Donna and Geren got married! yay! They looked great! We had a wonderful time at their wedding which took place at their house, and I met interesting people and didn't look or sound any more stupid than usual. (This is a major concern for introverts at social gatherings. I also worry that that my contact lens will fall out into the dip/dressing or my skirt will fall off, or I'll fall down the stairs, or choke on a piece of food, or accidentally say something really really rude and offensive to somebody because I missed a crucial point in the converstation or I will talk too much. Sometimes I worry that all of those things will happen at the same time. But usually I only talk too much)

Birda is lookin' good....

and has been on the nest faithfully. We can't tell if there are any hatchlings yet. But there was a vine that was growing close to her nest and it seemed like it was giving a grackle or a catbird or some kind of mean bird a launching point to attack the nest. There was a lot of commotion over there, but we saw that Birda had run off the interloper.

Then we noticed that when we let Winston out he would go and sit below the nest, which is not where he usually hangs out. At first we thought he was just trying out a different view, but then we realized he was going out and consistantly sitting up straight and alert in what we call "guardian dog" mode. The only thing I can think of is that, since we always say "Hey, Birda" when we come in or go out and always look to see how she is, that Winston decided she is "part of the pack" and must be protected. He never seemed to notice her at all before he began his self appointed guard duty. I mean, I realize that mastiffs have been bred for centuries to be guard dogs, so I shouldn't be surprised....but I admit to constantly being shocked by how perceptive Winston is.

Then The Hub got the pruners and cut the vine. He had to get very close to the nest to do this and so he was perfectly prepared to get pecked on the head. But he said Birda just kind of gave him the hairy eyeball and didn't get off the nest. So, no more problems with grackles.