Relative Something

When we stepped out the door yesterday morning, the songbirds were in full symphony. Initially, I noticed a red-bellied woodpecker making a repeated shout-out in a tree just overhead. In the background, we kept hearing a cheery melody that neither of us recognized.

Our bird ID app isolated it in no time as a Baltimore Oriole, a most welcome visitor to our property. These gorgeous birds are nowhere near as prevalent as the robins, cardinals, and 5 or 6 other common birds we see every day. After we identified the oriole’s distinct song, it became the soundtrack of our day.

Not only was the oriole vocal, but it also made a special appearance right outside our window. It likes the hummingbird feeder.

After getting our front yard mowed with the push mower, I went for a little bike ride to christen my new, more aggressive tread tires. To my great satisfaction, the difference in rolling resistance compared to my previous slick tires was difficult to discern.

They may roll like my old tires, but they definitely improved my confidence in coping with the wide variety of surface conditions, from rough pavement to occasional gravel. I decided to see how my legs would feel riding the entire time without battery assist. Oof da. I’m definitely not in long-distance riding shape. The many hills I needed to climb took a toll.

I take some solace in the fact that the ride didn’t entirely wipe me out for the rest of the day. Mowing resumed, using both the riding mower (which didn’t trip the error code –go figure) and the push mower. And all the while, the oriole was serenading us with its song.

We consider it a great treat whenever a less common visitor stops by, be it a songbird, pileated woodpecker, sandhill cranes, or any of the birds of prey that occasionally show up. They are all a lot more interesting than the rabbits, raccoons, and deer that are around all the time, and rile up Asher’s angst every time.

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