Monday, June 27, 2011

Two Dum-dums and a Dead Guy

I have been a bit under the weather and feeling uninspired.
My to-do list is on the table with a big tea stain on it.
It gets longer as I do nothing.
Let's not be hard on ourselves.
It's okay



I forgot to put this on my to-do list.
Oops!

Today's list:

- call in sick
- drink tea
- feel bad about neglecting the list
- think about planting an orchard
- fill bird feeder
- think about what I will write today

I noticed while performing the second to last item on the list that the dum-dums are out.  This is the name we have given to the young black capped chickadees that have just emerged from the nest with their moms. They are on the feeder or hanging from the wind chimes. They are a bit clumsy and overshoot their targets and end up in the branches of trees or on the ground.  Occasionally they fly into the house and are confused.  They usually just find a place on the window sill or the back of a chair and look at me curiously. There have been two so far. They are very cute and most of them can just be picked up with your bare hand because they are so new.  They have no fear.
I am always amazed how quickly they learn though. In just a few days they are proficient flyers and valuable members of the bird community.

  
Which brings me to this question.  Why is it so easy for most birds and so difficult for some people? It must be horrible for parents when a kid goes down the wrong path and gets into trouble.  I think in most cases it can be corrected and they can be steered right again.  I don't know I'm not a parent.  I think also that it doesn't necessarily depend on how good or bad the parents are....sometimes they just go astray.



This was the scene at the end of the street where the boyfriend is renovating his house.  24 years old, shot multiple times. They haven't arrested anyone yet.

I'll bet he didn't start the day thinking he would be photographed under a tarp that day, with one black Nike running shoe sticking out.

I'll bet a few people said "Good, one less punk to deal with"

The officer we spoke with told us that regardless of who he was or what he had done, they would treat this case as thoroughly and respectfully as they would any other.  They had the block taped off for a couple of days.  Officers were everywhere, guys in bullet-proof vests canvassing every home in the area.

There is no longer a chance to turn things around, to straighten out.
There is no longer a chance to say "I'm sorry."
Somewhere there is a mother who just lost a dum-dum.

4 comments:

  1. Beautiful post, Carm. Sometimes I get excited about the prospect of having kids one day, and then I remember that they get older than eight, and I think of all the negative influences in the world, and I think it would be easier not to have any than to chance watching them grow into someone I couldn't respect.

    Hope Tuesday finds you outta that Monday slump! My To Do list grows longer every day, but y'know what? Sometimes having fun is more important than going to the bank :)

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  2. Thanks Jesse, Tuesday feels a bit better than Monday. The kid thing baffles me, always have been rather neutral about it. If I ever thought there was a good time? Probably now, but I'm 46...maybe I will just try to be good to someone else's kid.

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  3. Well I'M always open to motherly advice! Especially from you, considering I've been hearing how similar we are for the last 25 years, and it turns out it's pretty true...

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  4. That's so fun that people think that. Happy.

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