Monday, February 28, 2011

Look Who Came to Dinner/ Decision Time

12:05 PM a scrub jay landed on the ledge outside my study window. Not quite as shocking as last year's lunch visits by local hawk. Still, a squawking bright blue bird staring you down is an attention getter.

Decided Mr. Jay  meant for me to refill the bird feeders.  It wasn't long before an entourage of woodpeckers dropped in.

Mr Acorn Woodpecker


















The Victorian feeder is generally filled with a birdseed mix laden with peanuts, safflower and sunflower seeds and sweetened with raisins. Sometimes extra nuts and dried fruit are added from the pantry. This last month I decided to experiment with stirring in the disgusting looking dried meal worms from the pet store.



The change in menu must be why the new visitors.


Tuesday, 127 Hours will be released on Blu-Ray. I am working up the nerve to watch the harrowing account of survival by hiker Aron Ralston. 



In 2005 I interviewed Aron for my Editor's column in community newspaper

Between a Rock and a Hard Place was his chronicle of how when hiking alone in a slot canyon, an accident led to Aron being trapped. He had to choose between possible life without his arm vs certain death with it.  Aided by a pocket knife- he chose to be his own surgeon.

On the face, a story with a self- amputation at its core is gruesome. But I remember Aron describing the act as being driven by wanting to be with loved ones.

172 Hours can be argued to be a true-to- life love story where no one died- while Titanic was a true tragedy (1490 people perished) yet James Cameron turned stupendous misfortune into a love story. Ironic, isn't it? 

 

4 comments:

  1. "My" woodpeckers love the wildbird seed feeder. Fun to watch!

    Aaron Ralston's story was on Dateline not long ago and I watched with rapt attention. What a wonderfully nice young man. His mother was interviewed too and she is just lovely. Both are the kind of people I'd like to know. Aaron is truly amazing.
    xo

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  2. Lydia,

    I remember when you interviewed Aaron. What a harrowing story that is. I can't bring myself to watch that movie tho.
    I would have loved to have watched the interview on Dateline tho.

    I'm with you about the crying at the Oscars. I teared up when Firth won because he was so deserving. I shouted with joy when Natalie Portman won best actress and The King's Speech won for Best Movie. I teared up at the end when those school children sang. Of course I oooowwww and aaawwwwed at all the fabulous gowns Ann Hathaway wore. Never have I seen a host change so many times!
    It was one of the best Oscar shows ever! It had to be, I watched EIGHT hours of it starting with The Red Carpet at 2:00 and finally turned it off at 10:00.
    Oh yes,one of the best parts was Celine Dion singing "Smile" while they showed all the movie people who have departed this earth in the last year.

    Hugs, Trisha

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  3. Oregon Sue and Trisha- You are officially "Early Birds"):-

    One of the things Aron talked about was this feeling of being reborn was he was "freed".

    My impression was that he was a good man before the accident. But he became selfless afterwards.

    The work he has done with injured vets.

    It isn't what happens to you- it is what you do with it.

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  4. What a sweet Woodpecker he is....Very dear, my dear.

    I have seen 127 Hours and although it is not the prettiest thing to watch--that scene was not as gruesome as I expected it to be...Still, it was not easy to watch. But an inspiring story, none-the-less.

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