The Secret

[AJ]

I must admit that I have read a lot of this thread since its development and have popped in from time to time.

Favorite refreshment eh. Well that has to be beer of course. I just love the stuff in moderation of course. It is a bit too early for one this morning but you can bet your bottom dollar that around 6 pm I will be indulging in a nice pint.

Christmas was as it should be Sandy....chaos! I loved it. Makayla's Christmas was normal with the usual spoiling from the grandmothers. Next Christmas will be crazy with her running around.

[AJ]

Oh Sandy,

Do you or George ever hear from Helen any more???

[November]

Hello Kim! I just want you to know that as I am writing to you I am being dive bombed by our baby bird..."Lacy" She has the run of the place temporarily and has this disconcerting habit of doing about five "fly byes" before finally deciding to land on your head.

Who is Lacy? Did I miss a new bird story somewhere?

Well, I'm off for a piece of Dove's chocolate! ( I have a hidden stash )

I love a good piece of Dove's chocolate myself!!

[peacockplume]

Oh Sandy,

You are bad,,,,bad,,,,,bad......spiders and snakes,,,,,and puppy dogs tails, that's what little boys are made of....(not you AJ)
or so I was told when I was a young'un...

snakes, hmmmm,,,,,we moved on this property 16 years ago, I have seen many generations of baby snakes,,,,,good owl food I say....and I have a barred owl,,,,and I think a couple of great horned owls,,,so I imagine they're getting fed well...

however, I did see mama snake 'grow',,,,,ooooooo she's quite big now,,,haven't seen her this year, maybe nice owl got her....but there's lots of kiddies around...

otherwise,,,,I have a girlfriend who thought snakes were 'cool', she got herself a boa,,,,,and sent me a picture of her, with this huge thing wrapped around her......gave me the willy's....

then I 'heard' one year,,,,,she had gone into her bedroom (imagine keeping snake that size in your bedroom (nuts), anyway, she was gone for awhile, and finally her son went in to find her,,,,,yes,,,,laying on the floor, with this snake wrapped around her, and she couldn't even holler.....darned near couldn't breathe anymore....

I've doubted her sensibilities ever since....

END OF SNAKE and snake stories..... gross hey!!!!

meanwhile, trying to train your bird to head land on one go hey????

bet George just loves that.....



AJ Beer is great, I used to love the beer in Germany, and when we came home, I couldn't drink the stuff here anymore unless I obliterate it with clamato juice......now I'm just down to the clamato juice....

You'll have to update your avi with a Christmas baby picture,,,,we'd love to see her growing.....next thing you know??????



November, I love your smiley....

love to all
pp xoxoxoxoxox

[Sandy]

Hello Everyone!

A.J., I am sorry to say that we hardly ever get to talk with Helen anymore which is a real shame. We sure miss her around here. She was (still is) a very beautiful lady!

Oh, Makayla's grandmothers are so lucky! I'd be spoiling her too if I were there! My parents didn't get to see their grandkids (My kids) all that often because they lived so far away, but when we came in for a visit they pulled out all the stops and spoiled them rotten while they were there. I so enjoyed getting to try my hand at this spoiling thing when George's grandkids came for a short visit recently. Mind you, I am a rookie but I think I could easily take to it as a duck takes to water! I could be one of those "baking grandmas"...you know...plying the little ones with cookies and sweets. :twisted: sigh...

As for all this talk about beer... ooooo, gross!... worse than spiders and snakes! The only way I enjoy the taste of beer is in a batch of beer muffins! Now that is the way to drink your beer! yummy and twice the calories!

PP, I have handled my fair share of snakes from my time working at the pet store. (Little cute snakes of course!) Like with any animal, they can be quite charming and not at all slippery or slimy. Anyone who is keeping large snakes such as boas, though, should always use caution because they think with their stomach and sense of smell. If they are hungry and you have their favorite dinner on your hands they can and will wrap themselves around you as easily as their natural prey... and if it happens to occur around your neck or chest it could be very dangerous as your friend found out. I read somewhere that a good item to have close at hand whenever you handle the large snakes is a bottle of alcohal... I think it was of the fermented kind. So hey!... there's another good use for beer! Not sure what you are exactly supposed to do with the alcohal though..."Have a last drink before meeting your maker? ... "Invite them to a party?" Sorry, guys...I am in one of those "bad joke" moods... Seriously, I think that you are to pour it over their head in the hopes of getting them to let go and quit compressing! I think hot water will also cause them to loosen their grip a tad too.

I'm sorry, November! I figured George had told every body on the board about our little baby. He aquired Lacey while I was in the U.S. ( I think the empty flat was getting to him.) She is a lovely three month old Indian Ringneck Parrot. We decided on the name, Lacey, after much debate because she is of the blue Lacewing variety. I will post a picture of her if I can figure out how. Would love to catch a "Photie" of her on George's head! Gotta be quick though! There isn't a lot to hang onto up there at the tip top so she slips off rather easily. ) She is a real sweetheart but a little bitier than I would like... (Boyd had us so spoiled! ) She's not trying to be mean... she's just curious and is exploring her environment (and my arm) with her mouth like many babies do! I have been working with her and finally am making some headway. As an experienced bird owner, do you have any good tips in this area? Could certainly use some help!

My sister, Cindy, has gotten me started on Dove's dark chocolate while I was in the U.S.. She sent some back with me for the long plane trip to OZ and the ladies that checked my bag in Sydney customs had a fit over them. ( In a nice way thank goodness!) It seems the one had just said moments before I came through that she badly needed some chocolate. Unfortunately, they are not allowed to accept "bribes" so they couldn't have any of mine. What a shame! Oh well...more for me!!!

Warm Hugs to all you beer drinking, tea sipping, coffee gulping, priceless darlings!!
Sandy

[peacockplume]

Sorry Sandy,
but how are you supposed to pour a beer over a snakes head, if he has your arms pinned to your side ?????
If the beer is for somebody else to pour on the snake, it better be a friend (or they might not want to waste the beer.....worse yet, the friend might not want to waste the beer...


AJ,,,,see how silly we can get....

and me too,,, I love baby, babies,,,,little, little babies, stinky and all...they just take a piece of me....my eldest niece in Calgary is just 'with child', as they used to say, maybe I'll be able to see this one...

Tell George, he's a sly one, and he should know what I mean, in regards to the bird....glad he got you a baby,,,,bird I mean....(could you imagine,)

just put Lacey on as an avi for abit, and we'll all see him....

I have a niece called Lacey,,,,,,,Allan's sister's daughter....too many to keep track of...

see you all later.
love, pp xoxoxo

[Seeker13]

Gees! You guys have been busy!

Let's see beer, snakes, definately frozen birds yuck! Babies, live birds, Dove chocolate, Grandma in the future, snuggly sweet! Sandy it's so nice of George to get another bird. I know you miss Boyd. By the way I love your bad joke moods. You had me laughing out loud!

Lynn,
I did finish Ask and It Is Given. It's been on hold in the back of my mind. Since school started, Patty and the kids moving in, I've been waiting for things to settle down around here. Alright now I'm laughing again! The funny thing is I was going to talk to Aleah about Ask this morning, but got stuck doing homework all day. Oh, yeah! Homework, yuck!

I mentioned before that manifestation has been working pretty quickly around here for me, sister Patty, and Aleah. We've asked to find lost cell phones, keys, wallets, etc...and seconds later they're in our hands. My sister needed a better paying job and someone who knows Dave recommended Patty at their work without ever meeting her. She starts on Monday! I have had to talk to Dave about asking for protection. He's been more than a little accident prone lately.

Well, big project to work on tomorrow for class, better get some rest. Love you guys!

A.J. were you able to keep up?

Love,
Kim

[peacockplume]

Hi Kim,,

yes, busy, busy, Sat is chore day, and card night,,,,no cards tonight so Anne and I just watched movies....

He's been more than a little accident prone lately.

hey, maybe it's balancing as well....could probably use both...

Good oh, on the manifesting,,,,lots are having good success,,,,
but watch the 'Yuk' stuff, you'll just get more Yuk, so change the emotion about it.....homework,,,,could be fun now....

love, pp
xoxoxo[/quote]

[AJ]

I keep up slowly but not to the extent that all of you do.

[Seeker13]

Dear PP,
Alright fine, ... homework FUN! After working on a ten page project on Friday and another ten pager yesterday, I'll admit I was a tad bit grumpy.

I don't know what's up with my hubby! In the last couple of months he's had a severely sprained ankle, an axe handle broke stabbing through his hand(I had to pry it off with a screwdriver). He drives one of those huge county plow trucks, the plow slipped and crashed down on top of his foot! He was putting away dishes on Thursday and ended up getting six stiches. As he was bleeding all over, very calmly, he asked, "Why do these things keep happening to me?" We had to drive to the emergency room in a snow storm. Going to work the next day with his hand all bandaged up, and still limping because his foot still hurts, everyone just laughed at him.

He's the sweetest guy I know, so I can't imagine it's the Law of Attraction at work, always going out of his way to help others. So I repeat, "He needs to ask for protection every day!"

Dear AJ,
My Christmas break is over tomorrow, so it will probably be hit and miss for me again over the next six months. And I can't believe I haven't told your how absolutely darling your little girl is! Everytime I look at that sweet photo it brings a smile to my face.

[hamster whisperer]

I just got my second pet snake. I already have an albino corn snake, pale pink with ruby eyes. Around here, when you have a student teacher, not only does someone else do your job while you still get paid, but the universities also send you a nice little stipend. So, I went and bought an orangey-reddish gorgeous little corn snake with my student teacher money. Name: Lola. From the Kinks' song about the male/female guy. Since I will never probe my snakes, I pretend Mist is female and Lola is whatever.
I am weaning myself off hamsters a little. They just don't live very long. Ozzie died last week. Gandalf still has a grape sized tumor hanging off her side, but she is perfectly well otherwise and still runs around like a maniac.
These snakes I can retire with. Snakes are not slimy or scaly feeling. They are smooth as silk and just flow through your hands. They also make great eye contact.
We go back to school tomorrow. My kids will notice the new baby immediately.
Happy New Year!
Jill

[ChildofGod]

Happy New Year to you too hampster whisperer!!!!

Liz

[AJ]

Thanks Kim. She definatley brings a smile to mine every day.

[peacockplume]

Oh AJ,

She is soooooo precious, not telling you anything you don't already know,,,,

just look at those eyes, (ya, I know you do),,,and get mezmerized everytime you do..

it's like she's saying...I love you,,,,,my heart just melted....

Oh, yeah, like that orb placement......

I just got goosebumps......talk about an Angel guiding your spiritual way....

Happy New Year to you and All of your family.....

please give Makayla a big kiss from me......xoxoxoxoxo

love, pp

[peacockplume]

Hi Kim,,,,

Oh, your poor hubby,,,,,he definitely is getting a message....

and you're probably too close to see it.....step back abit,,,,look at him like a stranger....

severely sprained ankle, an axe handle broke stabbing through his hand(I had to pry it off with a screwdriver). He drives one of those huge county plow trucks, the plow slipped and crashed down on top of his foot! He was putting away dishes on Thursday and ended up getting six stiches. As he was bleeding all over, very calmly, he asked, "Why do these things keep happening to me?"

it may not be the L of A at work here,,,,but strange things do happen to get us to 'stop' and take notice....am I really doing what I'm supposed to be doing????

all these outward signs are all pointing at a 'time for him to stop, and figure out what he's doing',,,,,,that's all I'm going to say here....

my sympathies and healing energies,,, sent to him nonetheless,,,,,,,poor guy.....

I know a (now retired) biology teacher,,,,and used to help mark papers, so I have an idea of what the 'FUN' you've been having...

I guess that's why they give kids holidays, so the teachers can catch up

Take care now, and if he can't put up that bubble of light around him, can't you????

much love, pp
xoxoxoxoxo

[peacockplume]

Hi Jill,

You're obviously doing this to 'worry' me

my best friend

then I 'heard' one year,,,,,she had gone into her bedroom (imagine keeping snake that size in your bedroom (nuts), anyway, she was gone for awhile, and finally her son went in to find her,,,,,yes,,,,laying on the floor, with this snake wrapped around her, and she couldn't even holler.....darned near couldn't breathe anymore....

oh sorry, I missed the point that she's just an albino corn snake...whew!!!

sorry about your dear hampsters,,,,they are so cute....even if they don't last long,,,,,look at the wonderful and spoiled life you give them....

Happy Show and Tell Day...

love, pp
xoxoxo

[AJ]

will do pp!

[November]

I will post a picture of her if I can figure out how. Would love to catch a "Photie" of her on George's head!

Oh! I 'm so happy for you! They are very cute! What I have read up on about biting, is that parrots love reaction - even bad reaction - so yelling doesn't really do much good (not that I'm saying you would yell - just people in general ). If you put her back into her cage every time she bites with a firm "No", she may start to associate that biting gets her "sent to the corner" - or cage. If she is hard to catch because of flying, maybe it would be easier to have her wings trimmed (as long as she isn't molting - you don't want any new blood feathers cut).

Sandy, I just found a link to Ringneck myths. One mentions biting after being weaned - http://www.indianringneck.com/myth/
I maybe wrong about putting a ringneck back into it's cage, but that is usually the advice for other biting parrots.

I couldn't find any lacewings, but here is a blue Indian Ringneck (I would love to see a picture of her on George's head! )

[November]

November, I love your smiley....

Thanks! I tried to find where I got it and now I can't remember

[peacockplume]

Hi November,

That was nice of you to send a pic of the Blue Indian Ringneck... he's really beautiful, so now I'll have an idea of what he looks like when Sandy writes about Lacey...

the only thing is you can't tell how big he is,,,,is that full size????

I had a little blue budgie once,,,,,I got quite sick one time though, and he used to always sit on my shoulder,,,,

well, he caught my cold, and died in my hands,,,,,and that did it for indoor birds for me...

having the peacocks for a few years though, was quite the experience.....
I loved hearing them 'sound off'....

they were better watch dogs, than the dogs.....

love, pp

[November]

the only thing is you can't tell how big he is,,,,is that full size????
love, pp

I don't know who this lady is, but I used the photo to estimate size.


Overall length seems to be about 16 to 17" with the tail being almost half of that.

[peacockplume]

wow, that was awesosme, thanks November,,,,

now I can see how small my budgie was in comparison...

thanks again.

love pp

[Sandy]

Dear November!

The blue Indian Ringkneck bird you posted is beautiful! Lacey being just a baby is a very pale pastel blue. She is supposed to darken a little as she ages. You can see a subtle bluish color distinction between her head and her body especially on her back. I really thought I was making some headway with her, but this morning she got me pretty good. (brought tears to my eyes..and left a raised whelt on my arm.)

I read the helpful article about The Ring Neck's habit of bluffing and biting at this early time in their lives. It sounds like I have been doing the opposite of what I should be doing. Right now I am trying to figure out how in the world I am going to be able to ignore her chewing away at my arm as the article suggests...but it sounds like it is very important to do just that! I think I will always wear something on my arms to at least take some of the force of the bite. (Like a shark suit! ) I'll also keep beads and toys at my side when holding her to help distract her from taking out her hormonal attitude out on me. Lets just hope her bluffing stage only lasts a few days to a weeks. Anyway..thanks so much for finding this wonderful and informative site. It seems as if you may have helped prevent me from making a drastic mistake with her upbringing.

PP, I just love Budgies and for some reason I was always drawn to the baby blue ones. Unfortunately, my first two parakeets keeled over at home without any warning. I found out later that birds have a tendency to hide their illness or any weakness from each other, something in the wild that would make them a target. So sometimes you don't realize they are sick until they are very ill. I learned from the pet store to scan the birds everyday for any discharge around the eyes and nose, puffed out feathers and lethargic behavior as well as examin the droppings in the bottom of the cage. At the first sign of illness they received a bird antibiotic that can be bought over the counter which seemed to work like a charm.

Hi Jill, You sure know how to pick a great snake for the kids! Corn snakes are one of the most beautiful snakes and from the ones I have handled seem very docile too. How did the children react to the new classroom pet? Have you ever seen a hognose snake? They are an interesting snake too. Whenever they become frightend they turn themselves over and go belly up, pretending to be dead. Not sure how that would help if say something like an eagle or Hawk wanted you for dinner though. (Sounds like that would simply make you fast food wouldn't it? )

I am also very sorry that you have lost Ozzie. I know how much you love your animals. I always kept rats and they too have a short lifespan. It used to break my heart when they passed on.

Happy New Year to you too! It is gonna be a good one!

Love to all you beautiful people!
Sandy

[hamster whisperer]

Hey Sandy!
The kids loved the new snake. And as of this morning she has shed her first skin. I thought she was pretty before, now she just glows like a streamer of jewels! Beautiful Lola. The hognose snake sounds intriguing. I have a dragon fish in one of my tanks. They have a tendency to lie on their side on the bottom of the tank or draped over a rock or something and stare off into space. Sort of an "I'm dead" look, but when you try to scoop them out, they seem to chuckle as they swim away.
Your new birdie is gorgeous! I had a finch years ago that I knew when it was an egg. A friend of mine had a bird and I got one of its hatchlings.
She peeped like a heart monitor. I also had a pair of lovebirds, but I hung their cage outside one day and they escaped through about a quarter inch space in the bottom and are now probably still living the wild life in Florida.
Happy New Year!
Love,
Jill

[peacockplume]

Hi Sandy,

I'll also keep beads and toys at my side when holding her to help distract her from taking out her hormonal attitude out on me.

I think that's a super great idea, it seems to be a logic held in most animal training....even dogs....distraction and patience ha ha..

I learned from the pet store to scan the birds everyday for any discharge around the eyes and nose, puffed out feathers and lethargic behavior as well as examin the droppings in the bottom of the cage. At the first sign of illness they received a bird antibiotic that can be bought over the counter which seemed to work like a charm.

my bird experience was 30 yrs ago,,,,all I remember is I got really sick, and within a couple of days, my bird was dead....

and I used to get alot of bronchial colds,,,,so I think that finished my affair with birds....now,,,the ones I get to love are outdoors,,,

(along with the rats, snakes and spiders),,,sorry jill and sandy,,,

I did love your story of your dragon fish though.....pretty smart guy...

love pp