Photo Friday

My entry for Photo Friday.

Drive Home

Since some folks have posted photos of their daily walks, I figured I would take a photo of my daily commute. This is the traffic I face going back home from work. Notice that all the cars are at a complete stop which gives me an opportunity to take photos. Also notice the road going in the opposite direction. Completely empty!

When I first started working there, I was excited about the drive. It is one of the most scenic roads in Austin. There are cliffs and a beautiful bridge over the Colorado river and hills. Sometimes when it rains heavily, there are little waterfalls on the cliffs. Often there are low clouds over the bridge and you drive through them. Sounds do so relaxing and wonderful. Right?

Little did I know about the drivers on that road. They are maniacs. Here are some things you should know about this road:

• Shoulder is just another lane. You can get on the shoulder anytime you are in a hurry and drive 80 miles an hour to pass everyone. Your time is always more valuable than theirs. Only the meek stay stuck in traffic. And I am proud to be meek in this regard.

• The minute you give a right turn signal, whoever is behind you will speed up and inch closer and closer to your car. I can always tell whether they flossed that day or not.

• Big cars are everywhere around you. Suburbans. Big Macho Pickup trucks. And they want you out of their way! They know how to run over your car and are not afraid to do it. Doesn't matter if you have nowhere to go. That is just your personal problem.
  

• Gotto be on the phone! Everyone is always on the phone. In Austin, we don't have to use a hands free phone so no one uses it. Extra points if you can drive, talk on the phone AND groom yourself. I am not being a sexist here. I have seen women putting makeup on. I have seen men shaving, tweezing eyebrows, and lathering their faces with stuff.
  

• It doesn't matter if the traffic is at a complete halt. You must drive very fast and slam your breaks at the very last minute. So you give a few heart attacks to the folks standing still. What's your point?

• Traffic goes somehow thus. Stop. Wait. Stop. Wait. Speed, Speed, Speed, Speed, Speed! Slam breaks. Rinse and repeat.

So I'm off to face my morning commute now. You may think that I am passing through clouds, or passing by waterfalls or enjoying the scenic views. But the fact is that I am praying hard that I make it without being run over.

Wordless Wednesday

Crayons from South America.

Maze

Life can be a maze sometimes. Which way to go? So much to do and such little time.

Wine Opera: Part 13

The Consequences

The Purple Cowboy was about to Freakout.

This was all Jake’s Fault.

He should never have agreed to take Jake’s sister to The Show.

And now the Good Daughter was mad at him and he didn’t know what to do.

So he hopped on his best Longhorn.

He did The Stump Jump.

He did the Shoo Fly and then realized suddenly….

He had to go on a Mission to finally win the Good Daughter’s heart.

All he needed was a little luck and some shopping at Telegraph Hill.

Birdie

So this is my pet bird. She is a grey monk parakeet. Her name is Birdie and she adopted us.

A few years ago, she flew into our backyard. I stepped out of my house and my neighbors were in my front yard. They were trying to catch this bird. She was barely flying and was landing on cats and dogs to play with them. The cats were trying to eat her but she had no clue. They could tell that it was a pet bird that had escaped and had no outside survival skills. She would become cat food if we did not help. So we did. They caught her.

My neighbor did not want her as a pet. She had 6 cats and 2 dogs. So I volunteered to take her. My neighbor asked me, "Don't you want to ask your hubby? You may have to keep her forever." And I said, "Naah... He'll accept it."

So walked into my house with the bird and said, "Hello! I have a present for you." Ha ha. I am clever sometimes.

My hubby instantly took control of the situation. She was biting everyone but he talked to her and soothed her. He gave her water and some bread. I could tell that he made an instant connection and was in love.

We tried to find the owner but never could. We called her Birdie because we did not want to get emotionally attached to her. We still call her Birdie.

I don't like to keep birds in cages. So we let her roam around. She wasn't really flying. Just hopping around. I did not want to clip her wings. To me, that was inhumane.

Until....

One day my hubby was out of town for work. Birdie decided to fly around. Which was fine until she landed on my younger son's shoulder and latched on to his ear. She was biting him hard and would not let go.

So what's a Mom supposed to do? I grabbed a broom and tried to swat Birdie off. My intention was to use the soft side of the broom to disengage her. I tried. But I ended up hitting my son with the broom. He was not happy. "Mom stop! You are not helping me!"

So essentially, my son was being bitten by Birdie AND I was hitting him with a broom. How many people have I offended by now?

All this happened in a matter of seconds. Birdie got bored with the ear and finally flew off some place else.

So we did what any normal people would do. We all ran upstairs to my bedroom and shut the door.

I made a frantic phone call to my hubby and said, "I don't care what you are doing but you need to come home right now. Birdie is attacking us. But don't worry because we are safe in the bedroom."

Did I get any sympathy from him? Nope. He found the whole situation very funny. Then gave me mathematical numbers about how much we weigh and how much the Birdie weighs. I hate math. Not funny at all.

We were locked up in my bedroom for a couple of hours until my hubby came and subdued Birdie.

He said: I can't believe that you were held hostage by a bird.

I said: Get the wings clipped tomorrow.

Birdie loves my hubby and hates me with vengeance.

I could tell that she came from a very decedent environment. She likes to eat from people's plates. She likes alcohol. Yes she does. Not that we give her any. But she will attack those wine glasses. Here is proof...






No we don't let her eat off our plates or give her alcohol. But that doesn't stop her from attacking our stuff. She demands that she sits on our coffee table when we sit and watch TV. She is a diva.

Some days I ask myself, "How did I end up with such an eccentric bird? Why don't I get to be a diva?"