Cute Wildlife

Friday afternoon, I was writing outside.  The weather during the first part of the week had been cold and rainy.  As I usually say during boundless stretches of grey:  "we can always use the rain, but if the sun doesn't come out soon I'm going to curl up under my electric throw until the light returns."

Now that Spring is here, we should get more days where there's a terrific mix of sunshine, cloudbursts, and rainbows.

Last Friday was bright and warm, and a good day for writing at Café John (the outside patio table with an umbrella).  The new fountain was on and bubbling, and providing a soothing sonic backdrop.   I had my slippers off and was warming my feet on the deck,  working on the order of scenes in a 7000 word short story (do I go back and forth between the three time periods, or do I just tell the whole thing chronologically?  The first part feels YA, should I just accept it, or should I try cutting out the early parts of the story as backstory that's driving to the last scenes...?)



A flash of yellow caught my eye, and I saw a goldfinch on top of the fountain.  This was surprising because I thought the flowing water would make it difficult for a small bird to find purchase on the stone's polished surface.  The bird splashed around a bit, then flew off to the blooming cherry tree and came back with a friend.  They proceeded to take a bath.   The whole scene was what I would have called "Terminally Cute" in my Reed College days, and what Mark and I usually call "Oogie-Boo!"






To clarify, they weren't being Snow White Disney Birds Cute, nor were they being Flower Fairies Twee.





I grabbed my camera, set the ISO to 1600, and snapped a few shots from just inside the sliding patio door.  Reviewing the photos later, I discovered that the camera can resolve drops of water flying through the air.










There were no mystic signs of ornithomancy later.  Or sudden appearances of elegant ball gowns, either.








I'm sure once the cats overcome their fear of the new dog and venture once again into the backyard, they'll be quite pleased to discover the new water-powered cat-feeder.