Big Birdie News!

Orchid and Orrin will be parents!

Famous Bird

I haven't had much time to blog lately in lieu of my time consuming daily projects. My goal was to complete the Wake Up Bedhead album cover by the end of August, but it took much longer than anticipated. Josh is finishing the final touches on our recordings by completing the mixes and mastering each song. It's all coming together now and it will be finished and sent off for printing by the end of November. Another major goal almost complete!  

I was working very hard at getting my beloved birdies into my favorite magazine, Bird Talk. I was losing hope and even getting a little bitter that they weren't chosen to be in the Watch the Birdie section of the magazine. Lo and behold I came home one day to find a new Bird Talk on my porch. I opened it up and saw a picture of Orchid staring back at me! I was very excited.

Orchid gazing at a photo of herself. 

 

Orchid gazing at a photo of herself.   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I wish my arms were wider. I wish that I could hide you. So you can rest and repair without the blanket of sorrow.

 

The Cardigans  Feathers and Down

 A beautiful song. A tribute to a friend attempting to fight his demons.

My Bird Don't Talk and I Don't Care

A few weeks ago I went out of town on a mini vacation and asked one of my band members to be my birdie sitter for a few days. The vacation went great and the birds squawked like a crazy flock when we returned home. Before the trip Tammy was still pretty distant from me with a getting-to-know her owner super shy and defiant type of attitude. Upon returning she seemed to have a change of heart. She seemed super excited to see me, and even let me take her out of her cage without a fight. All was well!

A few days later Wake Up Bedhead had band practice and Jason, my bird sitter said that the other birds were fine with him when he changed their food, but Tammy put up a huge fuss sounding calls off like an alarm and wasn't able to be touched. He commented that it seems like it would be so much work to have a bird like that, and that there couldn't be much fun in having a bird that did not like to be handled, and doesn't speak or do any tricks.

I wasn't offended by the comment at all and can understand his view point, but it did throw me off a bit. I've been pondering my decision since then, and daily my thoughts affirm that I have made a wonderful decision to adopt Tammy. She screams and tries to run away when attempting to take her out of her cage, her body is almost entirely plucked and she does not have the beauty of a fully feathered parrot, she does not speak but squawks and screams very loudly, she poops all over my back, she cannot do any tricks, and she is extremely fearful of hands.

Regardless of all of this, I love her and she shows me much gratitude by swaying and cooing to me throughout the day. She enjoys sitting on my shoulder, eating her treats, watching t.v. and observing the other birds. Though she's had a long, hellish life she never once has bitten me and has the sweetest personality.

I never really thought much of my happiness or my convenience when deciding to re-home an abused creature. I knew that it take hard work and persistence to own a pet like this, but I really wanted to make a positive change in the life of an animal that never was given a chance before. It would have been easy enough to choose a bird that was never neglected or abused in their lifetime, and a bird who wasn't in need of much training, but I wouldn't feel very good about myself if I had done this. I have made an enormous difference in the life of another living creature who is not able to care for itself.

 In two months she went from quivering in the corner of her cage to actually stepping onto my fingers. She is a great companion and is quietly sitting on my shoulder while I type this! The progress is amazing, and some day I bet she will be a universally desirable pet. But whether this change occurs or not, I desire her and she desires me, and that's all that matters.

Please adopt an animal in need if you are looking for a new pet! The world will be a better place if you do!

Lately

Much has happened since my last blogging session. School is in session once again, friends Todd and Megan tied the knot, I had another mini-vacation in the Dells at Mt. Olympus water park, I'm still growing my indoor tomato plant, and I've found many thrift store and estate sale treasures. I've had much less free time on my hands since work has started, but I'm still getting some of my goals accomplished.

I finished an important book that I had been reading, I'm still doing well using natural products as much as possible, and I have been making headway on Wake Up Bedhead's new album cover. I'm so looking forward to the day that the whole album is all finished! Thanks to Josh our website has been updated with a new look and it is now easier to navigate. Go to wakeupbedhead.com to see it! The hyperlink leads to the music section of the site where there are two song samples from our new album.

Wake Up Bedhead

In bird news, Tammy, my senior parrot was highlighted on The Center for Avian Rehabilitation and Education's blog. This is our full story! Orrin and Orchid are doing well together, and Tammy has made a new friend in Orchid. My two sweet girls enjoy bird time together!

Orrin on the other hand.... his new nickname is Luci, short for Lucifer. He's been very naughty lately, particularly so a few days ago when he attempted to peck my eye out. He's becoming too territorial and I think he's up for a wing trimming and some special training sessions.

Bird Talk Magazine

So I've been getting issues of Bird Talk magazine for the past year or so. I absolutely love this magazine and would suggest it to any bird owner who truly cares about their feathered companion. Lately I've been trying to get my birdie pictures in their magazine. I can win some treats for the birds if they show up in the magazine, but ultimately it would just be super cool to see them featured in a publication.

This is an example of one of the pictures I sent to them. This is Orchid on the left and Josh's deceased bird Pinky on the right. They were having a birdie hoot about something. Lets see if it makes it in the magazine.

Tammy Update

A few posts back I recorded my struggles in attempting to keep some newly purchased goldfish alive. Sadly, they passed away the night that I bought them. Goodbye forever Mingo and other fishy.

In other news, Tammy my special needs rescue parrot is coming along very well. When I first brought her home she was scared out of her mind but in the last few weeks we have bonded well. The other night she spent an hour and a half hanging out on my shoulder and cuddling up to my face while we watched the movie Walk The Line. I really enjoyed Johnny Cash's life story and I also enjoy Tammy's new habit of licking my bottom lip and the tip of my nose. It's super cute....and no I am not afraid of catching "bird flu".

In this picture you can see her bare chest from feather plucking. This is a characteristic behavior of parrots with emotional  turmoil or  skin/medical conditions. Not all parrots end up plucking themselves. Tammy was a neglected soul who was not fed properly and was housed in a cage literally ten times too small for her and this led to her feather plucking.

Orrin and Orchid hanging out with Tammy on the bird chair. 

Lately I had been accumulating a lot of great looking photos on my camera's memory card, but who knew that "would you like to format your memory card now?" actually means "you're about to permanently delete all of your photographs dumbshit!" Probably everyone other than me : )

Anyway, I ended up loosing a summers worth of beautiful photos of my birds, visits to the beach, fair visits, demolition derby videos (Which was awesome btway. I saw a car flip over which is pretty uncommon), boating videos, and photos from friend visits. Yuck. Regardless of the photos lost, I surely will have more to share in future posts.

Videos

She & Him is a band that I've enjoyed listening to for years and yet I never seem to tire of their music. Their songs have a very vintage sound reminiscent of radio hits of the 50's and 60's. Zooey Deschanel's voice is rich and lovely. This is one of my favorite songs from their album.

Orchid was sick of waiting and finally asked Orrin to marry her. He agreed but threw some tantrums, tossing a glass bird ornament on the ground. Silly bird!

Josh made this video for Wake Up Bedhead's song Put Your Hands Up. I listed the lyrics to the song below because I love to look up lyrics of every song that I listen to and thought that others may enjoy this as well. We're currently working on our next video for Eli's song Crystal Ball.

Put Your Hands Up

I know what you're doing in the summer 

And I know when you're looking in the mirror 

I know when you're floating in a cloud 

And I know when I feel like getting loud 

 Sometimes you get so high it's hard to breathe you worry

 A feeling in your chest can make you oh so sorry 

The music in your mind can play with all your senses

 Put you in another place 

Where you've got a different face 

and wake up 

 oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh 

 I know when you get a little older  

Things will get a bit less serious

 I know when you're looking 

 You won't find the answer then 

You need to know how to get back to the ground

 Sometimes you get so high it's hard to breathe you worry 

A feeling in your chest can make you oh so sorry 

The music in your mind can play with all your senses 

Put you in another place 

Where you've got a different face
and wake up

oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh

 Oh put your hands up baby 

You've gotta give up  

Singing oh put your hands up baby 

You've gotta give up 

Oh oh oh put your hands up baby 

You've gotta give up

 Singing oh put your hands up baby

 You've gotta give up.

 oh oh oh oh oh oh oh oh

Natural Lifestyle

I've been on a mad mission to accomplish my summer goals since fall will shortly start creeping in. As previously mentioned, one goal that I have made sporadic attempts at completing is to live a healthy lifestyle by eating well and using chemical free beauty and household products.

This time I've gone all out in hopes of continuing on with a healthy lifestyle. I've researched natural products online and have spent a lot of time searching through stores to find products that are as natural as possible. My hope is to eventually use products that are 100% all natural for all daily purposes. This is more difficult than it may sound due to the need for synthetic preservatives that are necessary for a long shelf life.  To accomplish this I may have to concoct my own potions daily, weekly, or monthly depending on ingredients used.

At this point I only have a few 100% certified natural, preservative, phosphate, paraben, fluoride, and sulfate free concoctions. The rest are very close to 100% natural. Some are recently purchased and others long-standing products that I use in my daily life.

Lavera Intense Volumizing Mascara
This product is made with organic beeswax and refined mineral pigments. At $24.50 I thought that it would make my eyes dazzle and maybe even give me special super powers. It didn't. Honestly it does not make my lashes look half as beautiful as my previous Lancome mascara, but I will continue to use it in lieu of my life goal.

Lavera Soft-Eyeliner Brown
This eyeliner is made with organic jojoba oil and shea butter. Again, this does not work as well as my favorite chemical ridden eyeliner, but the benefits will outweigh the negative aspects of the product.

Lavera Lipgloss
This lip gloss is very pretty, but I'm a huge lipstick fanatic and have been wearing it almost every day since I was 13. It will be a very healthy change once I find the perfect organic lipstick. Or I might start making my own. No more ingesting nasty chemicals every day.




Alba Coconut Milk Cream Body Wash
This body wash is 100% vegetarian and smells really great. It is a non-foaming body wash, so it feels a little funny not having soapy bubbles in the bath.                    

                                                      Cococare 100% Cocao Butter Stick

I use this lotion stick every night on my dry skin trouble areas. It smells like chocolate and I'm generally not thrilled about smelling like a brownie, but it works really well and is 100% natural. It is incredibly cheap too!






Burt's Bees Natural Fluoride Free Toothpaste

Fluoride free is the way to be! 

Burt's Bees Pomegranate Lip Balm

100% natural and made with pomegranate oil,       

I really enjoy how this balm smells and tastes.

          100% Extra Virgin Coconut Oil 

This stuff is great! Due to spending way too much time boating on the Mississippi the other day, my skin was burnt to a crisp. I usually don't burn, but I look pretty lobstery. Anyway, I broke open a few capsules of coconut oil and slathered it all over my skin. It helped with the pain and my skin has yet to peel. Coconut oil is also an incredible cure-all. 

eos lotion

I love this lotion so much and it is 97% natural. It has a very soft, 

fresh scent and my skin feels so incredibly silky after every use.

Also, Yes To Cucumbers Shampoo and Conditioner, {pirk}, Crystal Deodorant, Giovanni Natural Mousse, are new additions to my life.

The absolute hardest part of my lifestyle change will be the healthy and eventual organic,  low-sugar, gluten and preservative free diet. It won't be easy but I plan to slowly make these changes, even if it takes months or years.

Wish me luck on my life journey!

Fish

Today my parents came to visit and to drop off a much needed dining room table. I had previously been eating my meals on the coffee table and sitting on the floor, so this will be nice for a change. Unfortunately my dining room is a meager 9'x10' and I've had to re-arrange everything a little goofy like since I'm also planning on using it as a birdie play room, bass practice space, computer room, and an artists lair during winter seasons.

I took a trip to Wal-Mart with the parents and thought it'd be a nice gesture to buy some more fish for Vince the goldfish to play with. Out of all the fish in the tank I picked out a jolly looking goldfish sub-species, and a white and orange mixed color goldfish. I brought them home and was so happy watching the fishies swim around, but suddenly one of them started floating. Then within the next ten minutes the other one started to show signs of deterioration as well. I've been looking for cures on the internet and added some salt and peas to the water, just in case there is any hope for them. Somehow I feel that this is my fault because I took them from their home.

Maybe it seems strange to try so hard to save them, but I truly believe that every living creature is a special soul with a purpose in this world. I refuse to kill bugs unless they are harming me or others, and obviously through accidental circumstances with my feet, car, etc. I'd actually feel better about myself if I were a vegetarian, but because of my hypoglycemia and eye problems I've been told to eat a lot of complete proteins, which are animal proteins.  Maybe incomplete proteins can be combined to make a complete protein? Someone please teach me these things!!!

Anyway, I hope my fishies survive...the poor things.

Oh Beautiful Chair

China King buffet always makes me sick. The food tastes great, but it's the after effects that aren't so hot. So I've kinda been dragging through the day. Good news is that I found the perfect chair for my dining room/birdie play room. Paid $8.50 at the Salvation Army and I am a happy camper!

I couldn't resist throwing my Hofner in the picture. It's such a great bass.

Jonas has been sitting around all day playing Rio on his Xbox in anticipation for watching the DVD tonight. I love that I've turned him into a total bird freak. In case anyone was wondering, yes we will be watching the movie with the birds.

Wake Up Bedhead has been on a bit of a hiatus because our drummer Jason, aka Action Jacksen, hurt his hand by falling off of his bike. Jason is a really, super nice guy and deserves to have some lucky lady mend his wounds and make him feel all better! Ice that hand buddy!

Jason of WUB

Tammy Katy Parrot

So Tammy has been a bit scared since coming home. It's another chapter in her life and hopefully the last major change she will have to go through. She's been through too much.

 Now Tammy is not a first name choice for a pet of mine. At one point in my life I knew a Tammy and upon hearing this name it would bring me back to a darker period in my life. It's strange how we can associate words, smells, or basically anything with good or bad feelings. The mind works in strange ways.

I do not know how long she has had this name and don't feel right completely changing it. I was watching MTV and a Katy Perry video was on. Tammy perked up, shook her tail feathers, and squawked when asked if she liked Katy Perry. So I call her Tammy Katy Parrot and she doesn't seem to mind. I think she looks just like crazy Katy Perry.

Tammy

Saturday turned out to be a great day for this bird lover. My family is finally complete with the addition of a friend that I officially adopted from the Center for Avian Rehabilitation & Education, Inc. in Hubertus, WI. 

I did not sleep well the night before my departure to pick out my new loved one. Anxiety had taken over my mind and I was tossing and turning all night. Three sleeping spots later I finally dozed off on my couch. All of the negative aspects of bird ownership kept on creeping into my mind. Daily cage cleanings, fresh food expenses, accidental and intentional bite wounds, and incessant squawking half an hour before my alarm is set to go off each morning. 

Despite my apprehension, I woke up early Saturday morning to start the four hour journey to the CARE center. It was a very long drive, but I was in great company and I saw something extraordinary!  Within the first thirty minutes of the journey Jonas and I witnessed World Guy, a man named Erik Bendl who has walked over two thousand miles for diabetes awareness. I was disappointed that I didn't have my camera, but at least I found him on the Internet.

He looked just like this and was with his dog when I saw him.

So after this I drove another two hours and took a much needed break at a Wisconsin rest area somewhere past Wisconsin Dells. It was the nicest rest area I have ever seen! I thought about taking a nap on a bench in the air conditioned building, but ultimately decided to push on. Jonas drove the rest of the way and when we finally got to where we thought we were supposed to be, we couldn't find the town of Hubertus. So we stopped at a gas station and asked for directions two times, then finally found our destination. 

I wasn't sure what to expect of CARE, but let me tell you that it was ear-piercingly loud. Apparently Saturdays are a little bit more rowdy than days during the week and the birds were pretty worked up. I saw many species of birds; love birds, conures, cockatoos, parrotlets, budgies, amazons, lorikeets, cockatiels, and I even saw a macaw for the first time. It was gorgeous, though that beak could cut a person's hand right in half. 

So we walked through the center and Chris, the lady that I had been communicating with over the phone, showed me a few birds based on my application. I was searching for a bird who wasn't as adoptable as others due to special needs or appearance.  

I first met Puzzle who was an absolutely adorable, well mannered and social lorikeet. He seemed to really like me and I had a hard time not taking him home. He was fed the wrong diet and had some complications due to this. Lorikeets feed on nectar, pollen, and fruits in the wild and need to be fed a specialized water and powder mix along with fruits. Because of this their poop sprays out like water and later crystallizes. I know this first hand because he pooped on me. Haha! Anyway, he was a doll and my heart still aches a little for not taking him home. I did not feel that I had the right living situation for him, but he was so adorable that I'm sure he'll find a new home soon. 

Puzzle 

I also met Mork, the elderly Patagonian conure who I spoke about in a previous post. He was very sweet, but he was very fond of a specific volunteer who worked with him weekly. I felt that it would have been a shame to take him away from a place where he had such a strong connection with another human. 

Mork

Finally I was introduced to Tammy the Nanday Conure. From what I've been told she has had a very rough life, but it doesn't show in her personality.

If you click here you can see Tammy's story as it has been updated on CARE's blog. Start reading at the bottom of the page under Meet Tammy, and read through her story backwards. If you click on newer post you can see more info about her. It's really quite sad. She was housed in a canary cage for 23 years and was barely alive when she was brought to CARE from lack of nutrition. She was the weight of a parakeet and she should have been three times that weight. She was then adopted by someone who tried to make money off of her on craigslist. When she was surrendered back to the center she made a bird friend named Rocky who ended up dying from egg laying complications. Such a hard life for a poor little bird!

So here I come...I see Tammy for the first time and knew that I had to give her a good home. She's my little love. 

Tammy resting on my chest during a long ride home

Summer Goals

I've developed a plan for the summer and hope to complete each of my goals in a timely fashion. My first plan of action was to create a lovely, cozy home for myself. I have accomplished this and my place is as beautiful as I could have ever dreamed it to be. Now that I have successfully done so, I must work on the rest of my list.

Step two of my plan was to find a parrot in need and provide it with a loving home. This goal is well on its way to becoming a reality! I've been half-heartedly  working towards the rest of my summer goals, but I will have plenty of time on my hands soon and success looks promising.

The rest of my goals are as follows:

1. Finish reading Bass Guitar For Dummies. In order to become the best bassist that I can be I would like to educate myself further.  So far this book is really great and it is not only for beginners. It delves into music theory and has many exercises that are easy to follow.

2.  Complete 2-D art and graphic design aspects of the new Wake Up Bedhead album cover. It has actually been quite the struggle to complete this as my last version of the cover was destroyed thanks to a glitch in my computer's operating system. Damn you Ubuntu!

3. Start an exercise regimen in order to stay healthy and happy. I would also like to start myself on a healthier diet and eat as preservative free as possible. Eventually I would like to start using products that are natural and chemical free in hopes of eliminating some of my vision issues. This might sound easy, but over the years I have made attempts to eat gluten free diets, no sugar, and little preservatives and it was so incredibly difficult. I hope to start myself off on this goal this summer. I greatly admire Priscilla Priebe, a gorgeous MN musician from the band Maudlin. She was searching for a healthier way of living so she began a business {pirk}- soaps and whatnots for chemical free living. So far I have purchased her tea tree and buttermilk complexion soap and it made my skin feel great!

Maudlin

Chillin' at a Maudlin show

4. I would love to continue on with my art and feel that I've had quite a block going on for a while. I'm usually pretty busy with my birds, Wake Up Bedhead, and my job so I haven't had much time to do what I love the most. I plan to begin a painting or large scale drawing to get myself back into an art groove. I feel so calm and complete when I'm making art, so this is a must.


Well these are the plans, so we'll see how it all turns out!

Jason, Eli, Sherry, Josh