Tempe", "Canyon de Chelly", "Mogollon Rim", and "Cholla"

AND THE NUMBER ONE REASON: (drumroll please)

You no longer associate bridges or rivers with water.

A week of "firsts"

This is shaping up to be a week of "firsts" for me. Today I experienced my first sandstorm. It appears to be a dense fog, but is in actuality very windy and scratchy. I had to cover my nose and mouth so that I could breathe as I walked to my car. The gusts of wind were so strong that the treetops were bent nearly to the ground. There were palm fronds all across the roads. The good news is that the strong winds cause the storm to pass quickly and you can get on your way.

AZ heat

Well, it happened. I had a negative encounter with the AZ heat. I was driving home Sunday afternoon and it was 117 degrees in the shade. I was comfortable in my air-conditioned car (thanks Uncle Chuck for walking me through the recharge process) but my car was not so comfortable. I learned that car batteries have a very short lifespan in AZ. The effort of powering my a/c and the high temperatures caused my battery to die right in the middle of the road. Fortunately, I wasn't on the highway and was able to coast into a parking lot. Unfortunately, I was 25 miles from home. AAA (thanks Mom for the membership!) would only tow it for 5 miles for free and then $5/mile for every additional mile. Fortunately, I was only 6 miles from Al & Mary Snyder's house (they attend Trinity) and they agreed to have it towed to their house. Unfortunately, by the time all this had transpired (the breakdown, my attempt to solve the problem myself, waiting for the tow truck, etc), it was too late for Al to help me replace the battery because he had an early meeting Monday morning. Fortunately, Al's generosity knows no bounds and he offered to drive me home, purchase and install the replacement battery, and find someone who could drive me to work Monday morning while he had my car. I am so humbled by his giving spirit. I pray I will have the opportunity to "pay it forward." I am also so appreciative of Rose Roth for volunteering to drive me to work. Al called me at 1pm today to say that my car was fixed and fully functional. He even did some diagnostic work to ensure that the battery was truly the root of the problem and not something else, such as the alternator or starter. Heather picked me up after work to pick up my car and I am now home safe and sound with a working vehicle. It has been strongly recommended that my next vehicular purchase be a white or light-colored car. The black paint does a great job of maximizing the sun's rays.