Monday, February 18, 2013

Bird Brain?

Perhaps I should have a contest to see who can come up with how to get my bird-brained husband out of the tree? And you'd get a feather in your cap?????

Let me explain these photos.  My dear, beloved, ever-so-cherished husband likes birds.  Apparently a lot. And our lovely North Dakota Weather has turned foul, with another one of our relentless blizzard warnings.


So what does my husband do for winter-preparedness?  Why, he gets out the 6 foot ladder, climbs to the very tip of it. . . .

Oh, but wait! That's not high enough!


So he swings himself into the tree.  The rotted, brittle-limbed, ugly tree that birds really love, because apparently birds like almost dead trees, so they can feast on bugs that are infesting the tree. . . .

And up he goes ANOTHER 6 feet into the tree! All so he can refill the bird feeder.


But why stop there?  Maybe it's time to do a little house maintenance.  You know, on the roof of the two-storied house, but grabbing a long-handled rake and swinging it overhead . . . .


. . . . to shovel some of the snow off the roof.


Of course, if you are Doug, you can defend to your complaining wife that you were totally safe the entire time, but look how thin these branches are compared to his foot. These BRITTLE, ALMOST DEAD branches, which you might be having trouble getting your foot on, and have to struggle a bit for your footing 18 to 20 feet above the ground!

"Traditionally, birds have been considered inferior in intelligence to mammals, and derogatory terms such as bird brains have been used colloquially in some cultures. Such perceptions are no longer considered scientifically valid. The difficulty of defining or measuring intelligence in non-human animals makes the subject difficult for scientific study. " (Wikipedia)

Bird-brained? Maybe not, because birds, at least know they can fly!

5 comments:

Susan Beth said...

To get your husband (or keep your husband) out of the tree, perhaps a long pole/stick with a hook on the end to reach to feeder and get it down and back up (like one of those apple picking tools). Even my 13 year old said he wouldn't stand on that branch - and most 13 year olds think they are unable to be harmed by their behavior.

Glad your husband got out safe and sound! And it is so nice the birds will have food for the storm. So, what were you on to take those photos?

Ron said...

Tell Doug to please not feed any more birds until our get together in July I would like to see him without a body cast on.

The Gardencat said...

Were you taking these pictures from a window? and, if so, could you possible get him a long pole that would allow him to reach the feeder from that window? I'm just asking because, if your husband is anything like mine, once he has made up his mind to do something you won't be able to stop him, maybe just suggest a less hazardous method of getting it done.

Nicki said...

OMG - I can totally see myself doing something this lame-brained, but I would have at least had the good form to slip at some point, perhaps even thrown in a fall. (shaking it off and looking in both directions to make sure no one saw me) I like to validate scientific fact. Gravity, it works! Carry on!

You go Doug!

Barb said...

A forklift would be handy for you all to keep on hand. Good shots!