April 11, 2008. Harper Texas. A Perfect Day.

There is a gem of a short story in the April edition of Commentary. "Roughnecking It" by R.R. Reno. Remember when there was a good short story in almost every magazine? Not any more. Probably because short stories are so very difficult to write. But this is a good one and worth your while to find a copy.

Last evening I went out to sit on the porch off the living room, and took my bird books and my binoculars. The time was 4:30. Our friends Joyce and Robbie were coming over for a glass of wine at 6:00 so I had time to sit still and watch the birds. Normally I watch for birds down by the fire pit close to the ranch house, but tonight, as guests were coming, I stayed at the top house. As I am 70, I now can sit still and watch for the birds. Having a lot of energy is a huge asset, but it does make it difficult to sit still. Now I can do it. During our morning walk, a very cheeky wren came over scolding us. I had no clue what the bird was, so the first thing I did was look up the wrens. Sure enough, it was a Bewick's Wren, at least I think it is.

Then I looked up to see 8 or 10 beautiful birds pecking at the ground right on the other side of the fence. I watched the birds for about 30 minutes, of course with my binocs, to try to fix in my mind all their features. When they finally flew away I was frantically trying to find out what matched the picture in my mind with the picture in the books. Where are my birder friends when I need them? A Lark Sparrow, that is the name of the birds, at least I think it was. They were beautiful. The I looked up from my bird book to see a very different and naughty bird, sitting right on the railing of the porch, chirping away at me in a very saucy manner. His mate was sitting watching me from the fence. The bird had a black crest and lots of white, but quite small. What is this bird? And so close to me too. Very unusual in birds. I sat still while this little bird flew around me, landing on the screen behind me, on the back of my chair, and finally landing on my hair. Then he flew around me again with the same drill, again landing on my head. All the while the mate is watching us both. Finally they left and once again I look through the books. It was the Black Crested form of a Tufted Titmouse. He wanted to steal some of my hair for his nest. What a beautiful little bird, and sitting three feet in front of me.!! Earlier in the day Ken and I saw several Summer Tanagers, also many Vermilion Flycatcher. It was a perfect day watching the birds in Texas. But you have to be able to sit still!!