My Companion Criquette

My beautiful Double Yellow Head Amazon parrot has been with me for eight years. We hit it off straight away when I brought her home. She is now twenty-five years old and is in great health according to her vet.

I adopted Criquette from some friends who could no longer keep up with her. When they first adopted her my friends did not have two kids and two dogs and parrots require a lot of attention because they are very social and need an enriching environment for them to thrive. Since I brought her to her forever home she has pretty much taken over my house and thinks it is hers. She will chase away people that come to visit, especially females. She is very smart, talks a lot and very affectionate -- too much so at times.

Although she was given to me, I have spent lots of resources on her to keep her healthy and thriving. I purchased a very large custom surgical stainless steel cage for her; she had no trouble accepting her new abode as her other cage though large was not as roomy as her new one. Criquette is out of her cage as long as I am home and she enjoys flying from room to room exercising her wings. I also have health insurance for her and it has come in handy for her annual checkups and related visits. She is also quite the acrobat and enjoys climbing challenges.

At 25 years old she is still young; amazons can live 80 - 100 years. I have created a fund for her so that she will be taken care well beyond my lifetime. Criquette has her own legal documents including notarized adoption papers that I take with me when we travel.

Though parrots make wonderful companions it is not for everyone. If you are considering adopting one, please do your homework and read up a lot about their care. It is not like having a dog or cat. Unfortunately, many parrots end up at rescue centers because people can't manage or spend the kind of time these creatures need. Interestingly, my parents had parrots when I was growing up and that's the only kind of companion I have mostly had in my adult life. They are beautiful creatures that have their own personalities, but most of them live a long time. It is quite the commitment if someone adopts a parrot; so think twice about venturing down this journey.

Stories from South Texas: Olivia

Growing up in Brownsville, Texas was always an adventure; we didn't have much money and I remember finally getting a bicycle for my birthday when I was 15 or 16. It was a Murray bike that up until recently still stood prominently in my parents home. That bicycle provided me a sense of freedom that I never knew before since my family had no car and primarily used public transit. One of the places that I used to venture to was a close friend's home. He had two sisters (Olivia and Olga) that I liked very much. I really got along well with the entire family and often had dinner with them. My visits were frequent because I really liked the youngest sister Olivia. We were good friends, but I never had the courage to ask her out. I don't know if she ever knew that I liked her a whole lot. Once I went off to college I lost contact with her and her family. I hope that she had a great life and I wish I had been more courageous in my youth to have told her how I felt. I remember her as a very sweet person.

Pantilier

                                From Pantiland Photo Series©

Wet Snow in Minnesota--again

Well, can you believe this, it is snowing again in Minnesota. We have a major storm system that is grazing the Twin Cities, but our neighbors to the south will get the brunt of the snow. It is a wet snow that in theory will melt by tomorrow (3/24/2016). Driving is challenging and some folks are going home early to avoid the hazardous journey. If you are reading this I hope you are having 80 degree weather.

Been awhile

Hello World, I hope you all are well. It has been a tumultuous day with the terrible events in Belgium. I hope that all of us are sending positive energy to all the victims and survivors. We still have a long way to go as humans on this precious planet we call Earth.