It’s been exactly a year since I rescued Gem, our fancy red pigeon, from the side of the road. His right wing was both punctured and fractured, most likely from a hawk strike. He couldn’t fly and probably wouldn’t have lasted another day if I hadn’t happened by and scooped him up. (You can find…
Our neighborhood is home to a large community of crows. Sometimes, on summer evenings, dozens of them gather on the roof of our house. We hear them walking around up there and see the shadows of their feet through the skylights. If a person didn’t love birds, it would be easy to go all Tippi…
When I first saw Gem, I thought he was three feet tall. That was a powerful misperception, given that he is in reality just 10 1/2 ounces of flesh and bone and very fancy feathers. I was driving home at the end of the day, fantasizing about apricots as jam makers do in June, when…
For many years when I lived alone, I didn’t have a Christmas tree. I would get some boughs and hang some bells, but saw no reason to untangle the lights and grapple with a Christmas tree stand. (I still don’t get how something with so few parts can be so specially designed to test one’s…
Remember how we weren’t sure whether our King pigeon Yuzu was male or female, but were certain that Quince was a boy? (Even our expert pigeon veterinarian said so.) Well, look what our boy Quince went and did . . . And this is how she looked at me when I asked to see her…
Okay, so it’s not an official national holiday. Banks and government offices are open. But if the New York Bird Club had succeeded in its efforts, this would be a day to formally honor the heroism and dedication of our friend, the pigeon. Here’s an excerpt from the club’s 2009 letter to President Obama: We…
I’m not in the habit of committing copyright violations, but I had to post this picture I snapped of my favorite postcard. The photograph was taken by Martine Franck in Nepal in 1996. To me, it says everything about life. Surprising intersections of being. Humor. Acceptance. Pigeons. Things haven’t been going according to plan around…
Guess what’s new here? If you follow the Hitchhiking to Heaven Facebook Page you probably already know that we’ve been building a pigeon house. (I should probably call it an aviary or dovecote, but to me it’s a pigeon house.) We’re still working the details — nest boxes, perches, and so on — but right…
A while back, Stewart came home from a trip and I told him I’d taken up with a guy down the street. My other boyfriend is a fat guy — big belly, skinny neck — though he weighs only 30 pounds. And he honks. Which makes sense, given that he’s a big domestic goose. When…