March View, Sitting

They showed up in February and chose my feeder as one of their fast-food fly-throughs. The male’s bright red plumage and distinctive crest, of course, caught my eye at once. As this is the beginning of my first Spring in North Carolina, this was also my first encounter with the Cardinals, and my bird feeder has been quite the success. I have viewed multiple breeds of birds that I will eventually identify. At first, I worried about the seeds that fall to the ground but the doves and occasional crows come daily to clean up the yard. Even Charlie, our permanent resident Mallard, makes an occasional visit.

Right now, I am enjoying Mr. and Mrs. Cardinal, and their daily visits. I have been watching them a lot. In fact, I have been a captive audience. I had a chest cold that always affects my bronchial asthma. It usually lasts about seven days. Usually. About the tenth day of coughing, I finally messaged the doctor. I once worked in doctor’s offices. You are told to ride it out. You are told that antibiotics will not suddenly cure you. You are then told to use all of the over-the-counter stuff, and you are given a list. You are also told to use your inhaler twice the amount. So, I did not call. I did all of the above instead. I got worse. I spent the nights sitting up on my couch, coughing, watching the sun come up, and the Cardinals, among others, returning to visit my feeder.

Being sick is interesting. You spend hours just sitting and waiting to get better. Usually, patience pays off and you do get better. Not this time. When I did message my doctor, and waited 36 hours for a response, it was Friday at 4:30 pm. I learned something interesting. Apparently, an otherwise healthy, younger individual (adult) would have been given the above advice. When you are 71 with 71-year-old health problems and bronchial asthma, you should probably not wait ten days to connect. Off to Urgent Care with yourself, Right Now! I am home now with my Prednisone, my antibiotics, my couch, my dog JoJo, and my birds busily feeding at my feeder. So far, March weather has entered gently. Some days it is cool. Some days it is warm. When it is warm I open my door and listen to the singing of the Cardinals.

It should be noted that my Nemesis, “The Squirrel” is still around. If it would stick to the loose ground seed I would consent to its presence. But oh no! Squirrels eat a whole bunch! When the wild bird store tries to sell you, expensive, “hot seeds” that birds love and squirrels hate… Don’t believe them! These squirrels have apparently adapted. When I can, I walk out my door, wave my hands, and yell. Squirrels don’t like that. The bad news is that it causes the coughing to return. The good news is that it gets me up and moving, forcing fresh air into my lungs.

The Prednisone is giving me energy for now. I am getting better, but I’m thinking My Nemesis would probably like to take the credit for that.

Happy Spring!