ComPact 2017 – Overdue October! - Page 5

geezerette · ‎03-16-2010

@just bee wrote:
@geezerette wrote:
@just bee

I could put up with a lot, but I draw the line at not feeding the birds.

Yes, I live in the country so I can get away with it. And yes, the seed does attract unwanted visitors, so I don't feed seeds during the summer. The birds don't eat them then anyway, they have too many other goodies to much on, like bugs. So I switch to hummingbirds then. Once they're gone for the winter, along with the snakes, I feed seeds again. And yes, those 40lb bags are killer on my back, so I make the old geezer lug them.

Give up feeding the birds? He knows not to even ask.
@geezerette

It's a sad fact of life that when someone misbehaves a whole group that didn't ends up paying for it. The little birds are not a problem. It's the pigeons. I've counted 70 to 100 pigeons on my roof at one time. They've been damaging the roof and it was really obvious when we drove up the hill to the house 15 minutes ago (after driving across town to look at specific houses that had our shingle runners-up on them).

I like to think of myself as a considerate person but by attracting and feeding pigeons for the past 14 years, pigeons have been camping out on my neighbors' houses, too. So far nobody has complained, but I'm sure they have to be annoyed.

Also, it's illegal to feed pigeons in ABQ from what I've heard. The thing I'll miss about feeding the birds is the hawks that stop by for lunch.

I won't miss the neighbor's cat who kills the little birds and buries them under my rose bushes then pees all over my front yard.

It's complicated.

@just bee

Put in those terms, it's reasonable.

My mother liked to feed the birds too. It wasn't a problem when they lived on a large lot with part-time neighbors. But when they retired to a zero-lot line community where you could (almost) literally right out and touch your neighbor, her next-door neighbor complained about the bird poop. So she quit feeding.

We never had a problem with pigeons, but I do remember the game people asking you not to feed the doves because they spread a highly contagious respiratory disease.

And I have considered that by feeding I am upsetting the natural ecosystem and possibly doing more harm than good. This happened with my deer. Over the last few years more people have moved into our area resulting in more traffic on our little road. When I realized that the deer lying on the side of the road killed from a car were the ones that I had just hand fed, I knew that I was killing them with kindness. Not to mention those that got shot by hunters the minute they stepped off our property. Or the maimed or sickly ones I was keeping alive to breed other poor stock. I still put out minerals for them, but we only have a few now. I miss them, but there haven't been any road casualties for quite some time now.

Good intentions, and all that...

KaySD · ‎08-16-2016

@just bee

This is not complicated; this is deep wisdom. Thank you for sharing it. I had not thought of that connection in a painful loss, with something important to that person, in quite the same way. I will not forget.

And I have a beloved sister I can't imagine living without.

Might there be a different way of connecting to her love of birds? Feeding hummingbirds? Feeding wild birds somewhere else? Contributing in some way to a local aviary or rescue effort? Putting up an owl house or some other safe shelter? Going birdwatching once a month? I know none of these has that feeling of daily honoring....

just bee · ‎03-10-2010

@KaySD wrote:
@just bee
This is not complicated; this is deep wisdom. Thank you for sharing it. I had not thought of that connection in a painful loss, with something important to that person, in quite the same way. I will not forget.

And I have a beloved sister I can't imagine living without.

Might there be a different way of connecting to her love of birds? Feeding hummingbirds? Feeding wild birds somewhere else? Contributing in some way to a local aviary or rescue effort? Putting up an owl house or some other safe shelter? Going birdwatching once a month? I know none of these has that feeling of daily honoring....

@KaySD

I think Better-half is trying to make this transition easier by telling me I can plant more things to attract more bees. By doing that I'll get more butterflies and hummers, too. The birds will still be attracted to the yard because we have lots of trees and shrubs to hide in.

I'll figure out something. But if this week is any indication of what's to come, there's a good chance we won't get a new roof this year. BH has interviewed and set up appointments and it's hard enough to get people to show up and take our money. The whole state's on super slo-mo. You'd think there would be more of a sense of urgency with half the state on meth.

If someone doesn't get off the stick before the temperature drops, this project will have to wait 'til spring. If that's the case, I may be feeding the birds through winter.

~My philosophy: Dogs are God's most perfect creatures. Angels, here on Earth, who teach us to be better human beings.~

just bee · ‎03-10-2010

@geezerette wrote:
@just bee wrote:
@geezerette wrote:
@just bee

I could put up with a lot, but I draw the line at not feeding the birds.

Yes, I live in the country so I can get away with it. And yes, the seed does attract unwanted visitors, so I don't feed seeds during the summer. The birds don't eat them then anyway, they have too many other goodies to much on, like bugs. So I switch to hummingbirds then. Once they're gone for the winter, along with the snakes, I feed seeds again. And yes, those 40lb bags are killer on my back, so I make the old geezer lug them.

Give up feeding the birds? He knows not to even ask.
@geezerette

It's a sad fact of life that when someone misbehaves a whole group that didn't ends up paying for it. The little birds are not a problem. It's the pigeons. I've counted 70 to 100 pigeons on my roof at one time. They've been damaging the roof and it was really obvious when we drove up the hill to the house 15 minutes ago (after driving across town to look at specific houses that had our shingle runners-up on them).

I like to think of myself as a considerate person but by attracting and feeding pigeons for the past 14 years, pigeons have been camping out on my neighbors' houses, too. So far nobody has complained, but I'm sure they have to be annoyed.

Also, it's illegal to feed pigeons in ABQ from what I've heard. The thing I'll miss about feeding the birds is the hawks that stop by for lunch.

I won't miss the neighbor's cat who kills the little birds and buries them under my rose bushes then pees all over my front yard.

It's complicated.
@just bee

Put in those terms, it's reasonable.

My mother liked to feed the birds too. It wasn't a problem when they lived on a large lot with part-time neighbors. But when they retired to a zero-lot line community where you could (almost) literally right out and touch your neighbor, her next-door neighbor complained about the bird poop. So she quit feeding.

We never had a problem with pigeons, but I do remember the game people asking you not to feed the doves because they spread a highly contagious respiratory disease.

And I have considered that by feeding I am upsetting the natural ecosystem and possibly doing more harm than good. This happened with my deer. Over the last few years more people have moved into our area resulting in more traffic on our little road. When I realized that the deer lying on the side of the road killed from a car were the ones that I had just hand fed, I knew that I was killing them with kindness. Not to mention those that got shot by hunters the minute they stepped off our property. Or the maimed or sickly ones I was keeping alive to breed other poor stock. I still put out minerals for them, but we only have a few now. I miss them, but there haven't been any road casualties for quite some time now.

Good intentions, and all that...

@geezerette

Precisely. And that's BH's argument. He insists I'm messing with nature's balance. We criticize the people who live near the river because they've been preparing lavish meals for the coyotes -- roasted chicken and veggies. Eat this -- not my Shih Tzu.

This really isn't much different -- providing an unnatural source of food. And I definitely don't need to contribute to the growth of our local pigeon population.

And, in the future, when I'm huddled behind my dumpster, I'll reflect on all those years I was spending my retirement funds on seed.

~My philosophy: Dogs are God's most perfect creatures. Angels, here on Earth, who teach us to be better human beings.~