I'm switching from Line Share DSL to a DLoop so there's no Internet for us today. Just need a few adjustments and hopefully birdie-cam will be back up sometime today or early tomorrow.

Tags: Update

We took a shower this morning and boy did he really open up. He paced the shower curtain rod back and forth and was laughing and talking up a storm. The laugh sounds like a little girl. I wonder if the previous owners had a young girl. He also makes some sounds which are something like a cross between a dog barking and a machine gun. Tons of new whistles and beeps I hadn't heard before. What a crazy kid.

Got the weight bench up out of the basement so I can resume my working out. It's heavy but a lot easier than I thought it would be. I missed 3 days of lifting because of all the rain out here and flooding. It's in the same room he's in so we can get pumped and rock out to tunes. I bet he'll perch on the bar while I presses and curls and the like. We'll have to try it.

I almost hate to put him on my shoulder any more (not really). He'll nestle in as close to me as possible and rub his head against mine which I do like (gives me goose bumps), but he does not want to move. I can't get him to step up onto my hand. I have to grab the guy and pull him off. I think he likes me.

Tags: Update

Got the iBook set up for him. He can now watch movies and listen to music. And we can now use iChat to hear each other while I'm at work. (I must be losing my mind).

I let him watch Star Wars IV this morning. Wouldn't it be cool if he could breathe like Darth Vader or make R2D2 sounds?

I added a photo gallery. Not much there but hey, it has been less than a week together.

Tags: Update

We had more bonding time tonight as we watched Penn & Teller. I was able to put him into a nice little nap by scratching/stroking his neck. Ooh he likes that. After that he tucked himself under my beard and snoozed away while I pet his back. So much love he has.

He also started mimicking me when I cough except it sounds more like a squeaky Achoo! What the heck am I teaching this guy. Soon he'll be making belching and gassy sounds. Oh what fun!

Tags: Update

Went home to spend lunch hour with Beaker since he looked so lonely and bored yesterday. I think the music today is helping. I haven't seen him glued to the door waiting for me all day. He was on my shoulder as I ate and he just had to scale down my arm to check it out. I gave him a bit of lettuce which he nibbled on then went back to his perch; my shoulder.

I'm getting better at understanding his vocals and behavior. He has only pooped on me once. But I'm learning that he'll get a bit nippy and make a specific frustrated sound when he needs to go. I'll pick him up *then* he'll do his business. Good Beaker! Now if I can just get a paper towel ready or something so he learns to wait for that. I have consistently said "poop" every time I see him go so he equates that sound with the act which will hopefully help in potty training him.

Stood outside while it was (STILL) raining for a smoke and got a few new things out of him. "Whatcha doing?", a cute little purring sound like a cat or something, a few new whistles I haven't heard before and he's starting to imitate my laugh. Is that good or bad?

Tags: Update

Flooded basement. About 1" of water. Beaker (yes, I am naming him Beaker) was a trooper and helped me mop up and move boxes around with mumbles of encouragement. At least I found the leak and why it's happening. The LandLord is fixing it now.

Took a shower this morning and had Beaker see how he'd do perched on the curtain rod. I think he enjoyed it but wasn't quite sure what was going on. I'm sure seeing me naked is a bewildering thing. :P He just watched and pretty much kept quiet. I want to expose him to all kinds of places and situations so he doesn't freak out in the future when I want to take him out.

Found some nature/jungle/ambient music online and am trying that today while I'm gone. I noticed yesterday he seemed to look pretty bored wondering where I was at about 6 or 7 hours into my shift. I'm going to set up my spare iBook to play music and maybe some TV for him while I'm not around.

Oh, and I set up the cam to automatically turn on at 9a and off at midnight (EST). Birdie needs his beauty rest plus you can't see anything in the dark anyhow.

Tags: Update

I got a little over-excited and told just about everyone I know of this site. It was meant as my personal playground but I just had to share. I only have a 1mbps upstream so it's pretty easy to kill the feed. If you find that the High-Fi (live streaming) feed isn't working very well then switch to the Low-Fi (30 second refresh) for a while. I'll have to see what I can do about fixing this.

I managed to kill the feed entirely once today (having been up all of a few hours). Had to remote in and reboot and tweak some settings. If it acts strange or slow for you just take all of this into consideration. Thanks.

Tags: Update

A little site for a new family member. Primarily so I can watch him while not at home.

I went to the pet store last week to get some crickets for a Wolf Spider in dire need of fattening up. There was a Macaw there I just fell in love with. I've always had a deep love and respect for birds and wanted one some day. But it's a huge commitment as they can live a very long life. After much weighty thought I decided to go for it.

Purchased on 2006.06.24 (Saturday). He is approximately 3 years old. He has been DNA-sexed as male.

Spending the weekend together has been fantastic. He's very vocal but mumbles a lot so it's difficult to understand what he's trying to say. So far I've discovered he'll say "Hello", "What's Up?", "Good-Night", "Come in" (I think) and a host of other nonsense. If I say dance and move around he'll move around, side to side and make noises. At night when I lay in bed he loves to climb up on me and nestle in under my beard and groom me. Every day we discover something new about each other.

I should have done this years ago. He's such a joy and I look forward to spending the rest of our years together.

PS : His given name is Dray. It's not a terrible name but it makes me think of Dr. Dre which I find unoriginal. If he starts to respond to it I may give him a new name. Not sure what yet. I like Pico or Beaker so far.

Tags: The Beginning