Small packages hold wonderful gifts

"pretty bird"

Before retiring I worked in a very small branch library.  Although tiny and tight quartered we had full complement of materials and services. We checked out all the best sellers as well as the standard fare of fiction and non-fiction, used up-to-date computer programs, sponsored a busy childrens  program and had the requisite public access computers for searching, research and internet access.  My supervisor had a standard reply to patrons who walked in and whined, “Gee, this library is so small;” “We are small but mighty!!!” was her reply. With apologies to D.B for borrowing her creative response, I would like to present our bird, Buddi, Ta dah... as a "small but mighty" addition to our crew.

At about 12 inches from bowsprit to stern she doesn’t appear to be very intimidating.  But friends and family love to regale others with the times they were attacked by and/or bitten by our bird.  We’ve tried to explain that Buddi, hand-fed by us when she was still a baby, does not see herself as a bird, but recognizes the captain and me as her “flock.”  And of course she feels obligated to protect her flock from any and all intruders, no matter how many times larger they are than she is.  I think that’s pretty brave and maybe even noble. Given time Buddi does become tolerant of outsiders and will invite an extended stay visitor into the flock. It would be nice if she were openly friendly to all she met, but that is not the nature of tropical birds; indeed we feel fortunate that she has bonded to both of us (although I confess she slightly favors the captain) as many pet birds love their primary caregiver and heartily dislike that person's partner!

Goin' for a walk with my bird...yeah!

We enjoyed taking her out when we lived in Florida where she was well known at Home Depot, Pinch-a-Penny and West Marine and was an honored guest at Big Apple Pizza and Quiznos (outside seating, of course). People stopped to admire her and the manager of our favorite pizza place would bring her a small plate with a chopped up garlic knot to tide her over until the pizza arrived.

We were unsure as to how the Mexicans would take to Buddi but we needn’t have worried; they seem to love her at least as much as the Americanos.  From the moment we arrived at the border in Tecate Buddi has been a star.  While authorities tried to figure out her immigration papers (passport, health certificate and copy of the CITIES treaty) their aides made silly bird and baby noises and asked to hold her.  We shook our heads and made a biting sign with forefinger and thumb and most backed off respectfully.  At the numerous military checkpoints along the north/south Baja route the story was always the same. Stern young military men would signal me to roll down the passenger window.  When they saw Buddi they would break out in foolish grins and begin the silly bird-talk.  I was very glad to have her at my side for while they still checked us out at each stop I felt that Buddi smoothed the way.

Buddi drinking her favorite juice,
nectar de durazno.

Now that we’ve settled in La Paz we often take her with us, whether walking, driving or riding our bikes.  She seems to be quite content in her bird backpack.  I was concerned that she might hate it as she did the "flight harness" we purchased then threw away (she was having none of that, thank you very much!), but she seems to enjoy her outings. She gets excited when we get the backpack out, flapping her wings much like the dog jumping up and down at the door when the owner asks, “Do you want to go out?”  And once zipped in she remains quiet, occasionally munching on treats or getting a drink of water.

Ahhh...a cool treat

We confess to being a bit silly about Buddi.  But she gives us so much pleasure she is well worth cleaning up the occasional misplaced poo or the seed hulls which float out of the cage no matter what precautions are taken.  When she gets tired in the evening (these birds need 12 hours of sleep per night) she crawls down in Larry's shirt or mine if he's not available.  In the morning the snuggles with us on our pillows. She plays "where's Buddi" sticking her head out and giving a big squawk. When in a playful mood she "wrestles" with us, rolling over on her back and grabbing a finger with beak and feet.  She's a lot of fun and we love her and are glad we took the extra steps to make her a part of our crew!