(no subject)

it has been a stressfull, insomnia inducing weekend for me. I think they need to make a berenstein bears childrens books called "The Berenstein Bears and Too Much Wedding." Or in my case, too much wedding, not enough boyfriend - R has had lots of wierd drama in his life this weekend and it has meant that communication kinda didn't happen. This left me a very disgruntled merchi, but we talked it out, planned some stuff, including him coming out to PA and MD with me in May, and all will be well. He will drive my dad's car back to CA with him so we can move and live happily ever after in Seattle with a car that works.

I'm finally yawning so it must be bed time

The good news is that in my insomnia I started 4 of the lectures I'm doing for the world music exam.

sad birdie update

I wish I knew more about hummingbird child rearing practice - do they practice infanticide? 2 days ago I started noticing only one little beak in the nest, then confirmed that one wasn't hiding when the came to the nest to feed and only fed the one little beak. The winds have been high, could the other one have fallen out? Could it have been gotten by a predator? I think it is the big bird of the pair still in the nest, so I don't think it is that one got ready to fly away and managed to do it before the other one. I'm sad for the birdie and also wonder if it was infanticide since the nest was getting SO crowded - was there some kind of selection so that the remaining birdie could have space to grow?

....of to google hummingbirds....

(no subject)

what a strange contrast between today and yesterday - yesterday I got fitted for an engagement ring. My ring size is 10 - women's wedding bands only go up to size 8, at least in the little mall jewelers where I got it done. This, including the fact that when my mom told the jeweler in PA (who is making my engagement ring) that I am a size 10.5 the jeweler said NO WAY oh my goodness, that can't be. And the jeweler's disbelief is the whole reason I went to get sized anyway - which turned out okay because I'm a 10 not a 10.5.... So I felt like a TOTAL freak ..... and huge and ungainly to boot.

Today I am schlepping around the bargain basement strip mall in Venice, doing my laundry, getting my 99 cent store fix, and when I was waiting in line to get my lunch at the Mexican hut by the strip mall this guy totally chats me up in a completely awkward and sincere way. He was totally making a play for me - he asked me what I did - and when I told him he said "wow smart and pretty!" - I just kinda let that one slide, but mentioned that I was getting married in June - I don't even have the ring of power yet, but I'm already starting to feel its strength. It was all very sweet and he didn't end up stalking me to my car or anything - this kind of thing never happens to me - I am not the girl that people pick out of the burrito line to chat up, so I really didn't know what to expect. He just got his burrito, tried to hug me, and told me that I was very very pretty. It was all flattering and very very strange - especially since I was in a tank top and overalls that my mother always tells me looks horrible because it shows all my fat.

final birdie update

wow I think the birdies have flown away, left the nest! I thought I saw one in our garden this afternoon and today the nest is completely empty. This means that maybe the disappearance of one birdie might mean that the one was strong enough to fly away a day or two before its sibling.

I think I have empty nest syndrome.

I looked up online, and the hummingbirds are ruby throated hummingbirds, but it was hard to figure out because the females don't have pink throats and the females do all the childcare in most hummingbird species. The site also said that hummingbirds don't reuse nests, but will often return to the same place to nest in future years.

Bye bye nice birdies! I hope you have fulfilling lives filled with sweet nectar.