You know those jokes about getting old and becoming interested in birds? It’s a thing. For me anyway. I have always loved them, but really started watching them more when Covid hit and I was working from home. I started noticing their habits and learning about them. I feed them every day. I watch them fly and eat and fight like old married couples. I have watched a beautiful red tailed hawk take them down and I was trying to warn them, but knew it was just all part of the cycle.

A few months ago, I started making friends with a crow. I literally just asked him one day if we could be friends and kept talking to him when I would see him. He started coming around more and he always sits on the same branch outside my window where I work. I started leaving snacks for him: unsalted shelled peanuts, mini-pretzels, small fruits and nuts. I can literally hear him outside as I type this! Asking for snacks. Hold on….

He caws for me when he’s hungry or sits outside looking toward my window. I always deliver when I am home. I talk to him a lot through the window, but when I open the door, he flies to his branch. I am hoping someday he will let me be near him. We named him Ace, but I usually walk out and say, “Hey buddy!” Crows are so smart. They can mimic voices and have the intelligence of a 7 year old. They also hold grudges and hold wakes for their deceased friends. This makes me love them so much.

I went away one weekend for three nights and came back to a shiny thing right near where I feed him. It was a Chinese meditation ball! I am not sure it was from him, but if it was – that is the coolest offering ever! My neighbor told me it was in a pot in her yard for years.

Here are some photos of Ace and other birds I have come to love in my yard. I love them all.