Ghosts and Woodpeckers

 Missing you is worse than Pittsburgh.

~ Salvador Placencia, The People of Paper 

Zelda was supposed to be MY dog. I knew I needed motivation to walk...and a dog motivates.

But it is like making friends - you don't necessarily choose them...often something just "fits." Dogs decide.*

Zelda decided on DH. And he decided on her. Souls speak to souls. They go everywhere together. Seriously. Everywhere.

But I am managing the walks this week and what a gift this time has been. Today was no different. On our way to the park we saw a white cat returning from the overnight prowl.** Our neighbors have been missing a cat for months and my old brain tried to remember if it was this cat or a different one. A quick look at my watch - late enough for a text*** - and a text determined this was not the missing animal...no longer a ghost story.

Not a ghost

No one was about so I dropped the leash and let Z wander a bit. She is pretty good about staying close. As long as there were no squirrels we would be fine.  And we were either too early or too late for the squirrels.

But we were right on time for the woodpeckers.

I had heard the calls before I saw the two Red-bellied Woodpeckers. They moved around the park (probably because they saw us). We saw them and listened as they talked back and forth and fed on insects in dead wood.

The photos are awful - poor light and cell phone - see if you can find the woodpeckers in these shots.

Two birds here.

Silhouettes

Why are they making it so difficult for a photo that will allow me to know for sure what they are.

I often see these Red-bellies in the neighborhood, but usually lone birds. I cannot remember seeing two at a time before.

Finally. It's still bad, but will let me look it up and be sure.

What, you might ask, was Zelda doing while I was stalking the birds? She flopped down in the grass and watched the crazy woman moving here and there and talking to herself. When I turned my gaze back to the dog I found she had just decided to "roll around in that good smell." Great.

Time to head back home to breakfast and get on with this fine day.

NOTES:

*In a way it is like the clay deciding what it wants to be. The potter plans, but the clay decides. At least that is my experience. I visited the pound 3 times before the adoption. On two of those trips I brought DH so he could meet her. On each of those trips, she was not available - playing had to get? Nope. Closed once. In surgery on the other. "Just go get her!" he said. "If you can buy a house without me, you can get a dog." Yeah, I can get a dog - for him.

**Are cats "ashamed" returning home in the early morning? I think not.

***Unlike the texts I've been receiving at 5 a.m. [A little passive aggressive comment there. :-/ ]



RED-BELLIED WOODPECKER CALLS:

     It was the "kwirr" call this morning.  
     https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-bellied_Woodpecker/sounds