parrots at Christmas 2013

Pislner the parrot and Moondog

Ray getting "tickled"

Ray waving "hello"

This year "Ray" stayed with us over the holiday period.
We usually have quite a few more birds that stay with us over Christmas but this year it was just "Ray".
Believe me when I tell you "Ray" is a "high energy bird" . He likes to have a lot of attention with somebody to play with him.so it was just as well that "Ray" was the only visitor bird -besides my own twelve birds.
Ray is like a monkey with feathers. He is full of energy so I had to make sure I had  lot of toys that he could wreck to keep him busy or else he "finds things " to keep himself busy. (I stupidly left my mail on the counter within 5 minutes the letters were shredded.)
I made a bunch of shredder toys made of small boxes with paper and hidden nuts inside for him. I made a couple of paper mobiles so he could destroy and things with small nontoxic wooden blocks.A toy is "a success" when it is chewed up and reduced to a sawdust mess.
Ray loves to be with you too. As with any bird you got to make sure you are wearing a crappy clothes. Again he enjoys chewing things and that means necklaces (do not wear!) and sweatshirts.
My husband just loves Ray.
He plays little games with him on the couch such as "who's under the towel". Ray loves this and uses him as a climbing perch as well playing "king of the hill" on top of his head..All the birds like watching sports events (especially baseball and football) This includes Ray.
My husband was scratching Ray's head while they were both watching football. He fell asleep on the couch and I found Ray on his back with his feet up with his head nestled in the crook of his arm. I found this to be the funniest thing ever.He looked like he passed out..
All I could do is think of "Pilsner the parrot" in the "Monty" comic strips (see above)
Funny bird

Christmas village 2013

I was thumbing through a Christmas novelty catalog recently and they were selling. these cute "theme" nativity scenes with cats, dogs, native Americans and cowboys!(-but no birds.)
 So I made my own "bird theme" nativity scene (*see above)
I couldn't help but think of Steve Carrells character in the movie "Dinner with Schmucks" where he made dioramas and little villages out of dead mice.Every once in awhile a friend would mention that movie and ask if my father still sets up his "special villages" anymore.
During the Christmas season when I was a little kid my mother would set up the Christmas village and let my sister and I play with it  It was kind of special since it was out only for the Christmas season.
 My father would try his hand in woodworking and make light-up churches to add to it. He then got a little more creative and started making his "own" special villages that were fun and funny.
Over the years, as dementia slowly, silently and quietly tiptoed it's way into my father's being the villages started to get more and more bizarre. One was "OJ"s wedding, another with Dr. Kevorkian and then the final village, the alligator invasion at the troll park.
I don't know what happened to the original village. My sister and I probably wrecked it over years of play.
Sometimes I see at specialty vintage shops those little frosted sparkly covered roof churches with the paper windows.
 They still look magical to me.